When looking at hockey game schedules, do you often feel like you stepped into a zoo? Originally, the tradition of having an animal companion in the team name comes from North American sports leagues.
Thus not only hockey teams, but also teams in American soccer, baseball and basketball have an animal in their name. On his blog "Kr1 Eishockeyblog- Die brotlose Eishockey-Kunst" Michael Krein reports passionately about current events, relevant backgrounds and exclusive insider stories of the world of hockey. We have, so we asked an expert.
Seattle's hockey history in one minute
Let's dive into the history and trends behind these team names, with a special focus on the potential for a wolf-inspired moniker for Seattle's hockey team.
The Rise of Animal Team Names
"There are two aspects: On the one hand, the animal is part of the coat of arms of the city and was already integrated into the logo at club's inception. Then later, towards the end of the 1990s, the clubs, inspired by American role models, started to increasingly identify themselves with mostly aggressive animal logos. Another reason for that were marketing aspects, in order to sell more merchandise.
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One of the first teams worldwide were the Quebec Bulldogs, founded in 1910, who even had a bulldog on their team photo. The Quebec Bulldogs were one of the first hockey teams to name themselves after an animal, in this case a bulldog.
NHL Teams with Animal Names
The US-based National Hockey League (NHL) currently consists of 31 teams, six of which bear an animal name. "At the beginning of the 1990s, the San Jose Sharks and the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim triggered a real marketing boom. Previously, the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Hartford Whalers had been alone for a long time," blogger Michael Krein explains the beginnings of the animal teams.
However, the Hartford Whalers were only part of the NHL from 1979 to 1997. The "Pittsburgh Penguins" joined the NHL in 1967. Carol McGregor, wife of one of the part-owners, came up with the name more or less by chance.
It was already known that the team would be playing their home games in the Civic Arena, so she asked what the arena was colloquially called. Since the venue was often nicknamed "The Great Igloo", it was obvious to give the team the animal nickname "Penguins".
The "Buffalo Sabres" were founded in 1970. Their logo shows a bison and two crossed sabres. First, the team comes from Buffalo, New York, and was originally meant to be called the "Bisons" (Buffalo).
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The owners, brothers Seymour Knox III and Northrup Knox, wanted to find a more original and unique team name and started a competition to find a name. From numerous submissions they finally chose "Sabres". The brothers based their decision on the fact that the sabre was carried as a weapon by a leader and was strong in both offense and defense.
The "Arizona Coyotes" were originally founded under the name "Winnipeg Jets" in 1972. For the 1996/97 season they moved to Phoenix, where they held a competition to give the team a new name. The coyote, the most feared predator in Arizona, prevailed.
By the way, "Scorpion" came in second. At first the team was called "Phoenix Coyotes" until they moved again, this time to Glendale, a suburb of Phoenix. At the beginning of the 2014/15 season, they renamed to"Arizona Coyotes" because they didn't want to be seen only as an hockey team for Glendale or Phoenix, but for the whole state of Arizona.
The "Anaheim Ducks" are the only team named after a brand in the history of the North American professional leagues. In 1992 Walt Disney landed a megahit with the movie "Mighty Ducks - The Superteam".
In order to realize this, Disney founded a professional hockey team. The following year, the NHL recognized the film's popularity by signing a franchise agreement with Disney. So the club was named "Mighty Ducks of Anaheim" and got the same logo from the movie. When Disney sold the team in 2005, the name was simply changed to "Anaheim Ducks".
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The "San Jose Sharks" were founded in 1991 and organized a drawing competition to win tickets for the Chicago game that same year. The primary purpose of this competition was to name the team.
The name "Sharks" finally won from over 2,300 entries from all over the world. Other suggestions included "Rubber Puckies", "Screaming Squids", "Salty Dogs" and "Blades". "Blades" was the most popular proposal, but was finally rejected because it could be understood as a gang reference.
When the team name was chosen, it was fitting that seven shark species found their home in the Pacific Ocean along the Californian coast at that time. The Florida Panthers were founded in 1993. At that time, the Florida native wildcat was considered an endangered animal species.
The team wanted to draw attention to the acute problem and named itself after the graceful wild cat.
Animal Names in European Hockey
Not only in America are the animal hockey teams at home, also in Europe, animal names are very popular. Switzerland's first hockey league, the NLA, consists of a total of twelve teams. Five of them show an animal in their logo.
"In the 1970s, advertising on jerseys was banned in Switzerland. Because the SC Langnau (now known as SCL Tigers) had a tiger as a club symbol in the past, the club was allowed to put a tiger on their jerseys despite the advertising ban. "Coincidentally" it took the form of the tiger head of their sponsor "Tiger Käse AG". Since then the Langnauer are "tigers".
However, this did not remain without consequences, Langnau was not shown on Swiss television for two years and is regarded as a trendsetter in jersey advertising. Here as well the animal is in the name and is used for marketing purposes and the appearance of the team.
"The HC Geneva Servette in Switzerland lets a real eagle, "Sherkan", fly through the stadium from the grandstand to center ice before every game. Although the team does not have an eagle in its official logo, it is mainly known for its feathered mascot.
German Hockey Teams
The German hockey teams are also very much oriented towards the USA when it comes to names. "With the introduction of the German Hockey League (DEL) in 1994, Germany was literally overrun by the animal wave. Out of 18 teams eleven changed their traditional club names to an animal name and three teams followed suit later on. The trend is to go back to the original names".
Even before the DEL, the animal nicknames of the hockey teams were able to assert themselves successfully. Despite the huge variety of species in the animal world, hockey teams have their favorites when it comes to naming the team.
"Tigers are very common especially in Europe. The DEL is home to the Nuremberg Ice Tigers and the Straubing Tigers. There are also tigers in the WHL in Western Canada (Medicine Hat), in the QMJHL in Quebec (Victoriaville), in the AHL in North America (Bridgeport), in Switzerland (SCL Tigers), in Russia (Khabarovsk), in the Czech Republic (Liberec) and in Belgium (Brussels, Turnhout). Thanks to a variety of designs and colors, you can create a jersey that perfectly matches your team name.
Seattle's Hockey Team: The Wolf as a Potential Name
Many suggestions have been thrown around, some more reasonable than others. It’s basic, I know. But so are the Panthers and the Penguins. Grey wolves can be found in Olympic National Park outside Seattle. The wolf is a symbol of strength, intensity, and teamwork.
Canada Lynx is another species found in Olympic National Park. This animal choice is a little more superficial, as lynx aren’t known to hunt overly big prey or work together much at all. They’re very striking in appearance while still upholding a predatory aura.
Other Considerations for Seattle's Team Name
No, they haven’t ever hosted the Olympics. What the Olympics references is Mount Olympus, within the Olympic Mountain Range in Olympic National Park. The National Park is just across the Puget Sound from Seattle. The one pitfall to this name is the International Olympic Committee has it trademarked.
Hold your fire, everyone. Hear me out. The city of Seattle was named from an Anglicized translation of Chief Si’ahl of the Suquamish and Duwamish tribes, the latter having inhabited that area for 8,000+ years. Of course, by embracing the history of the city, the team would need to develop a close relationship with those tribes in order to celebrate the heritage rather than appropriate it.
And now back to the basics. Sierra in Spanish translates to mountain range (or “saw” but I’m ignoring that one for now). If there’s one thing the state of Washington has in spades, it’s mountains. You can see the Olympic Range from Seattle, making its skyline recognizable and breathtaking.
Storytime. My college roommate was from just outside Seattle, a smaller city called Snohomish in Snohomish County. It would definitely work better if the team was going to Snohomish instead of Seattle, but it would also be funny to have this weird nod to their neighboring cities.
This was one of the first names I saw come up when the expansion was first announced in 2018. While at first, I wasn’t a huge fan, there are artists out there who came up with some really nice looking logo concepts that have sucked me in. Pun intended.
I love the incorporation of green (for the Emerald City), the water around them, and the Space Needle in these designs. Some of the pushback that the Kraken has gotten is that it has more significance to Scandinavia than Seattle.
Definitely not as likely as the Kraken when it comes to the front office, but it really made me smile. I also came across designs that caught my eye. This would definitely be the most fun name and mascot in the NHL. It’s a reference to the many sightings of Bigfoot reported in the PNW, including Washington.
It’s a funny mascot without being wimpy. It came from a nickname for the Seahawks and I couldn’t love it more.
It doesn’t matter, in the end. No one is going to be happy with whatever colors are chosen. Blue and green are the obvious choice because of the Seahawks and the Mariners (to an extent), but their instant rivals in Vancouver already have the same color scheme.
I like the idea of staying with green, because Washington is the Evergreen State and Seattle is the Emerald City, so green is definite. As for the second color, I think it’s time for an NHL team to go back to the ’90s. It’s about time a team has purple in their color scheme.
I have many opinions, but ultimately I’m just excited to see what happens. I was disappointed with Vegas not picking something cooler or anything related to gambling, but I think the only way Seattle could disappoint me would be by naming them the Metropolitans (boring, been there and done that). Rumor has it they’ve already picked a name and mascot.
A Look at Other NHL Team Names
Ever wonder what a Canuck is? How about a Blue Jacket? Here's a breakdown of how the league’s 32 teams got their names.
- New York Rangers: Rickard’s team was immediately dubbed “Tex’s Rangers” as a pun referencing the paramilitary force founded in Texas during the 1830s.
- New Jersey Devils: According to legend, a harmless creature known as the Leeds Devil, or the Jersey Devil, roamed the Pine Barrens in the southern part of the state from 1887 until 1938.
- New York Islanders: Eleven years later, Islanders was selected as the nickname for New York’s new hockey team, which plays its home games on Long Island.
- Philadelphia Flyers: Snider’s sister, Phyllis, reportedly suggested the name Flyers, which sounds good when paired with Philadelphia but doesn’t have any real meaning.
- Pittsburgh Penguins: Carol McGregor came up with the name thinking of the Civic Arena, nicknamed "The Big Igloo".
- Boston Bruins: Ross decided on Bruins.
- Buffalo Sabres: The brothers sponsored a name-the-team contest and decided on Sabres, with a buffalo featured prominently in the team’s logo.
- Montreal Canadiens: The Canadiens are often referred to as “The Habs” or “Les Habs,” an abbreviation of Les Habitants, the name for the early settlers of New France.
- Ottawa Senators: The name, a reference to Ottawa’s status as Canada’s capital city, was an obvious choice.
- Toronto Maple Leafs: Smythe eventually decided on Maple Leafs, for a couple possible reasons.
- Winnipeg Jets: The Winnipeg Jets, formed in late 1971, got their moniker from a team of the same name that played in Canada’s Western Hockey League.
- Carolina Hurricanes: After the Hartford Whalers moved to Raleigh in 1997, new owner Peter Karmanos, Jr. named his team after the devastating storms that regularly ravage the region.
- Florida Panthers: “A panther, for your information, is the quickest striking of all cats. Hopefully, that’s how we will be on the ice.”
- Tampa Bay Lightning: Esposito said that, in addition to being a natural characteristic of the Tampa Bay area, Lightning expressed the fast action of a hockey game.
- Washington Capitals: Washington owner Abe Pollin decided on the perfectly apt name Capitals after staging a name-the-team contest.
- Chicago Blackhawks: McLaughlin named the team after the 86th Infantry Division in which he served.
- Columbus Blue Jackets: Blue Jackets was the winning entry in a name-the-team contest; it’s a nod to the fact that many residents of Ohio served in the Civil War.
- Detroit Red Wings: James Norris renamed the team after the Winged Wheelers, the name of the Montreal Hockey Club for which he once played.
- Nashville Predators: A vote by the fans helped determine Nashville’s name, a reference to the saber-toothed tiger remains that were discovered during an excavation in the city in 1971.
- St. Louis Blues: Owner Sid Saloman Jr. selected the name Blues in 1967 after W.C. Handy’s song, “St. Louis Blues.”
- Calgary Flames: The Flames played in Atlanta from 1972 until 1980, and their name was a reference to the burning of Atlanta by General William T. Sherman during the Civil War.
- Colorado Avalanche: Avalanche eventually beat out suggested names like Black Bears, Outlaws, Storm, Wranglers, Renegades, Rapids, and Cougars.
- Edmonton Oilers: Edmonton, the capital of Alberta, is also the oil capital of Canada.
- Minnesota Wild: In 1998, Wild was chosen from a field of six finalists, which also included Blue Ox, Northern Lights, Voyageurs, White Bears, and Freeze.
- Vancouver Canucks: Canuck is also slang for Canadian.
- Dallas Stars: When the Minnesota North Stars moved to Texas in 1993, they ditched the North and didn’t feel compelled to replace it with South or Lone.
- Los Angeles Kings: The late Jack Kent Cooke settled on Kings as the hockey team name from entries submitted in a fan contest when the team joined the league in the 1960s.
- Anaheim Ducks: Anaheim joined the NHL in 1993 and its team was known as the Mighty Ducks, after the wildly popular Disney movie.
- Arizona Coyotes: Coyotes was the winner in a name-the-team contest that attracted more than 10,000 entries.
- San Jose Sharks: Sharks was chosen from 2300 entries in San Jose’s name-the-team contest.
- Vegas Golden Knights: The Las Vegas Golden Knights-an expansion team that played its first season in 2018-was so named because, according to franchise owner Bill Foley, he “wanted to create a logo and a name that was powerful, that would epitomize the warrior class.
- Seattle Kraken: The NHL’s newest team-which joined the league in 2021-looked at more than 1200 names before going with the sea monster of sailors’ nightmares.
Seattle Kraken: A Unique Grammatical Case
In 2020 the Seattle NHL expansion team announced that it would be called the Kraken. In doing so the team ventured into uncharted grammatical territory, for Kraken alludes to a singular mythical creature.
Assuming that writers follow the pattern of other sports teams, each player on the ice will also be referred to as a Kraken, which just seems like a grossly unfair advantage.
The NHL’s newest team-which joined the league in 2021-looked at more than 1200 names before going with the sea monster of sailors’ nightmares. Ice hockey in the Seattle metropolitan area includes professional teams as early as 1915, such as the Seattle Metropolitans, the first United States-based team to win the Stanley Cup.
The area has been represented by various teams in the iterations of the Western Hockey League (WHL) since 1944, including the major junior Seattle Thunderbirds and Everett Silvertips.
Professional ice hockey in Seattle dates back to 1915, with the formation of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA)'s Seattle Metropolitans. During their nine seasons, the Metropolitans were the PCHA's most successful franchise, as they went 112-96-2 in their nine years as a franchise (outpacing the next best team in the Vancouver Millionaires, who went 109-97-2 during that same period). The Metropolitans made seven postseason appearances in their nine seasons.
The team won the Stanley Cup in 1917, tied for the Cup in 1919 and lost in five games in 1920. The Metropolitans folded in 1924 when a replacement for the Seattle Ice Arena could not be found. The Metropolitans were formed in 1915 as an expansion team by Frank and Lester Patrick, the owners of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association.
Seattle won the 1917 championship by defeating the National Hockey Association's Montreal Canadiens three games to one by a combined score of 23-11. Seattle's later hockey teams have paid tribute to the Metropolitans. The "S" logo of the NHL's Seattle Kraken was designed as an homage to the Metropolitans.