Turning Over A New Leaf

The big talk around the Toronto Maple Leafs is the possibility that they can sign Steve Stamkos, because of course a star player entering his prime years would want to sign with a team that's been telling everyone they're just starting a multi-year rebuilding. That's unfortunate, since there was another story going on that might actually happen: the team is getting a new logo for its hundredth anniversary next year.

And I've got to say, it's about time. I've never liked this logo, so I'd welcome a new attempt. And so far the journalists I've read on the topic are surprisingly supportive. Normally, I assume that people will get angry when anyone mentions changing anything in hockey, especially with one of the original six teams. We'll see how fans react in the coming days.

The Leafs' logo is, well, symbolic of the strange nature of hockey fandom in general and the Leafs in particular. The Leafs have a tremendously strong following, one that's based on the team's long tradition as a successful institution. Yet all of that success was too long ago for most of today's fans to have seen it. And the team's current logo was introduced right around the time that success ended. But no one wants to change the logo. Why? Tradition!

The current logo was introduced just as Harald Ballard was starting to run the team into the ground, so you'd think it would have been dumped the day after his funeral. Yet, it's endured for another quarter-century.

But on top of its associations, I have to point out that it's never really looked right. For one thing, the shape and font look stuck in the sixties. But also, it looks off-centre. The lobe at the top tries to balance that little stem; it always looks top-heavy.

What should the new logo look like? There'll be lots of worry that they're going to do something crazy with it - the Toronto Star dredged up the horrors of the 90's Islanders' logo. That would qualify as fear mongering if we were talking about anything but sports logos. But really the Leafs' path is clear: take a page out of the Blue Jays' book and come up with a modernized version of a classic logo. Just pick out one of the old symbols - you know, with the big veiny leaf - and neaten it up and find a more modern font. Easy. It'll look great on an aging Steven Stamkos when they sign him in 2022 to compliment the team they've finally finished rebuilding.