4TheRcrd Mag.

Photo by Flickr user Yetping.

The more passionate a city is about a sports franchise, the more it focuses on the minutia of a team.

In the case of Vancouverites, including myself, questions about our hockey team can go on 24/7/365.

Last year before the season started, one of the questions concerned the design of Roberto Luongo’s goalie mask.

No. 1 settled on a grizzly bear smashing through a Jason Voorhees like mask, with the Vancouver skyline in the background set to the blue and reddish colour of the now-defunct 2006/07 uniforms.

This past summer saw the unveiling of new uniforms featuring vintage colours, causing a potential colour clash with his old goal helmet.

Time for another mask.

All summer long many fans had been lobbying the Canucks to use Johnny Canuck as the primary logo but much to the dismay of many, the team decided to use the Orca again.

Well, they can take solace in the fact that Louie’s new mask features the popular lumberjack.

I can say unequivocally that I love the new mask.

Along with Johnny, the mask features Harbour Center and trees– it is distinctly Vancouver.

Roberto Luongo also had a beige helmet last season, featuring the vintage logo and the lumberjack, worn with the vintage jerseys.

He says he is a huge Johnny fan.

I hope management takes a page from their best player when it comes to designing the third jerseys.