<P> Each team is currently required to have two sweater designs : One with a white base ( or sometimes historically , a light color ) , and one with a darker - colored base . Between the 1970 - 71 and 2002 - 03 seasons , NHL teams wore white uniforms at home and dark uniforms on the road ( which is the current convention in some low - level ice hockey leagues ) . Since the 2003 -- 04 season , NHL teams typically wear the dark color at home and the white for road games ; there are occasional single - game exceptions . The only element allowed by NHL rules to be interchangeable between the two sets of equipment is the pants . </P>
<P> Each team is currently required to have two sweater designs : One with a white base ( or sometimes historically , a light color ) , and one with a darker - colored base . Between the 1970 - 71 and 2002 - 03 seasons , NHL teams wore white uniforms at home and dark uniforms on the road ( which is the current convention in some low - level ice hockey leagues ) . Since the 2003 -- 04 season , NHL teams typically wear the dark color at home and the white for road games ; there are occasional single - game exceptions . The only element allowed by NHL rules to be interchangeable between the two sets of equipment is the pants . </P>
when did nhl start wearing dark jerseys at home
when did nhl start wearing dark jerseys at home
the 2003 -- 04 season
the 2003 -- 04 season