The Montreal Canadiens players wore their ‘reverse retro’ jerseys for the first time during their game against the New Jersey Devils on Tuesday night at the Bell Centre. This is an initiative by the Adidas company that encourages the 32 teams of the Bettman Circuit to wear patterns inspired by each club’s unique history for the 2022-2023 season.

The Habs organization took the opportunity to pay tribute to the late Montreal Expos.

“The Canadiens jersey is inspired by the team’s success and the style of its city in the late 1970s. The main color is a powder blue popularized in Montreal by Major League Baseball expos, which has worn it on their uniforms abroad since its inception in 1969 through 1991,” the club’s statement said.

“The new Reverse Retro’s neckline evokes memories of 1979, the year the Canadians won their fourth straight Stanley Cup, their sixth of the decade, and their 22nd^e of the club at all. It is also the year that Youppi! was introduced as the Expos’ mascot, a role he held until the end of the team’s tenure in Montreal before switching from baseball to hockey in 2005.

Since October 2005, a banner of the same color has hung in the Bell Center’s rafters in honor of the four Expos members whose numbers were retired by the team prior to its 2004 move to Washington.

A new mascot called “METAL!” also appeared at the Bell Center last night.

“Longtime Canadiens fans may remember METAL! from the 80’s to the early 90’s as the mainstay of the Montreal Forum.Metal! became a popular character himself thanks to his irrepressible passion and his orange fur, which has earned him comparisons to Youppi!, the famous mascot of Major League Baseball’s Expos,” explained the Canadian.

Mixed reactions on social media

During Tuesday night’s meeting, many netizens expressed their excitement or dissatisfaction with the new colors of their favorite team.

“Great!” one of them blurted out. “We’re not touching this sacred sweater,” countered another user. Other amateurs simply responded with GIFs.