it is still unknown if the Stadium Series jerseys will be available to the public in the Authentic 2.0s. Reebok is still facing production problems after moving the operation back to Canada. we still can't get the road whites in the 7287 series (Canada 2.0s). other teams face the same situation. Team LA is showing the authentics for sale, but show pics of replicas. wtf? we are talking about a $350 dollar buy here people, can you get your facts straight please?
there has been no clear message ive seen on different forums that are related to jersey collecting, that Reebok will produce authentic Stadium Series jerseys in significant numbers if at all for public sale.
it is quite possible the only way to ever get an authentic is to buy a game worn from the Meigray auction later this season. LA will wear that jersey once more later this season after the Dodger stadium game. based on the cost of the Legends jerseys, expect to pay $2K as a starter
all that may be released to the public are the premiers. aka, the ****
the quality imo is total crap and way overpriced.
a few pages back there was discussion and opinions thrown back and forth about preferred choice of Kings jerseys among the members here. i'm not getting into that, because it's well documented on here that i am not a fan of the current set and would like to see the team return to its roots.
something i didn't see mentioned and is very reflective of what is preferred by fans and collectors alike is what is selling and at what price. im not just talking about ebay, but different auctions and jersey collector sites.
today there is still heavy demand for old jerseys in the authentic weights. to the point the price in many cases is becoming increasingly cost prohibitive.
for example there is very heavy demand for the road blacks or the home white Chevy logo, size 52 and 54 in the old ultrafil material. especially virgin ones that were never customized and in good condition. expect to pay $200-250 on the low side for one. realistically you will pay north of $300 for one. these jerseys are in great demand still. collectors want to keep turning them into a 99, 17, 20, 32, 33, 21, etc.
there is also high demand for the road blue/gold from 1980 -88. trying again to find these authentics is becoming next to impossible. good look finding one in the old adidas or maska hem tags. the supply is so small that many now are just trying to get their hands on the CCM replicas from that time in good condition, but will still sell for north of $100-150 for one in good condition.
ironically the old BK (Burger King) 3rd's sell for ridiculous prices, but there has for years been a flood of counterfeits into the market. for the price i think these have got the point of a none purchase. it's to easy to get ripped off buying one. these things go regularly for over $500 and will still sell for $750+
those three jerseys all have high demand and sell for as much if not more than the current jerseys. if they weren't popular they wouldn't continue to see increasing prices YoY.
the newest jersey that has high demand is the new Legends jersey. these are Reebok 2.0s and are FINALLY starting to be available. expect to pay $350-380 for starters. the other option which Team LA finally has online (for those like me that aren't in SoCal anymore). they are CCM replicas, which are imo a better quality than the Reebok premiers (the equivalent to the CCM replicas). heavier more traditional jersey material and better patches to name a few. the CCMs from what ive been told have a slightly different color compared to the Reebok 2.0 authentics.
there is very little interest for the current home/road 2.0s. every now and then it will come up, but it isn't often. it usually is for a road white that people are looking for, because they haven't been available to the public. personally i want a road white at some point, but it is down my list of jerseys i want to collect.
when it comes to what sells and what is available. the overwhelming sales numbers are of the home blacks currently. that is really all that has been available to the public now for years. people buy what is available. they cant buy a jersey that isn't available. if they don't want to buy a cheap chinese counterfeit and want a 'real' jersey, they have ONE choice. the home black. who ever claimed this isn't a valid point in the conversation couldn't be more wrong. you can't buy and wear something, that isn't for sale. end of conversation, it is a completely baseless opinion and one that dismisses simple fact.
try an experiment to prove my point. make 10K old Chevy logo CCM jerseys and put them for sale in Team LA for a game. i guarantee they will be gone within a matter of days. what doesn't sell at a game or two will be immediately bought out and resold on eBay within days.
i know this will happen, because every year when they sell out the overstock on jerseys this happens. not because people can go buy an armful of jerseys at discount, but because they know they can turn around meet the online demand for them. also there are 'companies' that currently do this year round. all they do is buy different 'vintage' Kings jerseys from different sources and mark them up for sale, because the general public and fans don't know of these different sources. some will go so far as to buy 'blanks' and have them fully customized with team logo, and player name and numbers. all for a nice mark up passed on to you the buyer.
why? because the NHL, Reebok and the Kings continue to turn a blind eye to this situation.
those that desire to have something different, just don't have many options. when those options do present themselves though there is very good demand, but for a pretty penny.
the ones that have truly benefitted from all of this are the counterfeiters. the NHL and Reebok have created a clusterf*** that is simply unparalleled today. there is heavy demand for jerseys by all team fanbases, that has been met by a manufacturer with horrible quality standards and poor supply standards. the NHL imo has not even come close to protecting the clubs and the fans. for the most part they have sat on their hands and done nothing. in the meantime the chinese counterfeits continue to get pumped out and meet the fan's demand, not to mention provide a low price point.
the counterfeiters have also stepped in and filled the gap with the Gretz-era Chevy logos and the Legends jerseys. they wouldn't fill this gap in demand, if it didn't exist. again this puts to rest the argument about 'what is available' and what people are buying. the fans will buy what they want, so make them available.
a few more notes on different questions i saw.
the Mitchell & Ness jerseys are of decent quality, but they run BIG. i mean BIG, check their size guide before buying one.
the 'Heroes of Hockey' line (HoH) of jerseys that are out today are an inferior quality compared to the old CCM replicas. remember the old CCM jerseys were classed as authentic (also known as Ultrafil and also as Pro weight) and replicas (also known as semi-pro). the HoH line is meant to provide the fan a new Gretzky jersey in the replica weight for sale today. the problem is the quality of the replica weight material isn't as heavy as the actual replicas from back in the day. it is a lighter weight material.
hope this helps
