Portland’s hockey franchise needed a set of jerseys in 1976. The Chicago Blackhawks had a pile of used ones. Don’t know if you know this, but the Winterhawks’ biggest acquisition in that inaugural season was to accept the donation of an old set of Blackhawks’ jerseys.
The iconic Illinois Sauk Nation figure made the trip to Portland on the chest, where it’s been squatting for 45 years.
Wasn’t sure whether it was best to start today’s column with “the logo” or “the kid.” One moved here. The other was born and raised here. They ended up in Portland just the same.
Marcus Harvey went to the University of Oregon. He’s not just “the kid” but also founder and entrepreneur of the Portland Gear apparel brand. For months now Harvey’s team has been secretly working in conjunction with a renowned graphic designer on a new logo for the old hockey franchise.
One that is Portland’s own.
The new Winterhawks logo will be introduced to the public on Wednesday morning (preview video). The franchise’s players will see it for the first time on Tuesday in a video conference call. But it’s a change that can’t come fast enough.
Harvey, 31, is a terrific story. Self-made success. Family guy. One of the founding partners of the effort to bring Major League Baseball to Portland, too. He’s routinely invested in to the region, right down to the way he grabbed the @Portland handle on Instagram years ago and built the thing into an apparel empire.
The last 18 months have been tough on Harvey’s favorite city. One of the coolest cities in America pancaked on its face amid downtown destruction, graffiti, trash, homelessness and mismanagement. A new logo won’t fix those things. But maybe what the Winterhawks are doing this week is underscoring the importance of seizing your own identity.
A hockey franchise.
A city.
You and me.
“Coming out of Covid,” Harvey said, “we need something to celebrate.”
Portland Gear commissioned Brian Gundell to help work on the logo. Gundell is the design rock star who has had a hand in working on the look of a number of well known sports-franchise brands. He’s a native Oregonian, too, who now lives and works in Florida.
Harvey said: “He’s a rad dude with clout.”
I can’t wait to see the thing.
It’s why I reached out to new Winterhawks’ majority owner Michael Kramer on Sunday. When I got him he was watching the Euro 2021 soccer final on television. He wouldn’t talk specifics of the logo, but said when he acquired the franchise he was blown away to learn the Winterhawks had produced 143 NHL players in 44 years.
“People are all excited about the NHL coming to Seattle,” Kramer said. “It’s been in Portland for decades.”
There may be a stripe of die-hard Winterhawks fans who don’t want new ownership to change a thing. Also, there’s a faction that have been lobbying for years for the removal of the Native American logo that never really belonged to Portland in the first place. Kramer called the franchise “apolitical” and offered, “We deserve our own identity.”
The new guy is dead, solid, perfect there.
This is a franchise that has emerged from bankruptcy with a fresh outlook and energy. It won’t be out-hustled. Kramer is calling the shots. Jeff McGillis, a former vice president at Adidas, is consulting with the franchise. Harvey’s team is excited to share the logo publicly for the first time this week. This upcoming season, the logo will be swapped out. Those involved tell me there are plans in future years for multiple jersey combinations (See: the Oregon Ducks football program).
I’m told the new logo also includes iconic representations from our region. There are hidden nuances within the logo that I’m told onlookers might not notice at first glance. According to one source, “Once you do see them, you’ll never unsee them.”
Will you love the thing?
Who knows?
But I hope you give it a chance. The same way, maybe you give a 16-year old kid who arrives in Portland to play junior hockey a shot to win you over. The same way, perhaps, the business world gave Harvey a shot to build a business around the letter “P.”
The logo or the kid? Couldn’t decide which to start today’s column with. But I know exactly where I’m finishing. Because Marcus Harvey told me something I’ll never forget over the weekend. He and his wife are expecting their first child next month -- a little girl who will be born in Oregon and likely grow up here.
Said Harvey: “I can’t wait to take her to a Winterhawks game and tell her her daddy did that logo.”
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