Photos: A Century Of Michigan Hockey Sweaters

Given that for much of ice hockey’s lifespan the sport was played outdoors in the winter, the iconic hockey sweater was multifunctional. It both kept the player warm in the cold conditions and served as a traditional jersey. Nowadays, the weather aspect has been eliminated in sanctioned competition — save for the occasional outdoor event — with the standardization of indoor rinks. But the hockey sweater remains.

When Michigan ice hockey officially became a varsity sport in 1922, its uniform was quite simple. The Wolverines wore a dark crewneck sweater with “Michigan” arching across the chest. The sweaters remained similar, if not identical, until 1930 when the “Michigan” moved in a diagonal pattern from the right chest to the left hip.

In the 30s, the Block ‘M’ began appearing on the sweaters, as seen in the 1935 team photo. Stripes and frills were added over the next decade or so, but the Block ‘M’ remained squarely front and center. The diagonal “Michigan” style still remained in rotation as well.

From 1948-1964, Michigan won seven national championships. In that span, the sweater went through some rather large changes after several decades of minor tweaks.

In the mid-1940s, Michigan added the outline of a Wolverine to the front of the jersey under the “Michigan,” as well as sporting striped shoulders. This was the first addition to the “Michigan” lettering or the Block ‘M’, and it would be the last. For the rest of the program’s history, they’ve kept it simple.

In 1949, the numbers were added to the front of the jersey, replacing the Wolverine. In the next decade, the Wolverines stuck with what was working, collecting five national championships in that span with little changes to the sweater. The next notable tweak came in 1960 with the addition of stripes on the midriff and sleeves, but the rest of the sweater remained largely the same.

From the 1970s through the turn of the century, Michigan’s sweaters were on a carousel. The Block ‘M’ and the “Michigan” lettering were in the rotation, but the script lettering “Michigan” sweaters gained a lot of popularity.

The Wolverines continued to rotate through their expansive collection of designs, many of which were homages to previous looks. In 2008, for example, Michigan brought back the diagonal “Michigan” lettering. In 2010, the Wolverine outline sweater was brought back for the outdoor game played at Michigan Stadium, with the sweater also being used in the following years as an alternate.

While there were several other alternate designs over the years, Michigan’s bread and butter remained the Block ‘M’ and the script “Michigan.”

Given that the Michigan ice hockey program has existed for more than a century, the sweater has remained remarkably consistent. As the program grows older, it continues to pay homage to those who wore the Block ‘M’ and the script “Michigan” in the past, and lays a foundation for those who will wear it in the future.