In addition to Matthews, Connor McDavid of the Edmonton Oilers, Aleksander Barkov and Matthew Tkachuk of the Florida Panthers, Nikita Kucherov and Steven Stamkos of the Tampa Bay Lightning, Brady Tkachuk of the Ottawa Senators, and many more NHL players were able to see and try on the new uniforms.
During the visits, the players were happy to see Fanatics kept the base construction similar to what they were comfortable playing in. Fanatics also made some slight design and performance adjustments at the suggestion of players.
One of those changes was an additional layer of fabric inside the lower sleeve to enhance uniform durability intended to reduce material wear from sustained friction against the boards.
There is also new shoulder fabrics replacing the debossed pattern fabric used on the shoulders of the prior NHL jersey, a new NHL Shield execution on the front neck of the jersey which includes a special hologram finish, and Fanatics branding embroidered on the back neck of jerseys.
“I couldn’t be prouder to unveil the first-ever Fanatics branded NHL uniforms,” Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin said. “These jerseys were meticulously crafted in lockstep with NHL players, the NHLPA, equipment managers, teams and the NHL. Their feedback on what they were looking for in their next uniform completely drove our design, which was validated when we went back to all 32 teams during the past season to the show players and the reaction was overwhelmingly positive. We’re excited to debut the jersey we’ve developed that will not only be worn by the best hockey players in the world, but also, for the first time in a decade, these same jerseys can be purchased by the NHL’s passionate fans as well.”
