PHL, Duke Sports Reveal New Uniform System

Beginning in the 2005-06 season, PHL uniforms will never be the same. On July 1, 2004, Duke Sports & Apparel finally revealed their much-anticipated new FitLite hockey uniform, which will see the ice for the first time at the 2005 PHL All-Star Game. The new jerseys will be nearly 50% lighter than what the teams currently wear and also feature a slimmer fit, as well as an elasticized mesh-like material on the sides of the jersey and the underside of the arms to promote a more comfortable and breathable fit. The socks are also made with a more breathable fabric.

As for the look of the uniforms, the Duke logo will appear just below the collar on the front of each jersey, while the PHL logo will now appear on the back. The league also announced that as of 2005-06 the home and away uniforms will be reversed league-wide, with the home team wearing their team colours and the road team wearing white. A few teams have stated that they will make major changes to their look, some will make more minor changes while most will simply adapt their current designs to the new template. Alternate jerseys will be suspended for one season but will return in 2006-07.

The PHL requested that teams refrain from making changes to their uniforms for the 2004-05 season with one exception. In a new league tradition, the teams participating in the 2004 Holiday Classic both unveiled retro uniforms for the event. The host Boston Bulldogs will wear the uniforms they wore during the 1960s and '70s, while the visiting Philadelphia Redshirts will wear their uniforms from the same era, which was seen as the peak of the rivalry between the two clubs.