Reeling in the Fisherman
By Cory Wright
As alumni flocked back to Long Island for the New York Islanders’ 50th anniversary season in 2022-23, perhaps the most anticipated return was the Isles’ fisherman jerseys.
The jerseys were only worn from 1995-97 and marked the one time the Islanders have made a wholesale change from their original crest. The idea was to modernize the Islanders brand and increase merchandise sales, but the move backfired, incurring the ire of fans who had a strong attachment to the original logo the team wore through its dynasty days. So just as hastily as it was conceived, it was shipped out to sea.
The Islanders returned to their traditional crest in the 1997-98 season and once out of site, the fisherman jersey felt akin to a Kraken, Moby Dick, or other legends of the sea. As the years passed, the folklore of the fisherman only grew in the eyes of fans who loved and hated the jersey in its initial run.
Nearly 20 years after the tides took the fisherman jersey out – along with Nyisles, the larger-than-life size fisherman mascot closely associated with it – the currents started to shift. The first ripples were in 2014-15, with the Islanders wearing the fisherman crest on their warmup jerseys ahead of a game against the Florida Panthers. In 2018, the jersey was brought back to the team store and may well have been a lure, as fans went for it hook, line and sinker.
The departure from the traditional logo, combined with a downturn on the ice, caused a lot of anxiety amongst Islanders fans in 1995. A generation later, it’s worth remembering that some of today’s Islanders weren’t even born during the jersey’s original run and aren’t burdened by those feelings. As for the Islanders who were young hockey fans back in 1995, they were the exact demographic the jersey was marketed to. Fast forward to 2022 and nostalgia had fully taken hold, with the fisherman logo firmly a part of the NHL’s retro craze, alongside the Quebec Nordiques’ and Hartford Whalers’ crests.
The NHL was ready to tap into the retro craze, commissioning Reverse Retro jerseys for all 32 clubs, the perfect vehicle for the fisherman to return. The uniform got a 2022 update, with the jersey opting for a sleeker, straighter trim, as opposed to the giant wave that characterized the original. The ‘90s teal was replaced by a navy blue, giving the Islanders a color to match the motif of the gruff fisherman on their chests.
“They look great,” captain Anders Lee said of his first looks. "I think it's a really cool refresh of the old fisherman logo. The orange and navy with the teal make it pop.”
The initial return on the ice was rocky, as the Islanders fell to the Carolina Hurricanes in their first game in the new threads (albeit on the back half of a back-to-back) and went 3-3-0 in the retro uniforms in 2022-23. But off the ice, the decision was definitive. The jerseys flew off the shelves and were highly visible around UBS Arena.
Instead of running from the past, the Islanders embraced it. Nyisles, who technically predated the jersey but is spiritually anchored to it, returned, forming a tag-team with Sparky the Dragon. The organization even found the fan who named Nyisles, inviting Ilana Kariamis and her family to the debut game of the fisherman sweaters.
“You've got to bring out your memories," Kariamis said. "It's 50 years. We've been around for 50 years, so it's about time to start bringing some things back and having fun with the franchise and enjoying the times that we had."
For the ancient mariners with long memories, fear not, the fisherman merely came up for air during a 50th anniversary celebration of all things Islanders. When, (or if) it resurfaces is unknown, but as the red mornings turn into red nights for the fisherman jersey, it’s worth remembering one thing…
Fashion comes in waves.