MONTREAL – The Montreal Canadiens revealed the jersey they will wear in the 2016 NHL Winter Classic Friday.
It’s a game they’ll play against the Boston Bruins at Gillette Stadium, home of the NFL’s New England Patriots in Foxborough, Mass.
The jersey touches on multiple eras of the Canadiens’ history.
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The chest stripe is a shade of blue inspired by the first-ever Canadiens jersey, worn after their founding in 1909.
The iconic central crest C is white and the H is red, as they were in 1923-24 – the season the team won its first Stanley Cup championship in the NHL.
An image of a globe on the sleeve, borrowed from the World Champions design and worn by Montreal the following season, pays homage to the year the Habs formed their longstanding rivalry with the newly-founded Bruins.
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The jersey also features a distinctive red collar, reminiscent of 1945-46, a season that culminated in the Canadiens, led by Maurice “Rocket” Richard, Hector “Toe” Blake and Elmer Lach, defeating Boston to earn their sixth Stanley Cup.
“We wanted to underline and pay homage to our earliest meetings with our hosts,” said Kevin Gilmore, team Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer in a press release.
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“Fans who tune into the 2016 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic will come from not only our two respective markets, but from around North America and the world.”
“We look forward to sharing with them, through the story behind this new sweater, a look into what has helped shape unquestionably one of the most preeminent and storied rivalries in all of professional sports.”
The Winter Classic game will take place Jan. 1, 2016.
** with files from the Montreal Canadiens.
rachel.lau@globalnews.ca
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