Minor league team with identical name to NHL team has had their 'discriminatory' logo banned!

There is an interesting legal battle going on at the minor league level, interesting if only because of how it could eventually impact one National Hockey League franchise.

This is the case of the Thorold Blackhawks a Junior B team out of Ontario, Canada, one that has now found itself forced to change it's logo and possibility it's name according to a report in The Hockey News.

The team's name and logo have been deemed offensive to the local native population and in fact Thorold Mayor Ted Luciani went so far as to describe the logo as "discriminatory" and furthermore stated that it's continued use constituted a form of harassment.

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This very closely resembles the situation that arose in the NFL specifically in regards to the Washington Redskins although that organization and more specifically it's owner refused to capitulate to public pressure. One has to wonder though if this precedent at the junior level will give critics the fuel they need to begin applying pressure to Chicago's version of the Blackhawks.