It took five months from the moment Vegas was awarded a team to the day they became the Golden Knights. During that time we would get periodical updates from The Creator on what he, Adidas, and the league were woking on.
“We had about 100 different proposed logos after we selected the name. At the end of the day, there was only one vote.” -Foley
— SinBin.vegas (@SinBinVegas) November 9, 2016
Behind The Vegas Ice Episode 2 (watch the episode here) gave us a look at exactly what he was talking about with a quick shot of a wall of options that were considered.
There was also another shot of a wall of photos just like this with the Vegas Sign highlighted and a sticky note with the word “local elements” on it.
We have no idea how far along in the process this was, but I have to say, the logo they eventually went with blows everything on that board out of the water.
If you look on the far right hand side of the image you see an early version of the Sword Star logo I personally believe turned out to be one of the best in all of professional sports. The final logo changed a bit, but that one really perked my ears up because it looked like something I thought I had seen before. Check this out…
The one in the middle was designed Sparky Chewbarky and was featured right here on SinBin.vegas. Makes me wonder if this isn’t a coincidence either…
That’s the very first design our resident graphic designer Isaac Palestino created for the name Black Knights. I have to admit, the Golden Knights logo is better, because of the V, but you’ve got to give it up to Isaac for a design we posted on February 1st, four and a half months before we even had the team.
I’m not calling foul at all, in fact just the opposite. One of the biggest critiques of the organization has been that they have ignored the views and opinions of the fan base. Well I think these examples might prove the exact opposite. The Creator is obsessed with his new toy, and he reads everything that’s written about it. I’m not going to make the claim that this site influenced the eventual logos for the team, but I will say it’s further proof they see what we are saying and doing… and that goes for the comments too.
PhiSig150
I still don’t think he pays much if any attention at all to comment sections, polls, and the like otherwise the name would have turned out much differently. I would be curious what research went into the design of the name and logo (did they employ focus groups, surveys, etc.? ) I don’t think it’s that unusual once we’re locked into a name to have similar designs that were created independently of each other. I see this as more evidence that Sparky should have a job with Adidas than Foley is incorporating fan feedback
As for the logos themselves they are pretty awesome. I think the primary helmet logo might have gotten a better reception if it used the more traditional knight image with a visor but I love spartans so that’s a non-issue for me and I also like the clever use of the V. The sword star is probably top 10 in logos for North American professional teams. You got to throw in the Blackhawks, Sharks, Penguins, Sabres, Orioles, Bulls, Celtics, Vikings, Raiders, and Seahawks somewhere in the mix. Not sure which one our star bumps but it’s definitely top 5 in the NHL and close to top 10 in the major four leagues. I will say that Foley did seem to anticipate the logos were going to be more popular than the name itself. He’s put out a lot of merchandise that doesn’t have Vegas Golden Knights on it which is appreciated by people like myself who like to pretend the name is the Las Vegas Knights. Viva Los Knights (Caballeros?) !!!
RJ
Foley clearly does not give two poops about what potential fans think. If he did he Knights name would have never got off the ground and we’d still have Las in Las Vegas. One thing Ken got right is that Foley sees this as his toy and he does not want anyone else to play with it; even us potential fans.
James
@PhiSig150
‘As for the logos themselves they are pretty awesome.’
I haven’t heard much criticism of the logos. Quite a contrast to the Los Angeles Chargers. I can’t wait to see the jerseys.
CaptainJohn
Please keep up the great work Ken. I love this behind-the-scenes stuff, and I think, as the smoke and mirrors gradually lift from this process, we’ll see more truths coming to light. Stay vigilante, my friend.
man, look at those walls. There’s a lot of great medieval visuals that can be used for a knights theme. When you think of the armour, the weapons, the heraldry, dragons, castles, the colors of a jousting tournament, the banners, castles, demons, myths, etc., etc., and we get what we got? this identity could have been SO much better if not for the insistence of Foley to have a logo resembling Army’s boring gold hemet on a black shield. I apologize to the fans who are enjoying their new logo, but even a Lada has that new car smell for a while. The name, colors, (oh yeah, the colors are supposed to be different from Army’s, because we include red… Have YOU seen any red?) and logo are all “borrowed” from the Army, and now it seems that the “swords in the star” is also “borrowed” (from SparkyChebarky). I’ve seen tons of knight helmet logos, there are many many teams named the Golden Knights (school teams), but I’ve only seen one person put a sword in the Las Vegas star, and I saw it here first. Did Foley thank you for the idea Ken? Because there’s only one part of this identity that relates to Las Vegas.- and Foley, Adidas and the NHL got that bright idea HERE!
Michael
I like the Knights concept okay in general, much more than the majority of names thrown out, but it does make me laugh a little, as Knights are such historical figures that it is almost ironic to use them for Las Vegas, where a house from the 1960s is considered old. It is like the renaissance fairs here that have stucco apartments next door. Yet another reason the name does not fit the city, but no use crying over spilt milk – I have my hat and shirt!
Dwayne Lucyk
I am no longer baffled why siLVer Knights was not chosen over gOLDen Knights. The color siLVer is a natural fit, in more ways than gOLDen, especially the missed opportunity of enhancing and making the current logo even better (or potential for a third worded jersey), but why would you want to incorporate the LV in siLVer into the logo when Las wasn’t going to be used in the naming process, anyway.
sparky chewbarky
Thanks for the mention in the article, Ken…much appreciated.
I’ve been following the LAS Vegas NHL journey since Day 1, and the insight that I get here on SinBin is very welcomed. Keep it going!
Also thanks to PhiSig150 and Captain John for the kind words.