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20 most obscure team nicknames in pro sports

14. Detroit Red Wings (NHL)

REBECCA COOK/REUTERS
Detroit Red Wings players Johan Franzen (l.) and Niklas Kronwall walk onto the ice for pregame warmups wearing former Red Wings player Gordie Howe's No. 9 jerseys to celebrate his 85th birthday before the start of their NHL hockey game against the Chicago Blackhawks in Detroit, March 31, 2013.

  • By Ross Atkin Staff writer

The NHL’s Motor City entry began as the Detroit Cougars in 1926, and changed its named to Falcons for the 1930-31 season as it searched for a new identity after a mostly losing history. Faced with major financial struggles, Jack Adams sold the team to grain and shipping tycoon James Norris Sr. in 1932. Norris had once played amateur hockey in Montreal for the Winged Wheelers, so decided to rename the team Red Wings and adopt a winged wheel logo that tied in well with Detroit’s reputation as America’s automaking capital.

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