Since the dawn of time (also known as 1992), the Ottawa Senators have used many different jerseys. From the original "Bring Back the Senators" Parliament jerseys to the new Heritage Classic Jerseys, the Senators have changed uniforms on countless occasions. Some changes have been for the better and some have been much for the worse. Let's head on back to the late 1980s (when Steve On Sens was just a blooming idea) and see what was happening in Ottawa!
The "Bring Back the Senators' Campaign Jersey (1989-1991)
As the City of Ottawa pushed to get its first NHL franchise in 58 years, a jersey was unveiled. The jersey came in black and white and featured striping on the arms and a Peace Tower accompanied by text reading "Ottawa Senators". The jersey was never used in a game which sparked widespread anger. Many fans believed that the jerseys were just a way of taking money from fans before unveiling the trojan logo. ''It was a scam,'' said Dean Vasilas, 25, who has Senators season tickets. ''We're being used. We're proud we got the team, and every time we turn around they always get more money out of our pockets.'' (Ottawa Citizen, May 18/ 1991). The jersey is now a collector's item along with Dominik Hasek Senators playoff games, Matt Kassian assists and John Muckler successful draft picks.
Notable Players: Frank Finnigan
The Early Years (1992-1995)
Trojan 1.0 (1992-1993)
As the first Senators team took to the ice, they entered wearing white and black jerseys featuring a Senturion logo, red striping and red numbers on the black jersey. Many people hated the idea of these jerseys (see Bring Back the Senators jersey) and believed that it looked like a US football team logo or that it should be the logo for Trojan condoms. These jerseys lasted for only 1 year until Trojan 1.1 was released the next year.
Notable Players: Brad Marsh, Neil Brady, Norm Maciver, Peter Sidorkiewicz
Notable Coaches: Rick Bowness
Fun Stats: 11 wins, Road losing streak of 38, 1 road win
Trojan 1.1 (1993-1995)
After the above average 1992/93 season, the Senators continued their successes in 1993/94 improving with 14 wins and limiting their losses to a meagre 61. The Senators also introduced a brand new jersey by changing the numbering on the black jersey to white with red trim. The city of Ottawa rejoiced and a party at City Hall ensued (which led to the 1993 Ottawa Jersey Riots which were caused by radicals who didn't even like the Sens). The Senators shocked the hockey world by keeping with this jersey set all the way until 1995. Good stuff!
Notable Players: Alexandre Daigle, Alexei Yashin, Stanislav Neckar
Notable Coaches: Rick Bowness
Fun Stats: First shutout in Senators history (Don Beaupre, 1994)
No Longer 1st Overall Pick (1995-2000)
Trojan 2.0 (1995-1997)
With a new hope, dreams, players and a new coach, the Ottawa Senators took to the ice for the 1995/96 season clinging to the hope that they could emerge from bottom of the league. That dream was not realized. The Senators finished dead last in the league. The next year, the Senators faced a far different outcome. During the final game of the season the Senators faced the Buffalo Sabres. If the Senators won, a playoff spot would be clinched. With time winding down, Steve Duschesne took a feed from Alexei Yashin and buried the puck past Dominik Hasek (who then later made a playoff appearance at the Palladium and then decided not to 9 years later). The Sens would introduce a third jersey the next year to the dismay of many.
Notable Players: Daniel Alfredsson, Alexei Yashin, Ron Tugnutt, Damian Rhodes
Notable Coaches: Rick Bowness, Jacques Martin
Fun Stats: I like to believe that I was named after Steve Duschesne.
Trojan 2.5 (1997-1999)
After the Senators success in 1997, the team decided that it would introduce abstract art to a small government town. Yes, the Senators introduced its first third jersey - the red one. The Senators responded with their first season over .500 (yes...somehow they made the playoffs in 96/97 with a below .500 record). This red jersey sparked the team's strange obsession with the colour red for years to come. Also the original 2D crest loses the "Ottawa Senators" lettering replacing it with strange arrows that are apparently called "laurel leaves". This decision was made because the French speaking fan base found it offensive that it did not say Sénateurs d'Ottawa.
Notable Players: Daniel Alfredsson, Chris Phillips, Wade Redden, Ron Tugnutt
Notable Coaches: Jacques Martin
Fun Stats: Jacques Martin won the Jack Adams trophy in 1998/99 proving that boring hockey is fun!
Trojan 2.51 (1999-2000)
For the 1999/2000 season, the Senators removed their black jersey and replaced it with the red 3rd jersey. The 1999/2000 season also marked the first Battle of Ontario which of course resulted in a 1st round defeat. This dynamic duo of jerseys lasted only one year before the Senators introduced the other black (no not the SENS jersey...the one before that one...ya! that one) jersey.
Notable Players: Radek Bonk, Daniel Alfredsson, Marian Hossa, Patrick Lalime
Notable Coaches: Jacques Martin
Fun Stats: Radek Bonk (in his post-Mullet days) contributed a team best 60 assists in 99/00.
Trojan 3.0 (2000-2007)
The Senators introduced their second 3rd jersey in 2000. The jersey was black, featured the strange 3D logo that first appeared on the red jersey and had gold striping with arrows on it. This set of jerseys lasted the longest in Senators history spanning from the early days of the Battle of Ontario to the Stanley Cup Final. Fans may remember these jerseys as the "ones we had when we got swept by the Leafs", "the one that Lalime was wearing when he let those Nieuwendyk shots in", "the red beauty that Brian Lee got drafted in" and "that white one when Phillips scored on his own net". After the dust settled following the firing of John Muckler, the disappearance of Mike Comrie (for the first time) and the destruction of Wade Redden's career, the Trojan 3.0 set vanished from the Sens jersey set paving the way for Trojan 4.0!
Notable Players: Daniel Alfredsson, Patrick Lalime, Mike Fisher, Wade Redden, Chris Neil, Dominik Hasek, Jason Spezza, Dany Heatley, Joe Corvo
Notable Coaches: Jacques Martin, Bryan Murray
Fun Stats: The Senators blew a 4-0 lead to the Leafs (a game that a young Steve On Sens attended...which led to a deep and everlasting hatred of Trevor Kidd) before falling 5-4 in OT.
Post Cup Final (2007-2011)
Trojan 4.0/ The Edge (2007-2008)
The previous jersey set was scrapped in 2007 after Reebok decided that muted colours on tight fitting sports jerseys was a good idea. The original 2D logo and 3D logo were replaced by another 3D logo that resembled Chris Neil. This new logo differed from previous logos because he looked like he could confront you in a bar if you brushed arms with his girlfriend instead of just scowling in the corner like previous logos. During the first year of Reebok Edge, no teams including the Senators had 3rd jerseys. This all changed the next year when the Sens introduced the SENS jersey.
Notable Players: Christoph Schubert, Nick Foligno, Mike Commodore, Martin Gerber
Notable Coaches: John Paddock, Bryan Murray
Fun Stats: After a strong start to the season, the Senators went 4-7-2 in February before finishing 7th in the Eastern Conference. The season ended after a 4-0 sweep to the Pittsburgh Penguins which featured the infamous "
Sens Gladiator" intro.
SENS (2008-2011)
To mark the successes of the 2008/09 season, the Senators released the equally successful SENS jersey. The jersey is basically what it sounds like - a jersey that has 'SENS' written right across it. Although many claim that this could potentially be the worst jersey set in NHL history, it inspired my concept for the Heritage Classic (which was almost selected but Cyril Leeder said no at the last second).
This image has been posted to this blog too many times.
Notable Players: Ryan Shannon, Filip Kuba, Brian Lee, Dany Heatley, Alex Auld, Pascal Leclaire
Notable Coaches: Craig Hartsburg, Cory Clouston
Fun Stats: Peter Regin had a +/- of +10 in 2009/10. If only I could find his Corsi.
Rebuild/ The Rise of Erik Condra (2011-Present)
As the Ottawa Senators celebrated their 20th anniversary in 2011/2012, they unveiled the Heritage Jersey (which was inspired by a hockey team that existed far longer than 20 years ago). The Senators revealed arguably their best jersey yet and undoubtedly their best jersey since 1999. To prove how good these jerseys really were, the Senators lost 7-1 against the Colorado Avalanche in the jerseys' debut. Similar to the SENS jersey, the Heritage Jersey also inspired a Heritage Classic Jersey concept (only difference is that this one was not rejected last minute by Cyril Leeder).
Notable Players: Daniel Alfredsson, Erik Karlsson, Kyle Turris, Mika Zibanejad, Craig Anderson
Notable Coaches: Paul MacLean
Fun Stats: Although he had an excellent season, Kaspars "Daug Man" Daugavins was placed on Waivers and was picked up by the Boston Bruins.
Heritage Classic (2014)
To mark the 2014 Heritage Classic, the Senators introduced the Heritage Classic jersey which was essentially a reverse of the Heritage Jersey. Like many previous Sens jerseys, it will (pending potential trade to Carolina) be worn by Joe Corvo.
Notable Players: Erik Karlsson, Jason Spezza, Bobby Ryan, Kyle Turris, Clarke MacArthur
Notable Coaches: Paul MacLean
Fun Stats: There are 2 blonde kids that wear Heritage Classic jerseys that are always seen on Sportsnet after a Sens goal. Somehow this qualified as a stat.
Thanks for reading!
Steve (on Sens)
