The NHL’s shift to Fanatics on-ice jerseys could be revealed as soon as next month, according to former NFL quarterback Boomer Esiason.
While on his morning Boomer and Gio radio program, Esiason revealed that the new Fanatics NHL jerseys for all 32 teams (Utah too?) would be revealed sometime in June.
It’s worth pointing out that the 2024 NHL Draft will be held in June, the weekend of June 28-29, at the Sphere in Las Vegas. Traditionally, in the NHL (and, as we saw last month, also the NFL), Draft week is when new jerseys and uniforms make their debut. This is done so that teams can present their new look to their newest players.
The NHL announced last March that Fanatics would replace Adidas as the provider of their on-ice jerseys as part of a ten-year deal. According to the New York Times, Fanatics’ “F” logo will appear on the backs of NHL player jerseys for the first time. Fanatics already manufactures replica NHL jerseys and training gear for players and coaches. It has been making Nike-branded Major League Baseball player jerseys since 2017 when it acquired Majestic, and it also produces Nike-branded “authentic” National Football League jerseys.
ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski reported that Fanatics will use the same factory in Saint-Hyacinthe, Quebec, that Adidas used to produce NHL jerseys and that the jersey specifications will remain the same. Some fabrics and materials may be different, but NHL executive vice president of marketing Brian Jennings told Wyshynski that “it will be almost indiscernible” to the current jerseys.
The deal marks the next stage of the NHL’s partnership with Fanatics, which over the past two decades has evolved to include NHL e-commerce and retail operations, fan apparel and headwear, replica jerseys, licensed memorabilia, performance and training products, on-ice Stanley Cup® Champions apparel and headwear, and now official on-ice uniforms and authentic jerseys sold at retail.
NHL.com Fanatics Press Release, 2023
While Fanatics is taking over in time for the upcoming 2024-25 NHL season, the jerseys will still be made at the same factory and using the same materials as the Adidas jerseys, meaning these will essentially be a simple re-badging for the first few seasons. Fanatics is expected to start producing their own jerseys in time for 2026-27.
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