Anaheim Ducks: Ranking the Ducks’ alternate jerseys from worst to best

4. Eggplant & Black

Before the Ducks introduced the webbed “D” black alternate, the team took to the ice with a different type of black third jersey when the Ducks were still Mighty back in 2003-04.

While the jersey technically only lasted two seasons due to the 2004-05 NHL Lockout, the team did wear the sweater often on home ice and it was surprisingly well accepted by Anaheim’s fans.

This Ducks’ jersey was the first that didn’t entail any Jade in its color scheme, and at the time it was arguably a nice change of pace for the club. The jersey’s overall design and layout had the right mix of simple meets flashy, especially with the eggplant, silver and white stripes combination.

The tie-down strings were the first time Anaheim had used that jersey characteristic, and the interlocking alternate “MD” shoulder patches were also something new that fans seemed to embrace.

Though, the big game-changer for the Ducks was the fact that the team didn’t incorporate its main duck-masked logo. The sweater marked the first time in team history that the “Mighty Duck” logo and theme was essentially absent from the team’s brand.

Another overlooked appearance of this uniform was the team sticking with purple helmets and pants. More times than not, NHL teams that introduced a black alternate sweater would also match the uniform with black helmets and pants, but the Ducks went against the grain.

Let’s not forget that the Ducks wore this sweater during the team’s run to the 2006 Western Conference Final, too. Perhaps that was the first major hint that the Ducks were planning on parting ways with the “Mighty” era.