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JNH · 01-15-2020, 07:30 PM

And Hello To A New Era

As many people know, Lethbridge was an expansion franchise born out of necessity after the strong recruiting class a number of seasons ago. ByrdeMan was given the franchise as it stood, name and all. Since taking over, Corey and I have been looking to make the franchise our own. We have transformed the roster on the ice into a formidable product, but have been looking to turn the off ice brand into something that was more personal and enticing. We didn't feel a strong connection to neither Lethbridge nor the Lions brand and decided during the last season that it was time for a change.

Initially, we considered just changing logos as it was the easiest way to change the look of the team without making any drastic changes. We threw around a couple ideas, including the now iconic rrrzoo! logo in the discord but none of them seemed to capture the spirit that we were looking for. At that point, we pondered the idea of a full blown relocation. I posed the idea of a Montreal relocation, which was quickly shot down by Corey and our advisors. Next time, I'll ensure I have more of a dictatorship.

Eventually, we settled on a location that was unique for the SHL and has a great hockey culture that we feel a team would be able to thrive in. This is a place that is in Canada, so we remain in the country that so dearly loves its national sport (coughcough - Kraken). We didn't want to go to the traditional places that already had established CHL or NHL/AHL teams because it felt like many of them had been done before. This was a place that has had professional franchises and just recently received an ECHL one, but had never really had its chance to shine in the SHL before. This place has many strong traditions that we feel we will be able to integrate into our team's culture in order to really put together something that all of the players and alumni can be part of and rally around.

Without further ado, Lethbridge will be relocating to....

Newfoundland!!

We chose Newfoundland because it is a unique island in Canada. We wanted to stay in Canada, where the locals love hockey and embrace the traditions of the sport and team. There are a lot of interesting traditions attached to the area, such as the practice of being “Screeched In” at a local bar. We wanted to choose, like Lethbridge, an area of Canada that is not normally targeted as a location for a sports team. We felt that this would provide a unique opportunity to bring it to the spotlight with the move. We thought it would be best to keep the small city feel for us, as the junior league seems to be the ideal place to showcase smaller hockey markets. Geographically, Newfoundland is not very close to any other team in the SHL or SMJHL. We want to choose the city of St. John’s as our home, playing out of the Mile One Centre where the ECHL’s Growlers also play their home games. The arena has a total capacity of 7,000 seats, which is approximately the average for junior teams. This feels cozy enough to keep that hometown feel that we feel is a great branding opportunity and avenue for connecting with our fans. We wanted to continue this practice from Lethbridge, whose arena had a capacity of 7,100 and allowed us to provide the same experience. The arena is also located in a gorgeous location, close to the St. John’s Harbour, in downtown St. John’s, which makes it a great venue for both locals and visitors, with top-notch restaurants and pubs nearby. The St. John’s Convention Center is right across the street, so we feel like we could host the SMJHL Draft in that location, should the Head Office ever decide to present the new city to the rest of the league.

Now, we also had to discuss the idea of what we should call our team. Once again, we discussed a couple of concepts but one we felt captured the spirit of a fierce hockey team, while also being relevant and calling on the rich history of Newfoundland.

Please welcome the....

Newfoundland Berserkers

Primary Logo:
[Image: Berserkers_logo_1.png]

The primary logo is meant to symbolize both the Berserker and the wooden shield primarily used by warriors in that era.

Alternate Logo:
[Image: Berserkers_icon_1.png]

This is a fantastic concept from Julio. It can be construed a number of ways, as an N with an axe behind it as a symbolic representation of the vikings. Additionally, it stands as an N and an L for Newfoundland. Finally, Julio managed to do it roughly in the shape of Newfoundland itself, which was super impressive and evidence of his artistic talent.

Home Jerseys:
[Image: HRIpzX3.png]

Team Buttons:
[Image: berserkers.png]

First of all, thank you to @Julio Tokolosh for his work on the logos. They came out amazing and I'm so thankful for the work you did. Also thank you to @Wasty for his logo concept he created. It was truly fantastic and I wish there was a way to integrate it into our team's brand here. Amazing graphics work as always man.

We chose the Berserkers because we wanted to go with something that both had a connection to the area, and showed a bit of our personality. As some may know, the Norse landed in Newfoundland in the late 10th century, on the northern point of the island, during their western explorations of the Atlantic Ocean. The area, now called L’Anse-aux-Meadows, was subjected to an archaeological expedition in 1960 by Helge and Anne Stine Ingstad, a Norwegian couple of explorer and archaeologist, who were searching for the “Vinland” detailed in old tales of the era. There, they found the remains of old Norse buildings that were erected by the settlers of the area - with very similar architecture and layout as other similar settlements found in Greenland and Iceland earlier. The area is now a UNESCO World Heritage Site, which also includes an interpretation center, for visitors eager to know more about the Norse civilization. Berserkers are part of the Old Norse mythos, shown as warriors who had surging fury and uncontrollable rage in battle. They would be tenacious and unrelenting in battle, fighting until fatally wounded, as their belief led them to aspire for the Hall of the Gods, Valhalla, where they would spend the remainder of their days in endless battle by day, and in bountiful banquets by night. Berserkers are what people think of when they think of Vikings, although Berserkers were known to have worn the pelt of an animal they killed to cover their head and upper back, rather than the traditionally pictured horned helmet. The idea of the Berserkers is how we want to model our team - relentless, craving for a battle on the ice, and not giving up until the final whistle is blown.

As mentioned before, we want to develop an experience where the players and the fans can connect to the team. We feel that the imagery and spirit of the Berserkers can be captured well through the creation of an atmosphere around the organization. Similar to how the Falcons unbearably post their team’s slogan everywhere, we believe that this brand has the potential to have a similar impact. We want the players to be able to represent their pride of being part of our organization and the alumni to proudly display what they were part of. Creating a successful brand is integral to team success: aiding in player retention and building an attractive destination for future players. This isn’t just a move for the sake of changing things for a team that hasn’t had substantial success to this point. This is a move to allow an organization to transform itself both on and off the ice; a fresh start for a franchise that wants to rally together and create a persona for itself.

@SDCore and I will be here to take any questions, comments, hate or other miscellaneous statements you feel like making. We're excited to enter into this new era of Berserkers hockey and look forward to bringing a new reddit class along for the ride!

Carbine · 01-15-2020, 07:31 PM

First

***sve7en*** · 01-15-2020, 07:32 PM

Oh, so I should have been opening that mail from Newfoundland..

***DrunkenTeddy*** · 01-15-2020, 07:41 PM

|

Samsung virtual assistant · 01-15-2020, 07:41 PM

SlashACM · 01-15-2020, 07:43 PM

ANEWERA

cool logo, black homes are a little overdone in shl imo

SDCore · 01-15-2020, 07:43 PM

dankoa · 01-15-2020, 07:44 PM

The Nautical Renegades

***bluesfan55*** · 01-15-2020, 07:45 PM

isn't this a bit too close to halifax

ty to @High Stick King @EvilAllBran and @Ragnar for the sigs

mxman991 · 01-15-2020, 07:46 PM

Oh heck no, now you’re sapping the Raiders market! This means war!

***sve7en*** · 01-15-2020, 07:48 PM

01-15-2020, 07:46 PMmxman991 Wrote: Oh heck no, now you’re sapping the Raiders market! This means war!

R I V A L R Y

JNH · 01-15-2020, 07:50 PM

01-15-2020, 07:45 PMbluesfan55 Wrote: isn't this a bit too close to halifax

We considered that, but felt that the Berserkers as a specific type of viking was different enough from the broad concept of the Raiders to be acceptable.

Grapehead · 01-15-2020, 07:50 PM

YES! You're the only team with its own timezone.

suavemente · 01-15-2020, 07:52 PM

Amazing Logo/Graphics and write-up :D

SDCore · 01-15-2020, 07:54 PM

01-15-2020, 07:50 PMGrapehead Wrote: YES! You're the only team with its own timezone.

Welcome to the rock if you come from away,
You'll probably understand about half of what we say.
They say no man's an island but an island makes a man,
Especially when one comes from one like Newfoundland.
Welcome to the Rock!

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