The Vancouver Canucks will celebrate Pride Night on March 11 against the Washington Capitals.
Every NHL team typically holds a Pride Night at some point during the season, promoting the inclusion of LGBTQ2S+ people within the sport of hockey. It’s a simple way to be intentional about including people in hockey who haven’t always been included and still face bigotry and homophobia within the sport.
On the ice, not much really changes on a Pride Night. Typically, teams will use rainbow hockey tape on their sticks in warm-ups but switch back to traditional white or black tape for the game itself, with some exceptions. Teams will also frequently incorporate the rainbow into a warm-up jersey, typically in the name and numbers on the back.
This year, however, the Canucks went a little bit further, commissioning a unique logo and jersey for Pride Night that goes a step beyond simply slapping a rainbow on a jersey and calling it a day.
The end result is a truly gorgeous logo and jersey that catches the eye from a distance and reveals so much more detail when viewed more closely.
Instead of just a rainbow, the art on the logo represents the queer experience with a “sea to sky” motif — from the “feeling of drowning” in the sea, breaking free through the ice, the “path of new beginnings” through the forest, the dangers and difficulties represented by the mountains, and finally the freedom of embracing a queer identity in the sky.
The reason the jersey so authentically represents the queer experience is that they hired someone from the community they’re celebrating.
The jersey was designed by Mio, an illustrator who has previously worked with teams like the Dallas Stars, Carolina Hurricanes, and Minnesota Whitecaps. This is the first time, however, that her work has appeared on a jersey.
Redesigning NHL jerseys has been a passion project for Mio for years, such as her series of “NHL Botanicals” designs using Victorian flower language.
The jerseys will be auctioned off following the game, with partial proceeds benefiting the You Can Play Project.
For the Canucks, the Pride Night jersey follows in a series of iconic special event jerseys this season that have celebrated communities within their fanbase that can sometimes be overlooked. Each jersey was designed by someone within that community, which plays a big role in how well they have been received.
First was Diwali Night in November, with a unique Canucks logo transformed into a Diwali icon.
The logo was designed by South Asian artist Jag Nagra.
"As a kid, especially during the playoff season, hockey was such a big part of my upbringing, so it's really cool that I'm here now, making art for the Canucks," said Nagra. "I wanted to create a colourful piece that was representative of our culture."
The jersey auction that followed the game benefited the Punjabi Market Regeneration Collective.
Then there was the Lunar New Year jersey, celebrating the Year of the Tiger. The logo, designed by artist Trevor Lai, changes the Canucks' orca into tiger.
"I came up with the idea of a tiger jumping out of water because normally the orca is breaking through ice," said Lai to CBC News. "I thought what we are trying to push as a message is change.
"Because obviously, in addition to celebrating Lunar New Year, we're really trying to bring awareness to all of the increased inclusivity and anti-Asian activities and messages that we want to change."
Partial proceeds from the Canucks’ Lunar New Year merchandise went to Elimin8Hate, an organization that works for racial equity and an inclusive society for Asian Canadians.
Finally, there was the Canucks Black History Month jersey, designed by Ghanian-Canadian fashion designer Jason Bempong.
The logo takes inspiration from Kente, a Ghanaian textile that was embraced by Black Americans during the Civil Rights movement and has continued to be worn in North America for special occasions, such as graduations and weddings, and as a celebration of Black culture and pride.
“It was really cool for me to dive into the history and the story and where that all kind of came from,” said Bempong. “It just felt like I was able to really give some representation to my people, not just Ghanaians but also just Africans, anybody of colour. Just to show that we're able to get this platform and do this. I'm really happy to see the inclusion that's happening right now.”
Partial proceeds from the Canucks’ Black History Month merchandise are being donated to the BC Black History Awareness Society.
