Holy Toledo! Batman and Riddler to Take the Ice

The ECHL’s Toledo Walleye and Evansville Icemen will square off November 22 wearing Batman and Riddler jerseys. The “Heroes Night” celebration commemorates Batman’s 75th anniversary.

The jerseys’ designer, Jeff Tasca of Athletic Knit, was originally asked only for jerseys, but the self-proclaimed comic geek was given free reign and came up with two sets of complete uniforms, one retro and one contemporary, for each character. For Tasca, whose favorite DC character is Batman, the project was a labor of love.

“I always look for little details to add in that only a more hardcore fan might recognize,” he said.

One such detail in the Batman jersey, which is based on the circa-1966 Adam West Batman, is the typeface Tasca used. “I looked for a 1966 Batman font and a more modern Batman font for the names and numbers,” he said. (Unfortunately, the team opted to go with standard twill numbers in the final product, according to Tasca.)

The visiting Evansville Icemen will wear a uniform based on a contemporary version of the iconic Riddler question mark suit.

REJECTED, PROPOSED DESIGNS

Tasca also designed a version of the Batman uniform based on the current Christian Bale character, but he’s happy the team went with the classic version. “I was actually hoping for the 1966 Adam West one, as it is a bit more colorful and I thought would be cool to see on the ice,” Tasca said. “Given how close this game will be to the release of the 1966 series on Bluray/DVD I thought that the 1966 Batman version would be fitting.” (That long-awaited 18-disk set comes out Tuesday, November 11.)

That said, Tasca hopes that a use for this contemporary version may pop up in the future.

The retro version of the Riddler uniform is based on the form-fitting costume the 1966 villain wore. While this version will go unused for now, Tasca will keep it in his back pocket. “Sometimes the teams might revisit a theme the following season and make use of the unused idea then,” he said.

Game-worn jerseys will be sold in a live auction after the November 22 game to benefit the Muscular Dystrophy Association, March of Dimes, and the team’s charity, the Walleye Wishing Well.