How do Seattle Torrent and Vancouver Goldeneyes compare to the league’s original six? The AthleticHailey Salvian, Sean McIndoe and Sean Gentille teamed up to solve it. Spoiler: one expansion team did much better than the other.
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1.Vancouver Golden Eyes
Salvian rank: 1
Gentle rank: 1
McIndoe Rating: 1
McIndoe: This one is… amazing? I’m a little wobbly, only because I see that this is the kind of logo that seems cool at first but whose novelty quickly wears off. But for now, the name is great, even if you’ve never owned a Nintendo 64. And the logo works well for me, with a lot going on without being too complicated: really good work.
Salvian: I’m not in love with the name, only because I had no idea what a “Common Goldeneye” was (or that it is a bird native to Vancouver) before the names came out. However, the logo looks amazing and the color palette is perhaps my favorite in the league. Fun fact: The league says the eye points to the Pacific Northwest, which is a fun nod to expansion without making the logo look too busy. I wasn’t planning on dethroning the Montreal Victoire when I started this project, but I’m sorry to say it happened.
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gentile: I actually owned a Nintendo 64, so I’m a target for the name. This is the best color combination in the league, and it’s a solid accomplishment given how well the PWHL has done in other aspects of that department. My only problem here, somewhat like McIndoe’s, is that the logo ends up looking too much like some sort of secondary shoulder patch. Overall, though, it’s a big win, starting with the fact that they have a plural nickname that references something local without being cloying.
2. Mermaids of New York
Salvian rank: 3
Gentle rank: 2
McIndoe Rating: 2
McIndoe: The logo is fine. On its own, it’s a C+, maybe a B-. But I’m ranking the Sirens this high because I was told to consider the name/logo combo, and this is hands down one of the best team names in all of professional sports. “Sirens” is the sound of a hockey goal, a reference to classic mythological women and the soundtrack of downtown New York. To paraphrase the immortal George Carlin: “That’s some clever stuff! It’s a triple play on words, damn it, you didn’t think of that!” The logo would have to be bad to ruin it, and it isn’t.
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Salvian: I have become bitter with New York a tiny little during the last year. I still love the colors and the name, but the logo (the “S” sound wave detail, in particular) stresses me out. It hurts my eyes (yes, I need glasses) and makes me feel like I’m being yelled at or honked at while trying to find coffee in midtown Manhattan. However, none of that is enough to bring New York down significantly. Still great! Please don’t yell at me!
gentile: I had them at #2 last year and I’m sticking with it. McIndoe stole all my reasoning, as is often the case. The teal still puts it over the top.
3. Montreal Victory
Salvian rank: 2
Gentile rank: 3
McIndoe Rating: 3
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Salvian: You could argue that the Sirens have the best name, especially if you’re French and try to write something like “Victoire pour la victoire!” – but Montreal has the best all-around package of the original six teams. The colors are great, the sand colored away jerseys are stunning and I like all the little details of the logo.
McIndoe: I really like this combination, although I was a little surprised that it was everyone’s almost unanimous choice as the best of the original six. But it’s very good, and the logo is the best of the 2024 batch by a decent margin. In my list, the Sirens and Victoire are a toss-up, with a solid gap to the next tier.
gentile: The Victoire logo works better as a central crest than any other logo in the league, but it has too many details to stand out on a smaller scale. I still love the originality of this one, but Sirens and Goldeneyes are more complete packages.
4. Toronto Scepters
Salvian rank: 4
Gentle rank: 4
McIndoe Rating: 4
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Salvian: I have not and will never call Toronto “the Queen City,” which is how this name and logo came about. If I ignore that part of the story, that’s a good look!
gentile: It’s a clean look, but at first I was wondering if it would look a little boring on a t-shirt, and I think I’ve been proven right.
McIndoe: The name works pretty well and the logo is maybe a little simple compared to the others, but that’s okay. Passes the case test. Did we ever decide if they were trying to do something Taylor Swift-like here?
Salvian: I don’t think it was on purpose, but Swifties were definitely quick to point out the similarities last year to the point where the league made a statement to the Toronto Star:
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“While we appreciate the comparison to Taylor, our logo began with the Scepter symbol at its core, with the top and bottom tips of an ornate rod. From that starting point, the Toronto Sceptres logo was born.”
Again, why did it start with the Scepter symbol? Many cities claim to be “the queen city,” such as Charlotte, North Carolina, or Cincinnati. I didn’t know my house was on the list.
5. Boston Fleet
Salvian rank: 5
Gentle rank: 5
McIndoe Rating: 5
Salvian: Last time, I had the top three and bottom three nailed down, with Boston atop the second tier. A year later, the Fleet is more of a coin toss with the Scepters. I always liked the “B” hook, but I think the logo really benefited from being seen on a t-shirt.
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McIndoe: I don’t hate it. I’ve always liked sports logos that take letters and turn them into something clever, like the Milwaukee Brewers or the Montreal Expos. The all-time king of the genre is the Hartford Whalers, and this one seems to intentionally evoke that classic. The wavy lines don’t work for me, but it’s a play on words, so I have to give points for the effort.
gentile: I ended up liking this one more than I thought I would. It’s a bit “team building” but the logo looks great on the jersey and the color scheme is a proven winner.
6. Seattle Torrent
Salvian rank: 6
Gentle rank: 7
McIndoe Rating: 6
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McIndoe: I’m old enough that “Torrent” makes me think about stealing music, so maybe I’m not the target audience here. I don’t love the name, but the logo is good. I like that the colorway nods to the Kraken without ripping them off, because a little synergy between leagues isn’t a bad thing. For now, I’d say this one is okay, maybe with some room to grow after seeing it a bit. But I can’t imagine anyone thinking this is the better of the two expansion entries.
gentile: When you play home games at Climate Pledge Arena, will we refer to it as “The Pirate Bay”? The name is whatever and the color scheme is fine, but the logo looks like it came out of a gum wrapper. Not for me.
Salvian: A torrent can also be a fast-moving stream of water (like a Seattle river!) or even rain, which seems like a nod to the WNBA’s Seattle Storm. I appreciate trying to stay within the Seattle sports ecosystem, but the Torrent name doesn’t help me much. The “S” looks like a swirl of water and I love the colors (how many times have I said that already?). Honestly, I think I’ll like it too.
7. Minnesota Frost
Salvian rank: 7
Gentle rank: 6
McIndoe Rating: 7
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McIndoe: The name is fine, as far as plurals go. The logo doesn’t work for me. It’s just a scary pointy “F”, plus I don’t understand how purple and glitter work together. (Also, I saw that last year Shayna had suggested Reign, so Minnesota would have a purple Reign, and I can’t help but think how much better that would have been.)
Salvian: *Tap the IP sign that includes Seattle Reign (NWSL) and Ontario Reign (AHL)*
I will also add that the purple color palette does work for me. But the jerseys feel empty, even with the championship patch added.
gentile: Decent use of negative space (the “F” side looks like a mountain) keeps Minnesota squarely in the middle tier. However, the nickname puts a strict limit on the ceiling.
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8. Ottawa Charge
Salvian rank: 8
Gentle rank: 8
McIndoe Rating: 8
McIndoe: I didn’t like it a year ago (it looked too much like the Calgary Flames, although it had little to nothing to do with Ottawa and the surrounding area), but since it was my home team, I was willing to let it grow on me. A year later, I can report that is not the case. Oh well, I guess not every Ottawa hockey team can turn their name into a cultural phenomenon.
Salvian: Unfortunately, Ottawa is still at the bottom of my list, and that’s a shame because the fan base might be one of the loudest and most dedicated in the league. And maybe it’s because I’m writing this story from a Cleveland hotel room, but all I can see when I look at the Charge logo is the Cavaliers’ “C,” but with a few more little spikes of “electric energy.” And I feel like that’s not a good thing?
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gentile: Last year, I compared the logo to something you’d see on a defunct software company, and that stance hasn’t changed. I’m also on McIndoe’s side regarding the nickname; Say what you want about Fleet or Frost, but at least they have some local link. That is not the case in Ottawa.
This article originally appeared in The Athletic.
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