The Avs Hockey Podcast

Two Fan's Perspectives on Colorado Avalanche Hockey...and jerseys too.

Ryan O’Byrne Peter Forsberg Retirement Night Game Worn Jersey: Upon Further Review

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Joe Sakic’s retirement night, on October 1, 2009, was definitely memorable.  Avs fans had the opportunity to send him out in style with speeches, a banner in the rafters, the whole thing.  The team also wore a special patch on their jerseys just to commemorate the night.  Those jerseys, worn for only that night, were then auctioned off on NHL.com.

As far as the game goes, here are your highlights.  Do what I like to do whenever I get the chance and look for the patch.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eVDS4_P-LY[/youtube]

I kept my eye on a few of the Sakic night jerseys that I thought would be affordable and that didn’t work out too well.  Even the game issued jerseys ended up being pretty pricey.  Maybe next time.

That next time came as we fast forward a few seasons to October 8, 2011.  It was time for Avs fans to say goodbye to Peter Forsberg.  Same procedure: banner, patches worn for one night, and those jerseys auctioned off on NHL.com.

Here are the highlights.  Again, the patch, look for it.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tt0f3szcsRI[/youtube]

Here’s some video from my seats that night too.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-_Pghq-FS24[/youtube]

I was NOT going to miss the chance to get one of these jerseys and I ended up living up to my word.

Here’s a close up of the Forsberg night patch.

Normally with a jersey worn for just one night there may be a mark or two, but nothing too distinguishing.  This jersey wasn’t normal.  Check out the damage.  This is a close up of the back of the right shoulder just above the “E” in O’Byrne.

And the big foot patch on the right shoulder has some scuffing/burning along the toes.

The next step for a jersey collector when it comes to damage is to try and photo-match it.  That process usually begins on Getty Images.  I was hoping to get lucky and maybe get a close up shot of the back of the jersey.  That didn’t work out well.  There were only two images on Getty featuring O’Byrne wearing this jersey opening night: here and here.  The Forsberg patch isn’t visible in the second image, but the “21” on the boards is the other clue.

Next, it was time to check the highlight videos for a hit that O’Byrne might have been involved in.  That didn’t work out either.  The NHL, Avalanche, or whoever decides what gets posted in the highlights only saw two hits the entire game that were worth sharing with the fans.  Thanks so much for the help guys.  Try not to wear yourselves out.

I’m not one to give up easily so I went back to the game on my DVR hoping I could see something, anything, that might clue me in as to how the damage on the shoulder of the jersey happened.  Not wanting to watch the whole thing (I don’t really prefer watching the Avs  get shutout over and over) I fast-forwarded between O’Byrne shifts and watched him very closely while he was on the ice.  He scraped the boards along the far side of the ice late in the first period, but these jerseys are made to last so that couldn’t have done it.  Then, as the second period horn sounded, Johan Franzen did what hockey players do and stuck up for his linemate Jiri Hudler, who had been knocked down by Ryan O’Byrne in the near corner.  That’s when the magic happened.  Franzen’s hit caused O’Byrne to slam into the boards in a seam between two panes of glass.  That had to be it.  It all made sense now.

I never thought I would ever thank Johan Franzen for anything.  He’s been a huge Avalanche killer over the years and I obviously don’t care for that.  But, Johan Franzen, thank you very much for coming to the aid of Jiri Hudler after big mean old Ryan O’Byrne knocked him down.  You did the right thing in regards to the jersey I now own.

As far as an official photo match through Getty and MeiGray, that will be easy.  The jersey and patch were only worn for a single game.  Blow up one of the images above and call it good.  But with a little persistence, and some investigative skills, I was able to video match this jersey as well.  It’s stuff like this that gets jersey collectors called the sickos they actually are really excited.

It took me two tries to get a retirement night jersey, and I’m still beyond satisfied that I was able to set a goal and achieve it.  Because of that fact, this Avalanche jersey is undoubtedly one of the big highlights of my collection.  Seeing it live in action made adding it to my jersey closet that much sweeter.

MeiGray creates a letter of authenticity that accompanies every game worn jersey they sell.  This letter was a little different than the others that I have.  Here are the sentences that made the letter extra special, “On October 8, 2011, the Colorado Avalanche wore a commemorative set of jerseys in honor of Peter Forsberg’s retirement.  The actual jersey worn on “Peter Forsberg Night” by #3 Ryan O’Byrne is now yours.”  I love the sound of that and I think I’ll hang onto this jersey for a while.  And by a while I actually mean forever.

Rob Blake 2003 All-Star Skills Competition Worn Jersey: So Wrong and So Right

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Too often, and usually on eBay, I run into jerseys that are just plain terrible.  There are no other words to describe them.  At times the jersey itself is fine, but the lettering/stitching/nameplate/etc. just aren’t right.  I don’t give those types of jerseys a second look for the most part.  They may eventually be posted on The AHP Facebook wall so the people that follow me there can absolutely hammer enjoy them, but that’s usually about it.  It’s not often that I am intrigued by an Avalanche jersey that’s customized incorrectly, but that’s exactly what happened when I saw an eBay auction offering this.

The front looked pretty good.  No huge problems there.  The back of the jersey is a completely different story.

There is absolutely no doubt as to the authenticity of this jersey.  This is THE jersey that Rob Blake wore during the NHL All-Star Super Skills Competition the night of Saturday, February 1, 2003 at the Office Depot Center, in Sunrise, Florida.  There is tagging and paperwork to prove that this is true, but that paperwork and tagging are pretty much the only things that would lead me to believe that this was worn on the ice by Rob Blake.

One would assume that this jersey, since it was worn by an Avalanche player on the ice, would be accurately customized like an Avalanche jersey from that era.  That assumption would actually be very wrong.

Let’s begin with the number font.  It’s wrong.  Here are a few Blake jerseys that we can compare the jersey above to.

The first is a game worn Rob Blake burgundy jersey from the 2005-2006 season.  Different branding, but it’s the same jersey.  Stay focused on the number.  (This photo compliments of a past auction on gamewornauctions.net.)

Here’s a couple of fours from a Bates Battaglia game issued jersey, from my personal collection, from the 2002-2003 season.

Now compare the fours in the previous two pictures to the four on the competition worn jersey.  Without splitting hairs and breaking out a measuring tape, it’s easy to eyeball things and see that the font is definitely different.

The manner in which the numbers are cut are different as well.  The Avalanche, prior to the 2005-2006 season, wore numbers that were “stacked.”  The numbers, from the top and going down towards the jersey, were a white layer of glacier twill (with the criss-cross design on it), on a blue layer of twill, on a layer on silver material that sparkled.  My Blake jersey’s numbers are cut in what is known as “kiss-cut.”  It’s a thin, maybe quarter inch of blue, on white glacier twill, on silver.  This is a trick used by customizing companies to save fabric while taking a little weight off the jersey at the same time.

The alternate captain’s “A” on the Blake is also off.  The font is close, but not perfect.  The cut, like the numbers, is wrong for that era of Avalanche jersey.  It’s kiss cut when it should be stacked.  The “A” on the competition worn Blake is a little too large as well.  I’d say it’s a quarter to a half inch too big.  Here’s the “A” from the Blake.

And here’s an “A” from a game issued Steve Konowalchuk, from my personal collection, from the 2006-2007 season.

Many curves on the Konowalchuk “A” while there are way more straight lines on the Blake’s “A”.

Last, but definitely not least, is the nameplate on the back of the jersey.  I’ve never seen close to anything like it on an Avalanche sweater.  From the picture in the auction I could have sworn that it was twill (the same material that the blue layer on the burgundy jersey numbers is made of), but upon receiving the jersey I was totally surprised to see that the nameplate was actually made of Starter mesh material.  It should be the material that the rest of the jersey is made of, a material called Air Knit.  In other words, it should match.

Here’s an example of a Starter mesh nameplate on a Starter mesh jersey from my collection.

Looks good.  Looks like they belong together and, ya know, matches n’ stuff.  Now check out the Blake, burgundy Starter mesh on Air Knit.

Not only is the font on the letters (compare to the pics above) off by a long shot, the material doesn’t match.  Here’s a closer look.

Yikes.

Like I mentioned early in this post, I’ve seen twill nameplates on jerseys when they shouldn’t be there, but I’ve never seen mesh on Air Knit.  The Starter mesh has actually gotten so rare that collectors, including myself, have had Denver Athletic, or their favorite customizer, take the crest off an older Starter jersey and then cut up the rest for nameplates for other mesh jerseys.  The end result looks a little something like this.

It’s a practice affectionately known as “cannibalizing.”  Not to worry though, most everyone takes a jersey, like the one above, that was in bad enough shape that it wasn’t worth getting customized anyways and re-purposes/sacrifices it for a greater cause.  It’s new lease on life!  How do you think that Forsberg Pro Player jersey (pictured above) got such a fantastic nameplate?

Bottom line, it would take someone who knows absolutely anything about Avalanche jerseys and/or has an eye for small details approximately a fraction of a second to figure out the this Blake jersey failed to come within 500 miles of Denver Athletic’s warehouse here in The Mile High City.  In this case though, it’s the details that make the Blake wrong that actually makes it very right.  This jersey really doesn’t fit in with all of the other Avalanche jerseys in my collection, either game worn, issued, or customized authentic jerseys that have visited Denver Athletic at one time or another, and that’s definitely okay by me.  That fact just adds to the story behind the jersey that I love to share with the people that read my posts.

Greg Mauldin: A Short Avs Stay, but it was Sweet

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Greg Mauldin played in only 29 games for the Colorado Avalanche during the 2010-2011 season, but that doesn’t mean that Avs fans don’t know who he is.  Making your presence felt right away never hurts.  Mauldin made his Avalanche debut on November 12, 2010 in Columbus against the Blue Jackets.  He paid immediate dividends as he scored his first NHL goal, a shorthanded goal, at 10:57 of the second period wearing this jersey.

I guess this smile doesn’t hurt things either.  Here’s an image right after he scored his first NHL goal.

Photo Courtesy of Getty Images and avalanche.nhl.com

Here’s some video of the goal as well.  One of the many things that Avalanche fans loved about Mauldin during his stay with the big club was his speed.  Watch closely as Mauldin simply smokes Blue Jackets defenseman Kris Russell as Russell attempts to back check before this goal.  It’s a beautiful thing if you’re the type of person that prefers Avalanche goals.

And would you care for a little icing on your cake? Mauldin’s first NHL goal proved to be the game-winning goal in the Avalanche’s 5-1 victory against the Blue Jackets that night.

Breaking things down a little further, just because it’s fun, I guess a secondary assist could be given to Blue Jackets forward Jakub Voracek for missing his big drive on the short side of the Avalanche’s net and actually initiating the Avalanche’s two on one, but that would just be being plain picky right?

Mauldin continued to earn his spot on the Avalanche’s roster, even as players began to get healthy and return to the lineup.  The 28 year-old rookie had eight points in his first 14 games with the Avs which included a four point (two goals and two assists) effort against the Wild at Pepsi Center on November 27.  That performance earned him Puck Daddy’s first star of all 11 games played that night in the NHL.  The ten other NHL games even included a hat trick by Penguins star and league poster boy Sidney Crosby.  When someone chooses your performance over a Sidney Crosby hat trick, it’s safe to say you’ve done pretty well.

One detail I almost overlooked with this jersey was that I got to see it in action in person at the RBC Center in Raleigh, North Carolina on December 3, 2010 as the Avalanche took on the Hurricanes.  I didn’t have much to cheer about during the game as the Avs lost 2-1 in overtime, but when I did cheer it was actually documented.  Milan Hejduk scored the lone Avs goal 12:51 into the third period.  The fan they show clapping at the end of this clip is yours truly.

Good times!

Greg Mauldin’s hot streak inevitably cooled off.  He failed to record a point for 12 straight games between December 17, 2010 and January 12, 2011 and was sent back down to the Lake Erie Monsters in Cleveland.  Mauldin was not recalled for the remainder of the Avalanche’s season.  He is an unrestricted free agent and Avs fans will find out in the fairly near future whether he will remain with the Avalanche organization for the 2011-2012 season.  So Greg Mauldin may or may not be back with the Avalanche next season, we will see.  If he does return though I know it will make many, many Avs fans (including myself) very happy.

Adam Foote: The End of an Era in the NHL

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April 10, 2011 marked the end of an era in the National Hockey League.  After 19 regular seasons of action, and almost two full seasons (158 games) worth of playoff hockey, Adam Foote retired.  He was the final player still playing in the league that had worn a Quebec Nordiques sweater.  There is a small handful of players that played for the Nordiques that are still playing professional hockey, but they don’t play in the NHL.

I think Mike Haynes, Avalanche television play-by-play man, put Adam Foote’s style of play in perspective for me best when he said that if a young player who is getting drafted is described as an “Adam Foote type player” that team knows exactly what kind of player they’re scouting.  Adam Foote had his own style, there is little doubt about that, and Colorado Avalanche fans will always love him for it.  There really isn’t a word or adjective that would accurately describe Adam Foote’s style of play, but Avs fans know it when we see it, and that’s plenty good enough for us.

I worked hard to get Adam Foote’s jersey from opening night of this season, but as I described in this past post that didn’t work out.  I continued to keep an eye Foote during the season and still felt that having one of his jerseys would be a great addition to my collection.

As the 2010-2011 season rolled on it became evident that this may be about it for Foote as well.  He still had the leadership skills, but it was obvious that physically he was having a rough time.  Those tough times got even rougher in Vancouver on March 16, 2011 when he was hit on the left ankle by a slap shot late in the third period.  Referee Stephen Walkom shouldn’t have blown the whistle to stop play because Foote wasn’t hit in the face with the puck or in a vulnerable position because of his injury, but Walkom did.  I truly believe that it was simply a sign of respect from Walkom to Foote.  I’ll always remember Foote thanking Walkom discreetly as he was assisted off the ice by linesman Thor Nelson.

Photo Courtesy of Getty Images and avalanche.nhl.com

Little did us Avs fans know at the time that that was the last time that we would see Adam Foote on the ice until the season finale on April 10, 2011.  It was later revealed that Foote played that final game on a fractured ankle that was still healing.  Foote is a hockey player and that’s what hockey players do.

Let’s back up a day or two though.  During an April 9, 2011 press conference at Pepsi Center, Adam Foote announced that he was going to retire and that, surprisingly, he would play in the last game of the season against the Oilers the next afternoon.  That’s when I went to work.  I called my friends at MeiGray Group that Friday afternoon and tried to reserve his burgundy set III jersey that Adam Foote would wear in his final NHL game.  MeiGray employees told me that he was going to keep that jersey and give it to his sons.  (I later found out that he wore two game jerseys during the game against the Oilers and gave one to each of his sons.)  Since the burgundy jersey he wore wasn’t available I chose to pre-order the jersey that he was wearing when he got hit on the ankle against the Canucks on March 16.  That fact made this Adam Foote’s final game worn jersey that was available to the public.  That makes it very special to my collection and to me.

Considering the type of game that Foote plays the jersey has very little wear on it.  I’ll definitely need to check MeiGray’s population report when it comes out.  It will indicate exactly when the Avs moved from their set II white jerseys to their set III jerseys.  I imagine this jersey wasn’t worn in more than just a few road games.  The only marks on it at all are a few stains near the end of each sleeve.

I had MeiGray work on a photomatch for the jersey to be positive that it was the jersey that Foote wore that night in Vancouver, but due to the lack of marks on it they said they couldn’t do that.  But that fact in itself was a photomatch because the set II white jersey that Adam Foote wore earlier in the season had identifying marks that worked perfectly for a photomatch.  So this jersey is actually photomatched due to the lack of marks on the jersey.  That was definitely a first for me.

Also, here is a picture of the neck tagging and the famous captain’s “C”.  This looks great next to my Joe Sakic game issued jersey.  The three marks above the Canadian flag on the neck tag indicate that this jersey was the third white jersey worn during the season.

So another game worn or game issued jersey of an Avalanche legend has found its way to my collection.  I, along with many Avalanche faithful, expect to see the number 52 hanging from the rafters of Pepsi Center within the end of next season.  I feel he’s definitely earned that honor.  And of course, and as I think you’d expect, I’ll be wearing this very jersey to the game where the Avalanche organization retires the number 52.  I’m definitely looking forward to that game already.