OC Register, June 8th 1993

 In a low-key presentation unlike the March 1 gala that celebrated the birth of the Mighty Ducks, the NHL expansion team unveiled its logo and uniforms Monday afternoon at Anaheim Arena.

Instead of the animated characters featured in that first big production, Disney offered only its main character - Walt Disney Co. Chairman Michael Eisner - modeling jersey No. 93 in the team's chosen colors: burgundy, teal, silver and white.

The centerpiece of the logo, which also is the crest on the uniforms, is a white hockey mask in the shape of an angry duck, backed by a black circle, crossed hockey sticks and an inverted teal triangle. "We wanted to have unique colors," said Eisner, explaining the logo and uniform designs were made in-house in conjunction with representatives of NHL marketing. "We probably had 500 to 700 different ideas from professional animators and logo experts."

Also introduced Monday were a sampling of T-shirts and sweatshirts bearing the logo, which already are available at the 33 Disney stores throughout the country.

Mighty Ducks vice president Ken Wilson said team merchandise will be available at retail outlets that carry NHL-licensed products, possibly as soon as today.

"Our target is to get everyone in the country to wear Mighty Ducks merchandise," Wilson said.

The logo's duck-shaped mask bears no resemblance to Disney's most famous fowl, Donald.

"We wanted something between Disneyesque and a hockey mean," Eisner said of the mask's expression. "We think goalies are the unsung heroes in hockey, so we wanted to have a goalie mask (in the logo)."

The Ducks' home jerseys are white, trimmed in burgundy, white, silver and teal on the sleeves and waist, with a burgundy V-necked collar trimmed in black.

Jerseys for away games - which Eisner said he prefers - are burgundy trimmed in white, teal and silver, with a teal V-necked collar trimmed in black and white.

The teal color and the general design resemble the motif of the San Jose Sharks.

"The funny thing is, when the Sharks did their logo, the hardest thing was trying to find the dimension (for the background)," said Ducks general manager Jack Ferreira, who was the Sharks' first general manager. "They found a triangle works best. The same with this one."

Eisner said the new logo also will be the logo for the movie, "Mighty Ducks II," which will be released next spring.

Now that they have uniforms, a general manager, an assistant general manager and a scouting staff, about all the Ducks need, save players, is a coach.

The Ducks have confirmed their candidate list includes two International Hockey League coaches, San Diego's Rick Dudley and Fort Wayne's Al Sims. Former Kings right wing, captain and later coach Mike Murphy, an assistant with the Toronto Maple Leafs, is rumored to be high on the list, but Ferreira would not confirm it.

The first Ducks players will come in the expansion and entry drafts later this month.

Ferreira said he has interviewed two coaching candidates, whose names he would not disclose, and has three more interviews planned for the end of this week.

NOTES: Wilson said the Ducks have sold roughly 11,000 season tickets and will continue selling seats for the next few months. The Ducks hope to sell 3,000 to 4,000 more season tickets, which would put them about 2,300 short of a sellout every night. Those final 2,000 or so tickets will be split among giveaways and game-day sales.