With two expansion teams announced and a year into understanding the branding of the other six teams, we thought it would be fun to come up with some ideas for the two new teams. We also needed to blow off some stream from the stress of this postseason. So here are some slightly silly, slightly serious thoughts on what should become of PWHL Seattle.
PWHL Seattle:
Nicole Haase: With a “green team” already in the Fleet, it was kind of disappointing to see the Seattle squad listed with “emerald green” as their primary color.
I am happy to see another team using the cream alternates as we’ve seen how gorgeous that can look with the Victoire, but yeah, I wish they were able to get a bit more of their own identity through color. I know Seattle is nicknamed the “Emerald City” because of all of the greenery, but frankly that’s generic af already and it’s so thin to say “we have to be Emerald green” because of that.
The branding thus far definitely has a blue/turquoise lean to the green. That does take it away from the dark green of the Fleet, but then puts it closer to Vancouver and New York. I actually think a bright kelly green would be sufficiently different from the richness of the Fleet, but alas here we are.
There was a chance to either align with Kraken colors (and there are a lot, so they could have really found a path that puts it all in a similar vein without looking like it’s copy and paste) or give them their own full identity.
Sam Gray: Blue and green (and red) are all over the place in a league with only eight teams. Why are they not orange? Or pink. And I’m serious. Noted about Emerald City, etc., and so I suppose I’m on the outside looking in at the significance of that. But I too was like… oh sure green. I guess.
NH: As for a nickname, I’d imagine they’ll stick with the water theme that all the other teams in the city seem to follow - Mariners, Seahawks, Kraken, Storm, Sounders and Reign.
So far, the ones I’ve come up with are Mermaids, Gorgons, Maelstrom, Tidal Wave. I like alliteration, so there’s also Selkies, Snappers, Stingrays and Surge.
I have to say, I’m really liking Seattle Surge.
Liz Koetting: Surge is great, actually, and matches names like Charge and Frost. I like it. They could lean tech, too, or aerospace. The first thing that pops into my head when I think about Seattle is grunge music, honestly, but I doubt they’d go that direction. Although a mascot that wears a flannel tied around their waist would be pretty great.
SG: Seattle Nirvanas.
But seriously, I looove Seattle Selkies and I agree they’ll go with a water-adjacent name.
NH: I could be easily convinced of Selkies. And they'd sell a massive amount of branded seal stuffed animals. And have a built in mascot.
And Surge does present some difficulties when it comes to a physical mascot.
Three wave-associated mascots come to my mind and I dislike them all. There’s an option to go with an anthropomorphized wave, a la Tulane. Of course, that’s just a drawn mascot. They use a pelican for live events. But since I went to college next door to Tulane, I’d like to avoid any and all associations with them.
In Milwaukee we have an indoor soccer team called the Wave and their mascot is “Brad Beach” (we have a beach on Lake Michigan called Bradford Beach) and his hair is the wave? I hate it in every iteration. It’s a no from me.
Pepperdine’s Willie the Wave is also terrifying and strangely has abs?
Honestly, this is all making me rethink Surge.
SG: The New Jersey Devils mascot is a devil and he also has abs. It’s very unsettling.
LK: I think you could do something vaguely related and have it be a selkie or a mermaid. It doesn’t HAVE to be directly related to the name. The Kraken’s mascot is a sea troll, not an octopus. In the WNBA, the Liberty have an elephant. Hell, the mascot could be a lighthouse, or a marmot (the state animal). Or a ship’s captain even? Though I think that’s more Fleet …
SG: Ellie, my love… anyway the creativity to come up with a mascot is way over my head. That being said, what if it was a mountain? Everything I’m picturing looks more like a mascot for a grocery store. Everybody’s so creative.
NH: Bringing out the big guns (and high bar) with an Ellie reference. But it's a good reminder that the mascot need not be so literal.
So now I'm back on Surge and gunning for a cute sea animal mascot.