If a recent NHL jersey leak is to be believed, the Flyers, and their cross-state rival Pittsburgh Penguins, will be turning back the clock as part of the NHL’s Fourth Jersey program. These aren’t just retro jerseys. No, that would be too simple. Feast your eyes on these “reverse retro” threads:

The leaked “Reverse Retro” design is based on the 1983 design:

I’m usually a fan of the Flyers trying to incorporate a larger swath of black into the overall design of an alternate uniform, but I don’t know how to feel about this one. Swapping the black and white almost makes it feel like it’s trying too hard to be a flashy, modern take on the jersey. It’s almost as jarring as when the NBA released those godawful short-sleeve jerseys a few years ago. Seriously, this fourth jersey almost looks like it should be made of that dry-fit material they make compression clothes from.

Maybe I’m crazy, but I’m getting serious Lehigh Valley Phantoms vibes:

This leak came by way of an eBay listing, which also showed off a somewhat hideous Penguins design from 1992:

On second thought, I’d take the Flyers’ design every day. Those Pens sweaters look like when you learned how to add clip art and 3D word art on PowerPoint with Microsoft Office 97.

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