NHLBy Sean Keeley on

The New Jersey Devils caught a lot of flak over their alternative jersey that read “Jersey.” The Nashville Predators didn’t want them to feel alone, apparently.

Thursday, the Predators and Tampa Bay Lighting unveiled their Stadium Series jerseys that they’ll wear during an outdoor game in Tennessee in February. It’s one of three outdoor games for the NHL this year and, as always, a chance for the league and teams playing to draw attention to themselves.

Of course, if your jersey isn’t well-received, there’s a downside to all that attention. And the Predators are finding out about that with the reveal of their “Smashville” look.

In typical designer fashion, this time by Adidas, the designs and specifics included on the jersey all come with explanations of dubious intent.

The player’s name and number font feature digits and characters of different widths and weights as seen when mismatched letterpress blocks are used in letterpress music posters, and a streamlined colorway of navy and gold with minimal white detailing is also present.

The interior back neck graphic of the jersey is a stylized sound wave pattern evoking Music City, and a stadium-sized Predator logo will be on the right hip of the players’ pants.

Sure. Whatever. All we know is that NHL fans are not impressed and they made sure to voice their concerns on social media.

So bad has the reaction been that someone even started a Change.org petition to get them revised. A bit much, but, understandable.

https://twitter.com/AdamVingan/status/1466561915048632333

For better or worse, we’re guessing the Predators are locked into these jerseys for the outdoor game. And while dunking on them might feel good, it’s important to note that the fine folks at Adidas are always happy you’re just talking about them, regardless of what you’re saying.

[Predators]

About Sean Keeley

Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Editorial Strategy Director for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.

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