The New York Rangers got the kind of night that makes a jersey debut feel bigger than the fabric itself: a 3-2 comeback win over the Philadelphia Flyers Thursday at Madison Square Garden. The third-period rally and the team’s eighth win in 10 home games had the Garden Faithful buzzing.
The new Hometown Remix jerseys, though, landed with a little more mixed energy.
A recent Forever Blueshirts poll on social media found that most Rangers fans came down in favor of the look, but there was still a loud group that wasn’t sold. The biggest chunk of voters, 45.7 percent, chose B for “Solid,” while 13.5 percent said they loved the sweater and design with an A vote. On the other side, 32.5 percent went with C, “Not a fan,” and 8.4 percent said they absolutely hated it, selecting D.
The comments made the split even clearer. Brian Creeley didn’t hold back on Facebook: “This is the laziest design ever…lets take our heritage logo and put it on the classic jersey.
So many things could have been incorporated here…. The Garden….
Original 6…. NY Skyline….pure lazy in design and color,”
Andrew Schurmann had a similar gripe, saying, “I like the return of New York to the front, but the rest of the jersey feels like it’s all been done before. They could’ve been more creative,”
The fans who liked the jersey didn’t leave nearly as much of a footprint in the comments, but the criticism came through loud and clear from those who weren’t impressed. Michael Cianci summed up another common complaint with one simple line: “I definitely don’t like the price.”
That price is steep. The authentic Hometown Remix jerseys retail for $499 at Fanatics, and plenty of fans viewed that as a lot to ask for a sweater the team will only wear a handful of times this season. Some called it a “money grab,” and the reaction was made sharper by the fact that the Rangers already have their dark blue “third jerseys” with the team crest on the front in the mix as well.
So fans are looking at four Rangers sweaters to potentially spend money on this season, including the Hometown Remix set, which the team will wear four more times.
Still, the final judgment for a lot of people will come back to the same place it always does. The Rangers are 9-7-1 to start the season and trying to get back to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in three years. Rick Malone put that feeling plainly on Facebook: “I don’t care if they wear t-shirts, as long as they start winning hockey games!”
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Rangers Are Building Something At The Garden Fans Will Notice
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