This is a Tale of One City, or a Tale of Two Jerseys, Part One:

Making a comeback this year are the Cincinnati Cyclones. The Clones went away a few years ago, after being taken over by the owners of the arena. Part of the problem was the competition by the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks, who played in the older rink across town.. After dwindling attendance, the Clones took a hiatus, which looked to be permanent. But after the CinDucks went away (Anaheim changed affiliates), and the potential revival of the AHL failed (Cincinnati RailRaiders? Yeah, right. “Lets go RailRaiders” doesn’t exactly roll off the tongue), the Clones decided the time is now. Next season, they make their return to the ECHL, stranding Cincinnati with only one hockeyless year.

Stork. What a great name. Dean Stork. Stork is pretty much a mainstay of the ECHL. He took a mid season eye injury last season, but came back. For a d-man, his numbers are OK, but had a minus 15 last year. Why Stork? Because I could get it. This one came from Meigray, and I really like this jersey. Notice the lace in front has been replaced with a skate lace. The original lace was lost in the wash, so the entire jersey is not game-worn. But I like the look of the skate lace, I did it to another jersey (UHL 2005 AllStar).

The shoulder patches have a small story. On most of the Cyclones jerseys I’ve seen, there is one design or the other on the shoulders, not both. The one on the right is an update of the old Cyclones jersey design, which had the Jason Friday the 13th hockey mask on a similar pose. That was back in the IHL days for the Cyclones. Somewhere, I have the worst of beater jerseys with that old logo as an iron-on in front. This jersey, on the other hand, is a favorite.

News Flash: Dean Stork was just named Assistant Coach for the Cyclones. I can’t wait to go back and see them now.