04/19/24
September 20, 2010
Times have changed, huh? "When the team moved, new owner Nelson Skalbania decided that 'Flames' would be a good fit for an oil town like Calgary, and the flaming 'A' logo was replaced by a 'C'."
posted by yerfatma at 12:34 PM on September 20, 2010
In the early 70's in the northeast US where I was living, the name "Canuck" was used as a derogatory term. So we were startled and confused when a NHL franchise was given that name. We couldn't imagine why Canadians weren't upset about it.
posted by beaverboard at 12:47 PM on September 20, 2010
...the flaming 'A' logo was replaced by a 'C'."
And the Negative Space Dong of Calgary was born.
posted by 86 at 01:16 PM on September 20, 2010
The Columbus Justice? That was the second best suggestion out of 14,000 total?
posted by BoKnows at 01:21 PM on September 20, 2010
In the early 70's in the northeast US where I was living, the name "Canuck" was used as a derogatory term. So we were startled and confused when a NHL franchise was given that name. We couldn't imagine why Canadians weren't upset about
I think the same way about "Yankees" since that is not really a term of endearment from the Canadian perspective.
posted by rumple at 01:47 PM on September 20, 2010
@BoKnows, I was attending tOSU when they were awarded the team. A lot of people I knew really liked Explorers but obviously not enough of them liked it for it to win.
posted by cabuki at 02:13 PM on September 20, 2010
Somewhat disappointed. Dallas got its name by dropping North from North Stars, but how did North Stars get their name? Ottawa took name Senators from previous hockey team name, but how did that name come to be?
posted by graymatters at 06:56 PM on September 20, 2010
Minnesota is often referred to as "The North Star State" and the hockey team adopted that as their name. Glad the Wild was chosen over some of the other contenders.
I'll assume that Ottawa being the capital of Canada has a lot to do with the Senator name, similar to how two MLB clubs took the name in Washington D.C.
posted by dviking at 07:22 PM on September 20, 2010
I didn't know the story about the Black Hawks being named after a regiment, the Thrashers named after a state bird (I honestly just thought it was a stupid contest name), the Rangers after the original owner, or the Blades being the real chosen name of the Sharks. The San Jose Blades has a great ring to it. Stupid gangs.
In the early 70's in the northeast US where I was living, the name "Canuck" was used as a derogatory term. So we were startled and confused when a NHL franchise was given that name. We couldn't imagine why Canadians weren't upset about it.
Yeah, we took that word back. You can't use it anymore. That's our word. I can call my friends Canucks, but if I hear you say it - I have to beat your ass. Word.
posted by WeedyMcSmokey at 07:41 PM on September 20, 2010
We switched to "snowback" a long time ago.
posted by yerfatma at 07:09 AM on September 21, 2010
I think the same way about "Yankees" since that is not really a term of endearment from the Canadian perspective.
As someone who lives in the northeast and hates the baseball team of a similar name (ok the same name) I also find it not to be a term of endearment.
posted by Demophon at 09:42 AM on September 21, 2010
The New York Septics doesn't quite have the same ring to it.
posted by owlhouse at 10:05 AM on September 21, 2010
I read that as "New York Skeptics".
More like Missouri Skeptics, no.
posted by rumple at 12:32 PM on September 21, 2010
I didn't know the story about the Black Hawks being named after a regiment [. . . ]
The Blackhawks were named after a regiment that was itself named after the Sauk chief Black Hawk, so at the end of the day, you may have been indirectly correct with your assumption as to the source of the name.
posted by holden at 01:31 PM on September 21, 2010
Too bad they don't include minor league teams: the IHL Toledo (Ohio) Blades name honors the legendary swordsmiths of Toledo, Spain.
posted by Hugh Janus at 03:06 PM on September 21, 2010
I love the Bruins, which as anyone who has read the article already knows could just as easily go by the less catchy but possibly more accurate moniker of "Grocery Bears," but my favorite team name by far is the New Jersey Devils.
The Jersey Devil was an abomination that lived in the Pine Barrens of New Jersey. According to this crazy Time Life Books series that my dad bought in the 80s (Mysteries of the Unknown), the Jersey Devil was the product of a tryst between an insane witch and Beelzebub himself. When it was born, the baby came out with the hooves of a horse, the wings of a bat, the face of a human lunatic, and the hockey IQ of Bobby Orr. That last part was added to make it awesomer.
It screamed all the time, and here's the part that messed me up when I was a kid: one night in some small town in Jersey in the 1800's, everyone in the village could hear the Jersey Devil screaming over the noise of the fiercest blizzard they'd had in decades. No one was brave enough to face both the storm and the offspring of The Devil, so they all stayed indoors. Many people reported hearing the Jersey Devil landing on their roofs, creepily clomping around. Clip-clop, clip-clop. In the morning, the residents went outside to check on their neighbors and make sure everyone was still okay. They found hoofprints in the snow. The prints could be traced all around the village. The fucked up part? They went right up to the wall of a building, disappeared, and started again on the opposite side of the house.
The moral of this story? I was an idiot as a ten-year old, and fuck you Time Life Books for making me freak out whenever an acorn landed on the roof above my bedroom.
Later, when I was in my twenties, I lived about 15 minutes away from the Meadowlands. I learned that as far as New Jersey goes, you are far more likely to see something horrifying in the parking lot at a Jets game than in the Pine Barrens.
Still, undeniably a great team name.
posted by Samsonov14 at 09:26 PM on September 22, 2010
When it was born, the baby came out with the hooves of a horse, the wings of a bat, the face of a human lunatic, and the hockey IQ of Bobby Orr.
Thanks for that.
posted by tahoemoj at 11:41 PM on September 22, 2010
Still, undeniably a great team name.
And hell will freeze over before they change it.
posted by MrFrisby at 06:55 AM on September 23, 2010
Holy Crud, a Samsonov sighting! Even rarer than the Jersey Devil.
Since you actually had a copy of those Time Life books, can you tell me how that one chick felt what her sister was feeling thousands of miles away? "Read the book!"
posted by yerfatma at 08:31 AM on September 23, 2010
...the hooves of a horse, the wings of a bat, the face of a human lunatic...
Dammit, Sammy, have you been peeking into my wife's room?
Only kidding of course. Anyone who tells her I wrote this will be severely punished. Sammy, where have you been hiding? We've missed you.
posted by Howard_T at 03:02 PM on September 23, 2010
I was sure that Calgary kept the "Flames" moniker because it also worked with them being awared the Winter Olympic games (Olympic flame), but the time line of when that was awarded to Calgary (September 1981) shows that wasn't the case.
(Unless, of course, someone was psychic.)