Daily Roundup: NHL releases all reverse retro jerseys, a hockey collaboration with Barbie and more

Welcome to Daily Faceoff’s daily NHL roundup where we bring you the NHL’s most important news and rumours every day. 

Old School

The NHL’s reverse retro campaign creating throwback style jerseys for each club saw their full rollout hit the public eye Monday. The program several years in the making saw teams like the Colorado Avalanche pay homage to the Quebec Nordiques, while the Carolina Hurricanes tipped their hat to the Hartford Whalers.

The Calgary Flames, meanwhile, brought back their blasty horse jersey that was worn in the 2000s.

“It’s creating buzz and noise in the marketplace where normally we would be having games going on,” said Brian Jennings, NHL chief brand officer and senior executive vice-president. “We’re creating a lot of noise right now without the benefit of the live games.”

Hockey x Barbie

A collaboration between Tim Hortons and Barbie will be hitting the shelves at stores across Canada this week. The dolls include a red Tim Hortons jersey, a helmet, skates and a stick.

Proceeds from the sales will go towards the Hockey Canada Foundation and its Hockey is Hers initiative dedicated to getting girls involved in hockey.

Canada’s National Women’s Team players Marie-Philip Poulin and Sarah Nurse have helped spearhead the program.

“Sarah and I are so honoured. We had a day with Barbie; they showed us the doll and we’re so excited for what it means,” said Poulin. “It’s pretty awesome that little girls have the opportunity to see this Barbie and know they can be anything they want to be.

“It’s something we have been telling the girls, ‘if you can see it, you can be it,’ and I think Barbie has been pretty fantastic about that. For them to see us being part of the project, and have a Barbie in hockey equipment, it’s fun to see.”

Layoffs in Tampa

The Tampa Bay Lightning have laid off 30 staffers months after winning the Stanley Cup. According to an Associated Press report, the positions were across the company and were effective immediately, and that the layoffs represent less than 10 percent of the club’s workforce.

“Rest assured, these decisions were not made lightly,” Lightning and Vinik Sports Group CEO Steve Griggs told the Tampa Bay Times. “But with the sports and entertainment industry being impacted like at no other time in modern history, this was a necessary step as we position ourselves for maximum recovery.”