Wilderness Walk: Black or White

With little or no fanfare, Adidas leaked released the jersey design for the 2018-2019 NHL All-Star game, hosted by San Jose on January 26th.

The hockey world took one look at them and responded with a collective... “huh?”

Unlike all-star jerseys of the past, these sweaters have team crests instead of the NHL shield, but they are also completely devoid of color, featuring black and white logos of all NHL teams.

While reactions to the styling are mixed at best, the jerseys themselves are eco-friendly and made from recycled ocean trash (via Parley Ocean Plastic) to help promote ocean cleanup initiatives. So they’ve got that going for them, which is nice.

Devan Dubnyk (and perhaps Zach Parise via the Last Man In vote) will be rocking these threads in San Jose starting January 25th for All-Star Weekend.

In the meantime, here’s hoping the Wild got some rest after a rough end to the road trip on Tuesday, for tonight they are back home to take on the Winnipeg Jets. The last time they faced their Canadian rival they won 3-1 to end a five-game losing streak on December 29th.

Let’s walk with a MJ classic, and get ready for gameday!

Wild News

Wild vs. Jets gameday preview - StarTribune.com
The Wild is on the playoff bubble at the season's midpoint. Minnesota leads the season series 2-0, winning 4-2 at the X and 3-1 at Bell MTS Place.

Jets bring offensive momentum into clash with Wild
After going through a surprising stretch in which it was held to one or fewer goals in five out of seven games, Winnipeg has regained its offensive swagger.

The good, the bad and the lingering question marks from the Wild’s first half – The Athletic
Taking stock of the Wild as they once again find themselves on the cusp of the playoffs for the second-half stretch.

Eric Staal just one of several Wild forwards not finding the net - Twincities.com

Tending the Fields

IOWA DEFEATED BY SAN ANTONIO 5-4 WEDNESDAY NIGHT | Iowa Wild
Iowa Wild (20-10-4-3; 47 pts.) fell to the San Antonio Rampage (18-18-1-0; 39 pts.) by a score of 5-4 Wednesday night as Iowa’s comeback attempt fell short.

Early projections for Team USA’s 2020 World Cup of Hockey roster – The Athletic
With a decision coming soon on the 2020 World Cup, Craig Custance and few others at The Athletic take an early run at projecting the Team USA roster, with insight from an American Olympic coach.

All-Star, all the time

adidas, NHL unveil eco-friendly Stars jersey for 2019 All-Star Game
Made from marine plastic waste materials, the special uniform will feature team logos for first time

NHL unveils colourless eco-friendly All-Star jerseys
Designed by manufacturing partner Adidas, these colourless and rather uninspired threads for the tournament portion of the showcase weekend in San Jose were unveiled to the public on Wednesday, and to little fanfare.

Pass or Fail: NHL’s eco-friendly 2019 All-Star Game jerseys
The 2019 adidas NHL All-Star Game jerseys have been revealed and they are unique in a number of ways.

All-Star jerseys: good for the environment, bad on the eyes - TheHockeyNews
The special sweaters have been revealed and once again, Adidas has underwhelmed. Sure, the tech is cool, but black and white jerseys for a showcase event just isn’t going to cut it.

Bettman: Seattle will host NHL draft and All-Star weekend
SEATTLE (AP) -- On his first trip to Seattle since the city was granted the NHL's 32nd franchise, Commissioner Gary Bettman announced a couple more rewards for the future franchise's investment.

Around the League

O Captain, where art thou? Former NHL captains thrive without the 'C' - StarTribune.com
Wild center Eric Staal is one of 21 former NHL captains still playing in the league and navigating the potentially uncomfortable environment of being on a team without the 'C' stitched on his jersey.

Former NHL captains don't consider new roles awkward - StarTribune.com
There are 21 NHL players who are former full-time captains either for their current team or, more commonly, a team they left via trade or free agency.

Bourne: The Flames have one of the clearest paths to the Stanley Cup and they’re awesome – The Athletic
The Flames have one of the most dangerous first lines in the league, a Norris candidate on D and a back end top-four that’d be the envy of nearly every team in the NHL.

A Canadian superstar, Nathan MacKinnon is just fine flying under the radar in Denver – The Athletic
MacKinnon has been in Denver for five seasons, yet you will not see his face on billboards. He is not doing local television commercials. It's a different story when he returns to Canada.

Mailbag: Trade Deadline candidates, Last Men In vote
Here is the Jan. 9 edition of Dan Rosen's weekly mailbag, which runs every Wednesday.

Marner won't talk contract with Maple Leafs until season ends: report
Mitchell Marner's agent said the Toronto Maple Leafs forward remains committed to holding off on contract negotiations until after the season.

Trotz leads Adams race at midseason
To mark the midway point of the season, NHL.com is running its third installment of the Trophy Tracker series this week. Today, we look at the race for the Jack Adams Award, given annually to the top coach in the NHL as selected in a Professional Hockey Writers Association poll.

Countdown to TradeCentre: Suitors for Tarasenko - TSN.ca
The National Hockey League's Trade Deadline is 3 p.m. ET on Monday, Feb. 25, and teams will be making decisions on whether to buy or sell and decide which players can make the biggest difference and hold the greatest value. Check out the latest trade rumours and speculation from around the NHL beat.

The Penguins look like a powerhouse again thanks to Murray and DeSmith - TheHockeyNews
Two months ago, the Pittsburgh Penguins were in a tailspin. There were calls for a minor roster overhaul with suggestions that non-essential pieces should be moved out in order to rejuvenate a club that had maybe spent too much time together and become complacent. But when changes actually came, they were relatively minor.

On Frozen Pond

Grieving process continues for parents of fallen Humboldt Broncos in wake of driver's guilty plea - TheHockeyNews
The driver whose truck struck the Humboldt Broncos' bus pleaded guilty to all charges, and the parents of the fallen Broncos players hope that this can spark change in the trucking industry.