Are the Washington Capitals Bringing Back the Black “Screaming Eagle” Uniform?

While the big uniform news over the weekend was the leak of the Chicago Blackhawks Winter Classic jersey (as noted in a video posted by the excellent Icethetics website), which Jimmer covered over the weekend (scroll down), that Icethetics video also had cited a leak on Instagram positing that the Washington Capitals *might* be returning the black “Screaming Eagle” uniform that the team wore as a Reverse Retro a couple years ago (2022-23).

Let’s start with the video (it should start right at the Capitals’ news)

The Instagram account with the “95takengive” handle showed a T.J. Oshie jersey on sale with Fanatics Premium branding. As Icethetics notes, the account is an Indonesian jersey re-seller, but many of the jerseys pictured appear to be legitimate. Unfortunately, the Instagram post has been taken down. But that doesn’t take away from the intrigue.

Here’s a transcript of the video discussing the salient points:

Check this out. A photo posted by that account earlier this month shows the Washington Capitals’ black Reverse Retro jersey from two years ago with Fanatics Premium branding, which you would not expect to see unless the Caps were bringing it back, right?

With unannounced plans to introduce a special third jersey for their upcoming 50th anniversary season, is Washington reviving the Screaming Eagle? I’m sure that would be a huge hit among fans.

Reviving an earlier design is one way I can see a team getting away with adding a new third jersey, with Fanatics asking clubs to hold off on new work while they take the reins from Adidas. If the design and tech pack work has already been done, it saves the production team a lot of time and effort. And it makes sense as Alex Ovechkin’s career winds down, even while he targets Gretzky’s goal-scoring record, the club might want to bring back the old colors that Ovi first wore as a rookie in Washington.

No confirmation on any of that just yet but the signs are strong. And the timing is right for these jerseys to start emerging from the factory. The new Fanatics jerseys are due to go on sale in September though I haven’t heard a specific release date just yet.

A still from the video shows the Black Capitals jersey in a sea of other jerseys.

A couple things of note from the Icethetics report: 1) While this is all conjecture at this point, the jersey does show Fanatics branding on the back collar (which is exactly where it should be, and will be on the new jerseys that will be worn in the NHL this fall) and 2) the whole 50th anniversary season/Ovechkin’s career winding down/he wore that jersey (albeit not in black) in his rookie season. With him poised to break Wayne Gretzky’s goal scoring record (likely this season), it would make sense for the Capitals to bring back the screaming eagle.

But as has been pointed out, Fanatics has basically told the NHL “no alternates” this year, so that would argue against it. However…since the black jersey was worn as a RR just a couple years ago, maybe there is some leftover stock (or at least the material and patterns), so it could be a workaround without requiring too much effort on Fanatics’ part. The NHL added two teams in 1974: the Capitals and the Kansas City Scouts. The Scouts lasted all of two seasons, before moving to Colorado to become the Rockies, who then moved in 1982 to New Jersey to become the Devils. So, while the Devils are also celebrating the franchise’s 50th anniversary, it’s not their 50th anniversary in Jersey. So…the NHL/Fanatics might be ok with the team having a 50th Anniversary alternate.

But what about that Instagram account that has been taken down? What makes Icethetics at least somewhat confident that the jersey shown there is legit? A bit later in that video it states:

A look through their account shows a lot of very obvious counterfeit products but there are also plenty of genuine jerseys as well. Whether this company acquired them legitimately may be another story. That said, what they have in terms of Fanatics NHL jerseys is not the Authentic Pro styles, but rather the Indonesian-made Premium tier. You can see the labeling right there in the collar. If you need a reference, it’s the product we used to know as the Adidas Authentic line. The account also shows photos of a few other Fanatics Premium NHL jerseys: the green Dallas Stars, the black Boston Bruins, further confirming the return to the pre-Centennial design, the new orange Anaheim Ducks, which has the new interior hemline branding, and the Blackhawks red home sweater customized with Connor Bedard’s number 98. So while I’m not sure if this seller is legitimate, I am confident that the jerseys pictured are.

So, it’s definitely possible both the jersey is legitimate AND the Capitals will wear it this upcoming season.

We’ll just have to wait and see.

Personally, I never liked the Capitals when they veered from their original red, white and blue branding, which lasted from 1995 through 2007. The whole tealish-blue, black and bronze with the asymmetrical designs never looked right to my eye. But I know some people loved it, and those were the franchise colors when Ovi debuted, so reviving the RR design to celebrate the 50th Anniversary isn’t a total stretch.

What do you guys think? Will we end up getting an end-around alternate for the Caps? And if this is legit, do you like this particular one (either the RR itself or the screaming eagle design)?

Love to hear your thoughts.