Logo History: Montreal Canadiens
As they are the oldest team in professional hockey, the Montreal Canadiens are perfect for our first logo history. Such a long history will inevitably lead to numerous logo revisions, and the Canadiens are no exception.
The one thing constant for nearly all designs is the big “C” and I bet you know what that stands for. But the “A” in some, and the “H” in others may not be as obvious. The”A” comes from a time when the organization was known as “Club Athlétique Canadien,” which was changed to “Club de Hockey Canadien,” and hence the “H” is added in 1917.
Overall, I like the modern version, implemented in 1956… probably because it’s what I’ve always known. I do love the childish style on the 1917 logo, and the Canadiens meet The Simpsons / Matt Groening style of the 1926 edition… If Homer wore a Canadiens jersey, the logo would look like that.
What do you think? Which do you like most?
All this and more on SportsLogos.net.
Official Canadiens Site: ourhistory.canadiens.com/jerseys-and-logos/1909-1946
It is my understanding that the “C” in the earlier CA logo and the later CH logo stands for “Club”. As in Club de Hockey or Club Athletique.
DAVID
Hey David, thanks for posting. I had another look online and it things look more complicated.
According to the Canadiens’ website (added the link in the post):
The first CH logo stands for “Canadien Hockey Club.” (That might actually make the logo CHC, as some say that the outline of the C is in fact a second C.)
The C in the first CA logo stood for “Canadian.”
As for the very first C logo, I cannot find any info. Being a single C, I can’t believe it would stand for “Club” as that would be very generic. They played against other hockey clubs, what if they all had C logos?
Anyone else know? The “Offical” site is very sparse in detail.