Fansided

Minnesota Wild Go Retro in New North Star Colored Jersey

By Lake Martin |
Apr 4, 2017; Saint Paul, MN, USA; Minnesota Wild forward Zach Parise (11) warms up wearing a 1967 era Minnesota North Stars expansion jersey before a game against the Carolina Hurricanes at Xcel Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports
Apr 4, 2017; Saint Paul, MN, USA; Minnesota Wild forward Zach Parise (11) warms up wearing a 1967 era Minnesota North Stars expansion jersey before a game against the Carolina Hurricanes at Xcel Energy Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

On Monday, Adidas revealed all 31 NHL Reverse Retro Jersey’s. Today, we talk about the Minnesota Wild’s North Star Callback

So full disclosure. I was never alive when the North Stars were still in the State of Hockey, but I did my homework and learned about why they left. I understand that some Minnesota Hockey Fans really want the Wild to be their separate entity and that’s perfectly reasonable.

I’m in the camp that the North Stars are more apart of Minnesota’s hockey history than Texas’s. Since the relocation to Dallas, they’ve never really paid homage to their North Star roots other than retaining the Stars part of the name and think Minnesota has the right to honor the team that came before them.

Plus, they only really left because of garbage ownership. A bit of a Seattle Supersonics situation.

Come to think of it, both the North Stars and Supersonics were Green and Yellow teams…

Minnesotans loved the North Stars and many still do to this day. Professional Hockey never should have left Minnesota, most evident by that the State of Hockey got another NHL team less than a decade after the North Stars left. Also, near-zero criticism of the decision to bring NHL hockey back to Minnesota, unlike say, Atlanta with the Thrashers.

Also, I think this does open up a very fun and creative path for the Wild to start honoring more Pro Hockey teams that were in Minnesota before the Wild or even the North Stars, such as the Minnesota Fighting Saints or the Minneapolis Millers.

If they’re the State of Hockey, why not? They have Minnesota High School Jersey’s in the arena and lots of info about the History of Minnesota Hockey.

So to the actual jersey.

https://twitter.com/mnwild/status/1328352363728363521

I love it. I understand some think it has too much yellow in the original Minnesota Wild logo and looks like a Subway jersey, but I think it looks crisp and clean.

More from Gone Puck Wild

My favorite part is definitely the way the numbering pops on the back of the jersey. Looks so good.

The only way I think these are improved is if they used the M from the Home jersey’s that sit on the shoulder, it’s the same M as the fan-favorite Green Reebok Alternates. Even better, if they managed to put an M or W to mime the original N^ pointing to the star. *Chefs Kiss*

Still, I think Adidas did a fantastic job on a lot of these Reverse Retro jerseys. These could be popular enough to make a stay longer than just this next season or two.

Adidas could even be paving the way for a more NBA/Nike attitude to jersey’s where there isn’t an explicit Home/Away jersey set, but rather four to five jersey options for every game, which I think is a great idea. Lots of Hockey fans think the Home team should still wear white and adopting that practice would likely allow those fans to see the Classic White jerseys on Home ice.

What are your thoughts on the Minnesota Wild Reverse Retros? What would you have like to see different? Leave a comment down below or on Twitter or Facebook.

Home / Editorials