ASU hockey unveils uniforms for inaugural NCAA season

Arizona State hockey coach Greg Powers hasn’t stopped hearing one question since the Sun Devils joined the NCAA Division I ranks.

“When can we see the uniforms?”

He finally has an answer.

Powers will coach ASU hockey in its first-ever NCAA game against Arizona (an ACHA club team) at Gila River Arena on Saturday at 7 p.m., and the new look will be on display.

The new uniforms are manufactured by CCM, a subsidiary of Adidas. CCM and Adidas-owned Reebok provide the NHL team uniforms, and they applied that same quality to the Sun Devils’ inaugural NCAA campaign.

The home uniforms are white with the large, pitchfork logo at the center and gold “ASU” print on the shoulders. The player names and numbers are in “Sun Devil Bold” font and have pitchfork watermarks throughout. An outline of the state of Arizona serves as the frame for the captain and alternate patches. Overall, the home look focuses on maroon and gold.

“We wanted it to be in front of our fans more of the traditional ASU with a little bit of new age with the fork,” Powers said. “But the maroon and gold, it’s kind of old school – it’s traditional.”

ASU will play 23 games on the road this season, so Powers wanted to go with an eye-grabbing uniform away from the Valley. The road uniforms take the maroon and gold elements and apply them to a black uniform. There is a large, maroon pitchfork at the center and the watermarked numbers are maroon with gold outlines.

“With the road, everywhere we went as a club team -- they are very similar to our blacks -- people just loved those,” Powers said. “It’s really new-school ASU. So we wanted to do both. They look similar, but we got the black, which is pretty new.”

Heading into his eighth season as an ASU hockey coach, Powers got accustomed to designing uniforms on his own. So, even though he had the backing of a leading-hockey outfitter in CCM, he still took the lead on the design process.

“It was back and forth with CCM,” Powers said. “I was so used to doing it. Generally, when I started, I would ask by committee, and it was just a disaster. So, I would pretty much then narrow it down to getting a few designs and showing it to my wife. Whatever she liked best, we went with.

“I think she hit it out of the park, so I can’t take all of the credit.”

OK, so it was a collaborative effort between Powers and his wife, Jessica, but that’s a huge difference from the typical process of a design team seeking input from a coach.

ASU used to go with the best deal during its club days, and that was usually CCM’s competitor, Bauer. But so far, Powers couldn’t be happier with CCM.

“We were with Bauer forever,” Powers said. “The guys at CCM have been unbelievable, though – they’ve been tremendous to work with.”

This season serves as a first impression for ASU in the college hockey community, so there is an emphasis on looking the part. The team wants to stand out for its play and its look.

“We want to get as creative as we can,” Powers said. “When we went Division I, one of our goals was to set out to be really unique and do different things that other programs don’t do.

“We are the most unique program, and we wanted that to transcend into our look. I think these are going to be the most popular jerseys in college hockey. To grow on that every year and expand is definitely a goal.”

It all starts Saturday.

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