Ducks Make Final Break From Disney

No longer Mighty, the Ducks will concern themselves with merely being mighty -- in the standings and at the cash register.

The break from the identity that defined them under the ownership of the Walt Disney Co. was made complete in grand manner Thursday as the team changed its name from the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim to the Anaheim Ducks and unveiled radically different uniforms.

They hope the well-worn movie references will be in the past along with the old look.

“We wanted to be more traditional in terms of the name,” said Ducks owner Henry Samueli, following a glitzy introduction in front of about 1,100 season-ticket holders. “In fact, it was a little too tied to the movie.”

Gone is the hockey mask logo with the fierce duck and its protruding bill. The eggplant and jade colors that infuriated hockey purists but worn like a badge of honor by the team’s hard-core fans also were ditched.

The new color scheme is black, white, metallic gold and orange, the latter to emphasize the team’s Orange County location. The stylized new logo has a web-footed “D”.

“It’s time we separate ourselves from Disney,” General Manager Brian Burke said. “Again, I say that with great respect. Without them, there’s no team here. But it’s time.”

Samueli, who bought the team last June, said he kept the name Ducks after an informal poll of season-ticket holders showed 80% wanted it that way.

Of course, brand recognition is important to merchandise sales, as Samueli acknowledged.

“If you have to change the name, you’re wiping out 13 years of brand history,” he said.

In their first season in 1993, the Ducks ranked third in sales among all sports, behind the Dallas Cowboys and the New York Yankees. At the end of the last sales quarter, the Ducks ranked 20th among NHL teams, according to NHL vice president Brian Jennings. Neither he nor the Ducks would release sales numbers. Jennings did say that teams with a new look often experience a “30 to 35%” increase in sales the next season.

But he also said a new look doesn’t guarantee success. The New York Islanders changed their look for the 1995-96 season. Featuring a fisherman in the logo, it was a sales disaster. By the 1998-99 season, the team was back to its navy and orange logo.

To prevent too many quick changes, the NHL’s policy is that teams must keep a new identity at least three years. Bob Wagner, the Ducks’ chief marketing officer, agreed that was the key. “It has to last,” he said.