Total Mortgage Arena GM says the NY Islanders affiliate has the best logo in the AHL

What was old is new again and what was new only two seasons ago is here to stay in Bridgeport.

Earlier this month, the American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate of the New York Islanders unveiled that the polarizing "Fisherman" logo, which returned to an NHL sweater during the 2022-23 season, would be the primary one used by the Bridgeport Islanders moving forward.

Joe Dolan, GM of Total Mortgage Arena, joined the Double Chili podcast with Peter Schwartz earlier this week and discussed why the time was right for Bridgeport to adopt the "Fisherman" logo for the team's primary jersey next season.

"There's a lot of excitement," said Dolan. "We feel we have the best logo in the AHL now, for sure."

When the Islanders brought back the logo for their adidas reverse retro 2.0, the Bridgeport team also added their own version of the logo on white sweaters compared to dark navy as their alternaties. The response from the fanbase was overwhelmingly positive leading to this decision.

"People were clamoring for merchandise, jerseys, anything with the Fisherman logo on it," says Dolan. "We really saw this as an opportunity to continue to focus on the relationship we have between Bridgeport and the Islanders. It was a no-brainer for us."

The team announced the primary logo change at the same time the 2024-25 schedule dropped, and while there will always be those who despise the logo due to the memories it conjures up, the reaction overall was very positive on social media. Dolan cited that the team's social media accounts topped over 200,000 impressions for content that included the fisherman logo in recent weeks.

"We intended to include the Fisherman design as our alternate jersey as soon as the reverse retro initiative came to light," explained Dolan. "Once we saw the reaction over the past two seasons to our alternate jersey, the fan's interest in merchandise, and seeing more of that logo, we knew we were on to something here."

So while there are no plans to see that logo on the ice at UBS Arena in the near future, fans that following the organization's AHL affiliate closely will have the opportunity to see it live and in bright color on the ice in Bridgeport for years to come.