Ranking The 7 Years Of Center Circles

Earlier this week the Golden Knights unveiled the new center circle for this season’s games at T-Mobile Arena. It’s the seventh consecutive season Vegas will see a new center circle in the neutral zone. Let’s go back over all seven and rank them from best to worst.

#7 – Year 5

It’s kind of unfair because I actually really do like this design, but it’s a flower, and they put it in the center of the ice for the season right after the front office jettisoned the most popular and influential player in franchise history… who also happened to garner the nickname Flower. The red is a great touch, the use of the filigree design in the logo is a plus, and it has a sort of desert feel. But… It’s a flower. There’s just no escaping it.

#6 – Year 4

I’ve honestly never understood this one. What exactly is the design? It kind of looks like it could be something close to a spade or a club on a playing card, but I see an inkblot more so than anything (and you never want my thoughts on inkblots). The inner circle cutting the entire graphic into essentially three circles is just too much for me too. The stars are nice though.

#5 – Year 1

This is really just a nostalgic thing. Obviously, there’s nothing to this design and there’s no doubt it’s the worst red-line design in team history too, but come on, how can you not love anything and everything Year 1? What’s going on with the spacing on the word “Arena” too? Oh well, Year 1 > Flower.

#4 – Year 6

This design is completely saved by the glow-in-the-dark aspect. The nod to the Reverse Retro jerseys is nice (those jerseys are amazing), it’s just the color that’s a little odd. That being said, a two-tone VGK logo always makes me happy. I’ve always liked the two-tone logo better than the actual logo with all four colors.

#3 – Year 2

This is what a center circle is meant to look like in the NHL. It’s not over-the-top, yet it still gets in all of the elements we’re looking for. Have to love the Sword Star logo making multiple appearances too. Clean, precise, nice.

#2 – Year 3

This one is spectacular. Whereas the last one is what most teams would consider a standard center circle, this one fits what Vegas does for theirs. The pattern around the outside is perfect, there’s a ton of gold, and the colors match brilliantly. Honestly, I thought this one would never be topped.

#1 – Year 7

Absolutely stunning. Personally, I’m a fan of celebrating the heck out of a championship season. I want massive banners all over the arena, use the words “Stanley Cup Champions” literally every time they say Golden Knights, and wear the patch on the jersey until the stitching wears out. This though, oh my goodness, it’s so much better than all of that. The design borrows from the Stanley Cup, as if Vegas painted the Cup gold. It’s subtle, yet arrogant. The perfect combination for the reigning, defending, undisputed champions of the world.

**Stick tap to TheFaceoff.net for the images. It’s worth a click over to the site to see the full image of each season’s rink. Really impressive graphics to give you a nice trip down memory lane.**