Ranking every Calgary Flames jersey

Dec 12, 2022; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; View of a Calgary Flames logo on a jersey worn by the member of the team during the second period at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 12, 2022; Montreal, Quebec, CAN; View of a Calgary Flames logo on a jersey worn by the member of the team during the second period at Bell Centre. Mandatory Credit: David Kirouac-USA TODAY Sports
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The Calgary Flames have some of the best uniforms in the NHL. Their clean, timeless logo presents well in white, red, or black and in a 32-team league, they’ve managed to land on a unique colour scheme that also looks sexy as hell. The Flames have built a brand that represents the city of Calgary and that has remained fairly consistent since 1980. And for the most part, that brand has translated well to the ice in the form of a hockey sweater. As a bit of a hockey jersey head, I’ve ranked every Calgary Flames jersey from 10th to 1st.

Please keep in mind that this order is of course my subjective opinion and you’re more than welcome to disagree with me. Note that I’ve also grouped matching home and away sets together as one “jersey” to keep the list to 10 versus 14. Before jumping in, thanks to the (unofficial) NHL Uniform Database for the reference info throughout this piece.

Let’s get into it with the worst Calgary Flames jersey of all time…

10th: 2013-16 Alternate Calgary Flames Jersey

Mar 5, 2014; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames left wing Mike Cammalleri (13) skates during the warmup period against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports
Mar 5, 2014; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames left wing Mike Cammalleri (13) skates during the warmup period against the Ottawa Senators at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports /

These sweaters were a dumpster fire. From the cheap script font nestled behind an awkwardly placed Flaming C, which together served as a “crest”, to the bat-wing shoulder yokes, to the long black collar, to the font used for the jersey numbers and nameplates, this Calgary Flames jersey was outright bad. I hated it then and I hate it now.

Perhaps this Flames jersey’s only slightly redeeming element was its secondary logo used on the shoulders, which still wasn’t anything special.

9th: 2011 Heritage Classic Calgary Flames Jersey

Feb 20, 2011; Calgary, AB, CANADA; Calgary Flames forward Tim Jackman (15) during the first period of the Heritage Classic at McMahon Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports
Feb 20, 2011; Calgary, AB, CANADA; Calgary Flames forward Tim Jackman (15) during the first period of the Heritage Classic at McMahon Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-USA TODAY Sports /

I don’t dislike the jerseys as much as some fans do. The uniform served as a fairly well done ode to the Calgary Tigers and the usage of burgundy wasn’t horrible. But, while I don’t mind the cream coloured logo, it’s as ugly as Milan Lucic on the pants. At least this was prior to the white – or cream – glove trend.

8th: 1995-98 Home & Away Calgary Flames Jersey

Dec 18, 1998; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; FILE PHOTO; Calgary Flames right wing Theoren Fleury (14) in action against the New Jersey Devils at Continental Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Lou Capozzola-USA TODAY NETWORK
Dec 18, 1998; East Rutherford, NJ, USA; FILE PHOTO; Calgary Flames right wing Theoren Fleury (14) in action against the New Jersey Devils at Continental Airlines Arena. Mandatory Credit: Lou Capozzola-USA TODAY NETWORK /

This is the uniform that’s become known as the “Pedestal” jersey. It marked the introduction of black to the Flames’ primary uniform (pants, gloves, helmet and striping). It used a number and name font that still holds up today, but overall, it lacks a sense of timelessness that doesn’t allow it to hold up well over time – probably due to the diagonal striping that serves as the “pedestal” beneath the crest (not visible in this photo, but it’s hard to find images I’m licensed to used from the 90s) and the sublimated striping that doesn’t look as good as properly stitched striping.

The red version shown here is better than its white counterpart. Unfortunately I wasn’t able to find a shot of the white one in action (that I’m allowed to publish on this site).

7th: 2007-20 Home & Away Calgary Flames Jersey

Aug 11, 2020; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames forward Sean Monahan (23) skates during warmup against the Dallas Stars during game one of the first round of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-USA TODAY Sports
Aug 11, 2020; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames forward Sean Monahan (23) skates during warmup against the Dallas Stars during game one of the first round of the 2020 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Rogers Place. Mandatory Credit: Perry Nelson-USA TODAY Sports /
November 25, 2009; Calgary, AB, CANADA; Calgary Flames right wing Jarome Iginla (12) during the third period against the Phoenix Coyotes at the Saddledome. Calgary defeated Phoenix 2-1. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports
November 25, 2009; Calgary, AB, CANADA; Calgary Flames right wing Jarome Iginla (12) during the third period against the Phoenix Coyotes at the Saddledome. Calgary defeated Phoenix 2-1. Mandatory Credit: John E. Sokolowski-USA TODAY Sports /

In addition to grouping the home and away jerseys here, I’ve also grouped together uniforms that did have some minor iterations during their lifetime. The socks changed from the original Reebok Edge version, some piping was removed along the way, and when adidas took over the NHL’s jersey rights, the numbers and nameplates were changed from the original italicized typeface.

Overall, the best parts of these Calgary Flames uniforms are that they’re the last time the club wore a black Flaming C on a red sweater, their resemblance to the prior set, and I didn’t dislike the Alberta and Canadian flag shoulder patches, although I was done with these after well over a decade of service.

On the other hand, the Flames 2007-20 home and away jerseys remained in circulation for too long (they looked modern at first and dated by the end of their shelf life) and the vertical striping just didn’t do it for me. I prefer a classic looking hockey jersey most of the time and to me, horizontal striping is the way to go in order to achieve that.

6th: 2023 Heritage Classic Calgary Flames Jersey

Oct 29, 2023; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames centre Jonathan Huberdeau (10) on the ice with Edmonton Oilers centre Connor McDavid (97) during the third period in the 2023 Heritage Classic ice hockey game at Commonwealth Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Walter Tychnowicz-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 29, 2023; Edmonton, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames centre Jonathan Huberdeau (10) on the ice with Edmonton Oilers centre Connor McDavid (97) during the third period in the 2023 Heritage Classic ice hockey game at Commonwealth Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Walter Tychnowicz-USA TODAY Sports /

The newest Calgary Flames jersey on the list, the 2023 Heritage Classic looked good, but it didn’t blow anyone away. They were clean, classic, used the vintage off-white well, and had fantastic details – especially the felt and stitching on the numbers. The circular crest worked fairly well, too.

They were also way better than the Oilers’ Heritage Classic uniform – those brown pants and gloves are hideous.

5th: 2022-23 Reverse Retro 2.0 Calgary Flames Jersey

Dec 14, 2022; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames center Mikael Backlund (11) celebrates his goal against the Vancouver Canucks during the first period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 14, 2022; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames center Mikael Backlund (11) celebrates his goal against the Vancouver Canucks during the first period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports /

The NHL/adidas Reverse Retro program returned last season for the second time. The idea with this uniform program was to create single-season alternate uniforms for every team in the league with certain elements “reversed” or altered in some way.

For the Flames, their second Reverse Retro uniform marked the return of the Pedestal. In my opinion, which I understand is counter to a lot of Flames fans’ opinions, these uniforms scratched an itch for me. The fact that they were intentionally 90s throwbacks versus an attempt to be modern, like the original Pedestals, just did it for me. The final kicker was the black base with the white Flaming C – it popped and I thought these jerseys looked phenomenal for their one season of action, especially on TV.

4th: 2020-21 Reverse Retro 1.0, Current Alternate Calgary Flames Jersey

Nov 18, 2023; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames center Martin Pospisil (76) skates during the warmup period against the New York Islanders at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 18, 2023; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames center Martin Pospisil (76) skates during the warmup period against the New York Islanders at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports /

In November 2020, the Calgary Flames brought back their “cult-classic Blasty jersey” as part of the first generation of the Reverse Retro program.

After a year off, the Flames added subtle sublimated black-on-black flames to the lower sleeves (as well as some other minor tweaks) and announced that the jersey would be back as an alternate/”third” jersey for several seasons.

Most Flames are either a Blasty guy/gal or an anti-Blasty guy/gal. In my opinion, Blasty is the perfect alternate uniform. The black aesthetic, the logo change-up, the modernized throwback appeal – it all just works for me. I think Blasty looks absolutely fantastic and I’ll be a sad lad when the Flames retire it.

And Black Jersey Dubé is electric…

3rd: 1998-2003 Away, 2003-06 Alternate Calgary Flames Jersey

Oct 14, 2000; Uniondale, NY, USA; FILE PHOTO; Calgary Flames right wing Jarome Iginla (12) on the ice against the New York Islanders at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Lou Capozzola-USA TODAY NETWORK
Oct 14, 2000; Uniondale, NY, USA; FILE PHOTO; Calgary Flames right wing Jarome Iginla (12) on the ice against the New York Islanders at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Lou Capozzola-USA TODAY NETWORK /

The original “Ol’ Blasty” as Blasty was orignally called was met with a heap of controversy. For many fans, this rendition of the horse-head uniform represents a period of darkness. For me, it represents the emergence of Jarome Iginla.

This jersey goes hard. It has more red than the current version, but I think it’s mostly nostalgia that has it bumping the current version off of the podium.

2nd: 2003-07 Home & Away Calgary Flames Jersey

CHICAGO – NOVEMBER 12: Defender Robyn Regehr #28 of the Calgary Flames advances the puck against the Chicago Blackhawks during the game at the United Center on November 12, 2003 in Chicago, Illinois. The Flames won 6-2. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
CHICAGO – NOVEMBER 12: Defender Robyn Regehr #28 of the Calgary Flames advances the puck against the Chicago Blackhawks during the game at the United Center on November 12, 2003 in Chicago, Illinois. The Flames won 6-2. (Photo by Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images) /
CALGARY, AB – NOVEMBER 20: Center Craig Conroy #22 of the Calgary Flames skates on the ice during the game against the Montreal Canadians at Pengrowth Saddledome on November 20, 2003 in Calgary, Alberta. The Flames won 2-1. (Photo by Ian Tomlinson/Getty Images)
CALGARY, AB – NOVEMBER 20: Center Craig Conroy #22 of the Calgary Flames skates on the ice during the game against the Montreal Canadians at Pengrowth Saddledome on November 20, 2003 in Calgary, Alberta. The Flames won 2-1. (Photo by Ian Tomlinson/Getty Images) /

Just look at Craig Conroy model that uniform. The visor-less Nike bucket, the Bauer Vapor XX skates, and the yellow Syndaddy: perfection.

These jerseys – especially the red one – went so hard and I wouldn’t complain if someone made an argument for them to take the number one spot. They took the Flames on a Cup run in 2004, they draped peak Jarome Iginla, they were the best uniforms that featured the black Flaming C on a red base, they had the V-striping that debuted on the original Blasty, and they had the Blasty logo on the shoulders. These jerseys scream “C of Red” and “Red Mile” and I love them.

1st: 1980-94 Home & Away, 2021-Present Home & Away Calgary Flames Jersey

INGLEWOOD, CA – 1988: Hakan Loob #12 of the Calgary Flames skates during a game against the Los Angeles Kings in the 1988-1989 NHL season at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Mike Powell/Getty Images)
INGLEWOOD, CA – 1988: Hakan Loob #12 of the Calgary Flames skates during a game against the Los Angeles Kings in the 1988-1989 NHL season at the Great Western Forum in Inglewood, California. (Photo by Mike Powell/Getty Images) /
COLUMBUS, OHIO – OCTOBER 20: Andrew Mangiapane #88 of the Calgary Flames skates with the puck during the first period against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena on October 20, 2023 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images)
COLUMBUS, OHIO – OCTOBER 20: Andrew Mangiapane #88 of the Calgary Flames skates with the puck during the first period against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Nationwide Arena on October 20, 2023 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Jason Mowry/Getty Images) /
Oct 2, 2023; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames center Elias Lindholm (28) controls the puck against the Winnipeg Jets during the second period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 2, 2023; Calgary, Alberta, CAN; Calgary Flames center Elias Lindholm (28) controls the puck against the Winnipeg Jets during the second period at Scotiabank Saddledome. Mandatory Credit: Sergei Belski-USA TODAY Sports /

The current versions of the Calgary Flames home and away jerseys are the best uniforms the club has ever worn. While removing black entirely from the set was a tough pill to swallow, these are too clean, too classic, too timeless, and too outright gorgeous not to hold the top spot on the Calgary Flames jersey history podium for me.

The Flames current look represents what the team wore upon their arrival in Calgary, it matches their 1989 Stanley Cup Championship attire, and fans league-wide agree that the Calgary Flames have the best home uniform in the NHL:

Perhaps my favourite part about the Calgary Flames current uniform set – above their simplicity and everything else I mentioned – is the fact the white roads and red homes are equally visually pleasing. Typically, teams’ away jerseys are overly white and bland, but the Flames away uniform – with red shoulder yokes, pants, and gloves – strike a harmonized balance of hockey beauty that no team in the NHL can compete with.

The Calgary Flames wear the definition of “hockey sweaters” and fans are fortunate to be blessed with such elite style points.

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