The New York Rangers logo was designed to rival that of the New York Americans

The New York Rangers have a long history of great rivalries that have changed over the years. Rivals like the Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings during the original six, to the New York Islanders and New Jersey Devils today.

Anyone who knows their Rangers history understands that the very first rival was another New York hockey team known as the Americans. Even before the Rangers entered the league, the two franchises began sparring.

The New York Rangers logo designed to contrast their rivals

The following can be found on the NYR website:

The year was 1926, and hockey was already a popular sport at Madison Square Garden – only the team of choice was not yet the Blueshirts. Back then, another NHL squad, the old New York Americans, were drawing big crowds in their first season at The Garden.

The Americans, who wore stars-and-stripes jerseys patterned after the American flag, proved that MSG was a perfect venue for hockey. Garden President G.I. “Tex” Rickard came to realize that the time was ripe for a second New York hockey team – one owned and operated by The Garden itself. Working with the league, Rickard managed to secure a team for the 1926-27 season.

New York Rangers logo
NY Americans vs NY Rangers logo (Sportslogos.net)

When Tex, who was a boxing promoter at Madison Square Garden designed the Rangers logo, he also used the Red, White, and Blue of the American flag. However, he contrasted the Americans horizontal logo by writing Rangers diagonally which is still the staple for the historic franchise.

New York Americans
New York Americans (NHL)

Anthony Scultore has been covering the New York Rangers and the NHL since 2014. His work also appears at... More about Anthony Scultore

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