Extra Butter and Adidas Made Two Rivalry Sneakers for Die-Hard New York Rangers and Islanders Fans
Adidas‘ contract with the NHL will run out at the end of this season, but that doesn’t mean it’s done with hockey altogether.
Extra Butter has partnered with Adidas to make two versions of the Rivalry inspired by ’90s hockey jerseys. Officially speaking, there are no NHL teams involved in the shoe — but it doesn’t take a grand web of analysis to figure out which precise jerseys the sneakers invoke. Those would be the Rangers and Islanders, the two teams that call New York City home along with the sneaker boutique.
“Though hockey may not be as influential as basketball, hockey jerseys were a staple in 90’s streetwear,” Extra Butter creative director Bernie Gross said in a press release. “Coincidentally, 1996 was a year that both NY hockey teams introduced new alternative jerseys and although neither were long-lived, both have grown cult followings. When we learned that Adidas was bringing the Rivalry out from the vault, I thought it could be a clever play on the shoe’s namesake to highlight my friends’ playful banter repping their respective New York teams.”
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The “NY Hockey” capsule sees one pair of the Rivalry take on a white, cream, and grey scheme accented by teal, orange, and navy as an unofficial nod to the quite-dated colors of the Islanders of yesteryear. The New York Rangers, the iconography of which has remained largely unchanged for nearly 100 years, then get a primarily blue sneaker with white, grey, cream, and scarce hits of red.
Aligning the two sneakers is a special “Rivalry Series” tongue tag maintaining their respective color schemes and a faux-aged midsole reinforcing the idea of throwbacks. The inner tongue tags then make more overt references to the shoes’ coordinating jerseys — while still hewing on the right side of intellectual property rights.
For the Rangers pair, the red mustache features an imprint of the Statue of Liberty’s crown, which has been a fixture of Rangers alternate logos. A multi-color, striped mustache on the Islanders’ pair then mimics the waves found at the bottom of the Islanders logo used for just two seasons in the mid-’90s.
Cheekiest of all is a reversible insole for both sneakers quoting chants the two teams’ fanbases use to taunt each other. One side reads “5ucks” in Rangers colors as both a nod to the teams’ five total Stanley Cup titles and the “Rangers suck” chant often heard from Islanders fans. On the reverse, “4 Cups” in Islanders colors refers to its own number of titles, all won consecutively to begin the ’80s, which is what Islanders fans chant in response to Rangers fans denigrating their all-time favorite captain, Denis Potvin.
The Extra Butter x Adidas “NY Hockey” Rivalry sneakers will release Oct. 21 through the boutique’s website and stores. Pricing is set at $130 for each pair.
About the Author:
Ian Servantes is a Senior Trending News Editor for Footwear News specializing in sneaker coverage. He’s previously reported on streetwear and sneakers at Input and Highsnobiety after beginning his career on the pop culture beat. He subscribes to the idea that “ball is life” and doesn’t fuss over his kicks getting dirty.
