That teal, blue and orange eye-sore that was like a knife in the heart of every die-hard Islander fan has made a return to the Island. To that I say -- WHAT????
For years I begged the Isles to host jersey burning parties in the parking lot and giving credit vouchers towards new jerseys. It didn’t happen. I thought it would be cool though. Instead, that logo is being brought back to life and is (for the most part) being welcomed with open arms -- and wallets. To that, again, I say -- WHAT?
In his October 19,2008 Islanders PointBlank post, Chris Botta explained the entire painful birth of the now iconic Fisherman jersey. This is an excerpt:
“For the press conference, baymen were honored for their work on the East End. At that point, the response to the Daily News story confirmed what we already knew: the new uni was going to be hated by more than 99% of the fan base. So a desperate, transparent effort was made to remind people that the Islanders were honoring Long Island’s culture.”
That “Bayman” looked an awful lot like the Gorton’s Fisherman and so the “We Want Fish Sticks” chant was born. Yes, 1995-96 was a dark time for the Islanders fans.
On June 28th, 2010, Dyan LeBourdais wrote about the end of the Fisherman jersey at a game in 1997 for the Isles' website. I didn’t even realize that it was Steve Webb (Steve Webb! Steve Webb!!) that was sent out onto the ice alone to take off the albatross and reveal -- a slightly less painful logo.
“Webb reached up to his chest and ripped fisherman jersey off of his back, revealing a similar jersey with the original Island logo and NY hockey stick, instead of a fisherman.
“I skated out there all alone and ripped it off and the people loved it. It was exciting. The fans were very excited. The place erupted. And again, the fans were very enthusiastic to get back to the original jersey.”
But now, as the Isles are celebrating their storied past, we must celebrate
all of its history including the Fish Sticks era (or error, whichever). Oddly enough, the new merchandise with the old logo sold out quickly to old and new fans alike. The t-shirts and sweatshirts are back in stock, but the hats are still in production.
I suppose that adage “Everything Old is New Again” holds true for sports memorabilia. Maybe someday the black third jersey that seemed to be unlucky will be revered some time in the future. Okay, probably not.
Since you can never please everyone, of course not everyone is happy about this throw-back marketing measure. Some Tweets about them:
Ricky @HandsomeRick Oct 28
@NYIslanders Why would anyone want fisherman logo stuff? It was embarrassing then and it is now. #isles
Mike R @FurleySportsFan Oct 28
What was worse #isles fans?: The Logo of the Original Fisherman's Jersey....Or the Colors?...I go w/Colors=BRUTAL
Isles Fan @IslesThoughts Oct 28
.@NYIslanders FYI there is still some fisherman sweatshirts and Tees left at the NHL store in NYC(was there yesterday) #isles
New York Islanders @NYIslanders Oct 28
#Isles fans have already 'cast their lines' on all Fisherman gear at the NVMC Team Store. More has been ordered though and will arrive soon!
Steve287 @Steve287 Oct 26
In my opinion, the black jersey was more of an embarrassment than the fisherman jersey #Isles
Jeff Capellini @GreenLanternJet Oct 6
I don't care if the #Isles wear the fisherman logo sweaters one game. Rudy got to dress once, no?
Good point Jeff. Good point. So, if you’ve got an old wave or fisherman jersey hiding in the back of your closet with that damn nacho stain that won’t come out, get a little Shout and put it back on. You’ll be in style again -- and probably hearing the Fish sticks chant again.
Speaking of “Fish Sticks,” if you’re an Islander fan and never read
Alan Hahn’s “Fish Sticks” book, what are you waiting for?
New York Islanders Blogger • 
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