Washington Capitals Logo PNG
Symbolizing the commitment to the country, the nation to America’s capital, the Washington Capitals logo, the Caps, a metropolitan hockey club, reflects the team’s pride in belonging. The modern emblem demonstrates career, aspiration, and movement toward the single goal of winning.
Washington Capitals: Brand overview
| Founded: | 1974 |
| Founder: | Monumental Sports & Entertainment |
| Headquarters: |
Washington, D.C., U.S. |
| Website: | nhl.com |
Washington Capitals, a professional ice hockey team, joined the NHL in 1974. The club owner Abe Pollin chose the name Capitals after a name-the-team contest. He made the obvious choice for the team representing Washington, the capital of the United States. Moreover, in his opinion, this moniker would distinguish his team from the other clubs. The common nickname used for the team is the Caps. Besides, it’s called the Second round exit and the Red Army.
The Capitals’ team colors are patriotic white, blue, and red, i.e., the American flag’s colors. The stars on the uniform are an allusion to the stars on Washington’s coat of arms.
Washington Capitals were the most average team in the League. No great success was ever achieved. In 1995, the club radically changed its image. It abandoned its traditional red, white and blue colors in favor of a dark blue, black, and bronze color scheme with stars and the bald eagle, the US national emblem. The alternate Washington Capitals emblem included the Capitol building with two stars aside.
The Reebok-designed uniform was a turn to the original red, white, and blue color scheme. Even the new emblem Washington Capitals strongly reminds the 1974 emblem, which was completed with a hockey stick. The Washington Capitals still use this uniform and emblem.
The official mascot for the Washington Capitals is Slapshot, a large anthropomorphic bald eagle, who wears the number 00.
Meaning and History
In 1975 Washington became the home town for a team consisting of young and promising hockey players. The visual identity of the Washington Capitals team is conveyed in several diverse ways. At first, it was hockey paraphernalia with inscriptions, then – a swift and formidable bald eagle, a little later – the Washington Capitol dome with crossed sticks, now – a revised debut version. Despite a bad start, the athletes still managed to achieve high victories and became among the professionals. Their careers, aspirations, and movement towards the goal are reflected in the details of the emblems.
What is Washington Capitals?
This is a hockey club from the Metropolitan Division (NHL). It has existed since 1974 and has been playing at Capital One Arena since 1997. The team played in Stanley Cup Finals twice and even won once. In addition, she won three Presidents’ Trophies.
1974 – 1995
The initial Washington Capitals logo was a minimalist and discreet variant. The central part of the logo was occupied by the word “Capitals,” written in blue. It wasn’t selected by chance. It was a reference to Washington, the capital city of America. The written in the red name of Washington itself was located atop. Resembling a hockey stick, the letter “t” in the word was highlighted in bright red. Left-leaning italics also distinguishes this unique logo.
1995 – 1997
After 20 years, the team decided to change the concept and logo completely. In the 1990s, black was becoming extremely popular among the NHL participants. That’s why it was accepted as the basic color for a new logo Washington Capitals. In the middle of the logo, there was a black eagle, swooping down with released talons. The written in gold and framed in blue word “Capitals” was located a bit below. The stars first appeared on the new logo. Even though the new logo differed from the previous one, the word “Capitals” remained one of the logo’s key items.
1997 – 2002
After 23 years, the name disappeared from the logo, which now depicted only the flying eagle.
2002 – 2007
The third Washington Capitals logo change dated back to the early 2000s. The basic color palette still included gold and blue, but the number of logo symbols was enlarged. The Capitol building replaced the abandoned eagle with two crossed blue hockey sticks and two golden stars aside. The team (if someone suddenly did not know or forgot it) was located in the center, inside the black rectangle. The name of the city was written in gold, while the word “Capitals” was written in white. The black rectangle was framed in blue and gold. One could see the crossed sticks and the blue and gold puck between them at the very bottom. The logo was nicely detailed with shades and tints of basic colors.
The Capitol was a good visual element used to “tie” the city and the local hockey team. Did the team need all these details on the logo? It probably evokes not the most pleasant reminiscent for the team fans, since possessing this logo the team broke an anti-record in its history. In 2001 the Washington Capitals landed Jaromir Jagr, but he was far from a perfect player. But on the other hand, in 2004, the club won the Draft Lottery and selected Alexander Ovechkin first.
2007 – today
The current version is a revised mark dating back to the club’s early days. Only a few nuances have been changed in it. The first and most significant transformation is the font. If earlier it was tilted to the left, now it is to the right. The developers also reduced the number of stars from six to three and changed the color of the puck from blue to red.
They completely retained the rest of the structure, including the main highlight of the logo: a hockey stick instead of the lowercase “t,” added to the upper segment. In the modern version, text plays the leading role, and graphics are almost absent in it, except for the club.
Compared to their previous logos, this is probably the best one with the best color combination Capitals has ever had. And the color scheme of the jersey has become attractive and pleasant to the eye. The logo itself is not a logo at all, as it states the obvious. Besides, it is not even written in capital letters! Much can be said about the logo authenticity, but it is hardly possible to improve it somehow exploiting the same color scheme.
Font and Colors
From 1995 to 2007, the drawn part prevailed in the official symbols of the Washington Capitals. A bald eagle was depicted in early versions – a symbol of swiftness, vigilance, and power. He dives on an invisible victim and is ready to grab it with sharp claws. Then a more themed logo appeared, as close as possible to the team’s name: its identity was expressed by the Washington Capitol building (more precisely, its dome). In the background are two crossed hockey sticks. There are also stars and a washer.
The team used several types of typefaces: quasi-Helvetica backward-italic with glyphs for the debut emblem, classic serif typefaces for the three subsequent versions, and correct italics with pointed letters in the current logo. Instead of a lowercase “t,” there is a hockey stick.
The Washington Capitals personal character color scheme includes the following Hex indexes: # 01183F (blue), # D00328 (red), and #FFFFFF (white).
Washington Capitals color codes
| Red | Hex color: | #c8102e |
|---|---|---|
| RGB: | 200 16 46 | |
| CMYK: | 2 100 85 6 | |
| Pantone: | PMS 186 C |
| Blue | Hex color: | #041e42 |
|---|---|---|
| RGB: | 4 30 66 | |
| CMYK: | 100 90 13 68 | |
| Pantone: | PMS 282 C |
What does Washington Capitals mean?
The Washington Capitals name has no hidden meaning. It was selected following the results of a competition for the best name of a hockey club. Capitals only mean that Washington is the capital of the United States.
What is the Washington Capitals logo?
The Washington Capitals logo is a wordmark that contains the name of the club. The first word is written in red italic sans serif typeface. It is located in the upper right corner and is complemented by three five-pointed stars. The team’s nickname is in the middle. Black lowercase letters are used for it, with the “t” stylized as a hockey stick. A small red washer is shown next to it.
Did the Capitals change their logo?
Yes, the team has changed its logo many times. The last redesign was carried out in 2007 when the designers decided to return the very first emblem and modernize it a bit.
Where did the Washington Capitals come from?
The Washington Capitals club came into being two years after the city of Washington won the right to the National Hockey League franchise.
