Perhaps the more noticeable feature to change, however, was a change in the shoulder patches, hearkening back to the narrative from which the Predators' name originated - the discovery of sabre-toothed tiger fossils during construction in downtown Nashville. Reebok Vector-patches became the norm on the back of the neck area for each team in the NHL. First, a change of suppliers saw Reebok taking over the manufacturing of NHL jerseys league-wide. Nevertheless, the on-ice product is still appreciated as one of the most unique jerseys to hit the ice in recent memory.įrom 2001 to 2004, the affectionately dubbed "Mustard Cat" was manufactured by KOHO, and following the lockout of 2004-2005 when the NHL switched suppliers, the remaining two years of the Mustard Cat saw Reebok logos adorning the back of the jersey's neck.įollowing the lockout season of 2004-2005, a few changes were made to the look of the jerseys the Predators wore on the ice. There is speculation that these patches may have been chosen as part of a more comprehensive "bone and fang" theme, as detailed by the recent discovery of this likely prototype. It features a two-layered material, heavier and thicker than the Air-Knit standard home and away jerseys of the era, a squared neck, and for the first time the smilodon/sabre-toothed tiger skull patches on the shoulders. Love it or hate it (and if you ask around, there are many people on both sides of the fence), the Preds debuted their first offering to the world of alternate jerseys with this lovely Grey-Poupon colored beauty at the beginning of the 2001-2002 season.
That appearance would mark the only time the Predators wore this style jersey in the postseason, though it was only the beginning of the first great era of hockey for the team.įor more information on the complete set, both home and away, you can check out the unofficial NHL Uniform Database HERE It was in these jerseys, beginning with the road whites at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, MI that the Predators made their first appearance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs at the conclusion of the 2003-2004 season. Regardless, very few changes were made to the aesthetics in the first six years of the franchise's existence. This early Greg Johnson CCM jersey carries the tag on the hem, whereas later years saw CCM and Koho jerseys place their branding on the back of the jersey's neck area. The partnership with CCM/Koho remained intact until the end of the 2003-2004 season, and jerseys from 1999 to 2004 varied in how branding was presented.
#UNBRANDED NASHVILLE PREDATORS JERSEY VERIFICATION#
Unfortunately, advanced verification systems were not available until 2003, so many Inaugurals are hard to find and even harder to match to specific games and events.Īfter the manufacturer switch following the Inaugural season, the basic design of the Inaugural jersey remained the same, with the exception of the removal of the '98 designation from the shoulder patches. Preseason editions of these jerseys, because of the high turnover rate of players on an expansion team, also feature removable velcro nameplates, making this generation of jerseys highly unique and highly collectible.
Some variation in number and letter height is present from one jersey to the next. For example, this jersey's Inaugural sibling has a dark blue 'A'. The inaugural season saw a lot of variation in customization as well, and many of the sweaters from this era will appear a bit less uniform than more modern ones. The switch was made to CCM the following season, and the league as a whole followed suit shortly thereafter. Unique features of the very first year's jerseys include the number '98 in the arena-themed shoulder patches in addition to being the only season in which Bauer was the manufacturer for the Preds. The sweaters donned by the Nashville Predators in year one set the standard for what the team would wear for a total of nine years until the first major redesign in 2007.
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