Matthew Pearce/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images/Win McNamee/Getty Images
Columbus Blue Jackets player over Confederate flag
On Monday, the NHL released the first official look at the “Hometown Remix” jerseys that all 32 teams will be rocking at some point during the current season. That includes the Blue Jackets, a franchise that’s named after the soldiers who fought for the Union in the Civil War but nodded to the army that fought against them with the color it opted for.
In 1997, the NHL announced Ohio would be getting its first team after Columbus was tapped for the expansion that also led to the arrival of the Minnesota Wild. The public got the chance to submit recommendations for a name, and more than 14,000 options were submitted before the franchise settled on the moniker it’s been known by since its inaugural season in 2000: the Blue Jackets.
That name was picked to reflect the role Ohio played while fighting for the winning side during the Civil War. Around 320,000 men from the Buckeye State fought for the Union Army during that conflict (only New York and Pennsylvania sent more), and many of the blue jackets that defined their uniform were manufactured in Columbus.
The team has leaned into that history by installing a Civil War-era cannon (specifically an 1857 Napoleon Field Gun) inside Nationwide Arena, and a team of people dressed as Union soldiers are tasked with firing it after the home team scores a goal.
That cannon was also at the center of the crest of an alternate jersey the Blue Jackets donned for the first time in 2010, and it’s been incorporated into a new one that’s also generated some controversy due to a questionable color scheme.
The Blue Jackets probably should have gone with literally any color but gray for their Hometown Remix uniform
Teams around the NHL have spent the past few weeks teasing the unveiling of the new “Hometown Remix” uniforms, which were officially released on Monday.
The Ducks, Sharks, and Panthers stood out due to the flashy nature of their designs, and while the Blue Jackets have also received a fair amount of attention, it hasn’t really been for the reason the team would have hoped.
The DNA of our team woven together with the fabric of our city to create something the 5th Line can wear proudly! https://t.co/gAfx9EsHJG
— Columbus Blue Jackets (@BlueJacketsNHL) November 2, 2026
The sweaters that Columbus will wear in 13 games this season were designed to pay tribute to what is known as the Arch City, and they feature a cannon logo and a nod to the 5th Line, the term that’s used to refer to their fans.
The description asserts that “the base of solid grey is the perfect backdrop” for the rest of the accoutrements, although some history buffs have pointed out that may not be the case when you consider that hue defined the uniforms that were worn by the members of the Confederate Army who fought against the guys in the blue jackets during the Civil War.
My team really chose the Confederate army’s Grey as the base color of our sweaters… Mind you, we are named after the Union! Can’t win for losing man… 🫩 #CBJ
— Dylan Mckneely (@DylanMckneely) November 2, 2026
the team named after Union soldiers having a special jersey the color of the Confederates is hilariously dumb
— Sam S (@lobsterbooty) November 3, 2026
It’s too late to go back to the drawing board, but something tells me we won’t see gray heavily featured in a Blue Jackets alternate after this.