Seattle = NHL

Seattle was selected today for an NHL expansion team, they will begin play in the 2021-22 season. The name and colors have yet to be selected, but if you follow me on Twitter you may have seen me post up in discussions about the name. Initially I liked the idea of reviving Seattle’s original hockey team name, Metropolitans, but I have come around to Steelhead or Kraken. Colors would be an easy choice if the team selects a water related name, blues and maybe some greens. 

The alignment hasn’t been decided either, but it is rumored that the Seattle team will be placed in the Pacific division and the Arizona Coyotes will be moved to the Central division.

Uni Watch ran a contest for uniform designs, and here are a couple that I like because of the color combinations,

Andrew Arena: Seattle Metropolitans

Michael Jarvie Jr. Here he used the name Greys (for Grey whales) but I could see this working for Steelhead too.

Jim Brester: Seattle Kraken

Nest stop…the NBA do the right thing and give Seattle an expansion team (Sonics reborn baby) and to balance the conferences, give Louisville an expansion team.

Holding Out Hope!

Two weeks ago someone within the NBA, an unnamed source, let it slip that once the upcoming NBA collective bargaining agreement is completed that the NBA would begin to look at possible locations for expansion and that during the discussion of expansion it came up that the #1 location on the table is Seattle. The source even went on to say that “An hour after Seattle approves their arena, they’d have an offer in hand” in regards of an expansion team.

 

Chris Hansen, a hedge fund manager, has been trying to work deals with the City of Seattle, King County and Washington State to get an arena built that would bring an NBA team back to the Emerald City as well as a possible NHL team. Hansen has said before that his intention is to make any new arena an NBA/NHL ready arena.

When the rumor came out about the possible Seattle expansion Hansen went in to overdrive to get something together but to no avail the City Council voted 5-4 against an arena being paid for using a bond measure. Not to be dissuaded Chris went to look at other options and yesterday announced that he will privately fund the arena. In his Memorandum of Understanding to the city and NBA is that he will use private funds from a group of investors to fund the $200 million to build an arena with the agreement that the city vacate a section of city owned property near Safeco Field (Mariners) and CenturyLink Field (Seahawks) for the arena and that the NBA will commit to a team for the city by November 2017. Additionally, he has offered private money to upgrade the local streets in anticipation of higher traffic connected to the Sonics games.

 

The offer now goes to the Seattle City Council for another vote and then obviously the waiting game for the NBA to make a decision on expansion.  

 

This is amazing news for Seattle fans and if things do work out I would expect the NHL to turn to Seattle with an expansion team. With the NHL’s expansion in Las Vegas the NHL will be at 31 teams in 2017 with an unbalanced Western Conference. Adding a team in Seattle for 2018 or 2019 would even out the conferences and with a move of the Las Vegas franchise from Pacific Division to Central Division a Seattle franchise could slide right in to the Pacific Division giving each Division 8 teams.

Just imagine, a rebirth of both the Seattle Supersonics and Seattle Metropolitans.

Good News For Hockey Fans?

In what could amount to good news for NHL fans, ITG has submitted a proposal for an NHLPA license. If they are approved they would be able to make cards using current players, though no logos or team names.  They actually had a one-year deal in the works with the NHLPA last year but they were instructed to only produce two sets during the lockout so Price turned down the deal.

 

I had been a serious hockey fan for years but after the 2004-05 lockout, the second in ten years, I had enough. I still keep an eye on the Islanders and Coyotes but I rarely watch games and almost never pick up packs but I think this should be a no-brainer for the NHLPA, ITG produces some of the best hockey cards each year. I do not like limited licensing, it has led to stagnation in some products, I can understand not handing out licenses to everyone but one or two companies controlling the majority of licensing is serious overkill.

Hockey Hall Of Fame/Upper Deck Captains Jersey Relic Cards

I think that Upper Deck has hit on something that could possibly go over well in other sports. In conjunction with a special exhibition at the Hockey Hall of Fame Upper Deck has created a 30-card relic set consisting of each NHL team’s captain(s). The exhibition, NHL Captains Class of 2013, is part of the NHL Team Fan Days summer time exhibition at the Toronto based Hockey Hall of Fame, they will have a jersey of each team’s captain and alternate captain on display and on select days the first 1,000 fans to enter with a paid admission will receive one of the jersey relic card for that day’s team.

 

Each team will be spotlighted one specific day during July or August and the promotion began July 8^th with Ryan Getzlaf of the Anaheim Ducks with the final day being August 23^rd with Andrew Ladd of the Winnipeg Jets. When you consider the Hockey Hall of Fame entrance fee is only C$17.50 you cannot lose if you are in the area. You actually get a 50% discount if you wear apparel of the scheduled day’s team.

 

The design is the exact same design as the base jersey relics included in the 2012-13 Upper Deck NHL release with the only difference being the Hockey Hockey Hall of Fame logo on the bottom left corner. Surprisingly I cannot find any Getzlaf or Chara cards up for auction.

 

Here is the calender dates for each team courtesy of the Hockey Hall of Fame website

July 8	Anaheim Ducks	Ryan Getzlaf
July 9	Boston Bruins	Zdeno Chara
July 10	Buffalo Sabres	Jason Pominville
July 11	Calgary Flames	Mike Cammalleri (A)
July 12	Carolina Hurricanes	Eric Staal
July 13	Chicago Blackhawks	Jonanthon Toews
July 14	Colorado Avalanche	Gabriel Landeskog
July 15	Columbus Blue Jackets	Derek Dorsett (A)
July 16	Dallas Stars	Jamie Benn (A)
July 17	Detroit Red Wings	Henrik Zetterberg
July 18	Edmonton Oilers	Shawn Horcoff
July 29	Florida Panthers	Brian Campbell (A)
July 30	Los Angeles Kings	Dustin Brown
July 31	Minnesota Wild	Mikko Koivu
August 1	Montreal Canadiens	Brian Gionta
August 2	Nashville Predators	Shea Weber
August 3	New Jersey Devils	Bryce Salvador
August 4	New York Islanders	Mark Streit
August 5	New York Rangers	Ryan Callahan
August 6	Ottawa Senators	Daniel Alfredsson
August 7	Philadelphia Flyers	Claude Giroux
August 8	Phoenix Coyotes	Shane Doan
August 16	Pittsburgh Penguins	Sidney Crosby
August 17	San Jose Sharks	Joe Thornton
August 18	St. Louis Blues	David Backes
August 19	Tampa Bay Lightning	Vincent Lecavalier
August 20	Toronto Maple Leafs	Dion Phaneuf
August 21	Vancouver Canucks	Henrik Sedin
August 22	Washington Capitals	Alexander Ovechkin
August 23	Winnipeg Jets	Andrew Ladd

Here is the complete 30-card set

Congratulations To The Chicago Blackhawks, The 2013 NHL Stanley Cup Champions

What a game in Boston tonight, Chicago comes in up 3-2 in the Stanley Cup Finals and it could have gone either way. The score was tied 1-1 at the beginning of the 3^rd Period before Boston’s Mila Lucic puts the Bruins ahead with 8 minutes left. Less than 1:30 left in the game and it appeared that the series would go 7 games before Chicago’s Bryan Bickell ties up the score with 1:16 left in the game. But Chicago was not done, 17 seconds later Chicago’s Dave Bolland puts in another goal with just 58 seconds remaining putting the game in hand and earning Chicago the win and the Stanley Cup.

 

This is Chicago’s second Stanley Cup win in 4 years and with most of the pivotal players under 30 years old, only Hossa (34), Sharp (31), Odya (31) and Rozsival (34) are over, the Blackhawks have the pieces in place to make additional runs at the trophy.

The NHLPA's Major Rookie Card Announcement

Yesterday the NHLPA released a statement that will greatly affect Panini and Upper Deck’s 2012-13 NHL release calendar. The announcement states that the only rookies that are eligible to be included in 2012-13 products are players who debuted after the 2012 NHL All-Star game (1/29/12) through the end of the 2012 Stanley Cup Final (6/11/12).

This means that there will not be any cards of players who were drafted in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft in June and there will not be any rookie cards of players who will make an appearance during the upcoming shortened season that begins on Saturday. This will result in a double rookie class in next year’s releases, similar to what happened following the 2004-05 lockout.

Panini has cancelled Titanium and Dominion but they still have Limited, Rookie Anthology and Prime on the calendar. Upper Deck has not made any announcements about upcoming products. The big question being asked is how the companies intend on dealing with redemptions in sets that have already hit the shelves.

A Slap To The Face Of Hockey Collectors

Here comes another one of those stories that just makes you cringe as a collector.

 

According to the NHLPA, the Anaheim Ducks’ Devante Smith-Pelly used a stamp instead of actually signing his autograph for five different releases from Upper Deck and Panini. The releases affected are

Upper Deck- SP Authentic, Ultimate and The Cup
Panini- Contenders and Prime

 

The NHLPA’s Director of Licensing, Adam Larry, said “There wasn’t any bad intention on his behalf”. Really, he had no bad intention? You mean that he knowingly took money from both Upper Deck and Panini to sign autographs and never planned to actually sign the cards and this was no bad intention on his behalf? Where I come from that is considered fraud.

 

Panini’s versions were redemption cards and Tracy Hackler said only a handful of Smith-Pelly’s Contender autographs were shipped out (there are 3 currently on eBay) and none of his Prime autographs were shipped out. Panini is remaking the cards for him to sign and they have contacted the people who have already received their redemptions and will replace them as well as send the recipient a pack of Rookie Anthology.

 

Upper Deck is in a different situation because his cards were packed out so they are asking that anyone that pulls any of the affected cards to contact their Customer Care center: Call 1-800-873-7332 or send an email to QA@upperdeck.com.

They have already begun the process of reprinting the cards for him to sign (I am assuming there will be a nanny watching over his shoulder this time) and once completed they will begin shipping the cards out as replacements to the collectors along with two packs of cards, I would guess probably from the set you pulled the card from.

 

I pulled these images of the stamped autographs from some of the auctions on eBay to get a side by side view; I am just surprised that nobody in QC noticed anything off here. These autographs are in nearly the same location on every single card, there are no differences in stroke, pressure, height or width changes. The only real noticeable changes are on a couple of cards where you can see the ink was wearing thin or the stamp had been re-inked and there was a splash of ink on the card.

 

On the positive side I have to say that Upper Deck has included some very cool patches in a insert that is #/249, usually multi-colored patches are only in smaller print runs and by the time you hit sets with #/50 or above you are usually stuck with those sweet single color jersey swatches.

 

 

 

Here are some of his stamped autographs from Panini Contenders that made it out to collector's hands.

 

Here are some of the cards that he supposedly did sign and you will notice there are slight differences in the signatures though I have a bit of a concern with the Ultimate Autographed Shield. This card goes the opposite way and is quite different from his other autographs. In fact out of the 15-20 real autographs that are up for auction I am hard pressed to find one that even comes close. If we know that this kid is not beyond using a stamp, including for other autographs in the Ultimate release, you have to wonder if someone else signed this card.

A Final Close To The Phoenix Coyotes Drama?

Last year I wrote up a post about the Phoenix Coyotes where I contemplated the future of the team. At the time the NHL was working on a deal with Matthew Hulsizer which appeared to be in jeopardy due to the interference of a local watchdog group (the Goldwater Institute) who felt that his offer was relying too heavily on a payment to Hulsizer from the City of Glendale. That deal eventually fell thru when the City of Glendale failed to sell enough bonds to cover the required $100 million payout to Hulsizer. This led to Hulsizer withdrawing his offer by the summer and the NHL was left holding the team looking for either a new deal with a potential buyer or the possibility of a move to Winnipeg, which has since picked up the ex-Atlanta Thrashers and renamed the Winnipeg Jets.

Fast forward to this spring and the NHL has announced that a tentative deal has been worked out between the NHL and former San Jose Sharks CEO Greg Jamison. Now it is a waiting game while the City of Glendale works out a deal regarding the lease of Jobbing.com Arena (where the Coyotes play). The Goldwater Institute is still watching the situation to ensure that Glendale will not be required to put up any money as part of the purchase.

The Glendale City Council is set to have a private meeting next week but as of this morning they have not added anything regarding the Coyotes to their public agenda. The City is also dealing with a potential lawsuit from the Cardinals regarding parking spots but that is another story.

If things fall thru once again expect to see the NHL step up the talk of relocation. While Winnipeg has been satisfied another city has suddenly become a possibility, Quebec City. Quebec lost the Nordiques to Colorado back in 1995 and has been hoping to replace the team. A couple of months ago the City of Quebec announced that they will begin construction of an 18,000-seat arena in hope of eventually landing an NHL team. Construction will begin in September 2012 and is expected to be completed in 2015 and will cost $400 million. Hamilton is still considered for a possible relocation too but because of the close proximity to Buffalo and Toronto the NHL will have to take that in to consideration. Additional relocations include a second team in Toronto (they even have a name already- Toronto Legacy), Seattle and Las Vegas.

So as the Coyotes get ready to play the LA Kings in the Western Conference Finals, the closest the team (NHL Jets/Coyotes) has ever gotten to the Stanley Cup Finals, the soap opera seems to finally be coming to a close.

The Winnipeg Jets New Logo

Today the "New" Winnipeg Jets have unveiled their new logo and it is inspired by the Royal Canadian Air Force. They decided to build a logo that would be a strong identity for the team as well as show respect towards Canada's military.

 I actually like it, I like that the continued with the old Jets color scheme but came out with something new. Now the big question is will the team follow Atlanta's futility or will they make it in to the playoffs sooner then later?

With the Stanley Cup set to kick off tomorrow in Vancouver the big news out of the NHL today is the return to Winnipeg. The Atlanta Thrashers were sold to a group from Winnipeg, the same group that 3 weeks ago was working with the NHL to purchase, and relocate, the Phoenix Coyotes but after the City of Glendale voted to cover the Coyotes for another season the group turned their attention towards the Thrashers. The team (which is still unnamed, but most assume the name will be Winnipeg Jets) will be playing at the MTS Center.

Now that Winnipeg has replaced the Jets the question of what may become of the Coyotes is on people’s minds. Many people feel that Quebec may be the next destination of a team on the move and I can almost guarantee that if a local owner is not found the City of Glendale, which is having budget problems, will not continue to pay for the team to remain a season at a time. Will the Nordiques become the next new old team?

What Is The Story With The Phoenix Coyotes?

Being in the Phoenix area I get a court side (or rink side in this case) seat as to the soap opera that has become the Phoenix Coyotes. Since coming to the Valley of the Sun the Coyotes started out on a good note making it to the playoffs 5 times in the first 6 years but then a dry patch hit missing the playoffs for 7 straight seasons (counting the lockout season) before the return of the White Out last season when the team actually hit 50 wins and 107 points.

But I digress to the soap opera storyline that has been prominent in local newspapers as of recent years. First there were the misadventures of owner Jerry Moyer when he intentionally filed bankruptcy merely hours before the NHL made an offer to purchase the team from him in 2009. His reasoning, which backfired, was to file bankruptcy and allow billionaire Jim Balsille to purchase the team out of bankruptcy and move the team to Hamilton, Ontario. You see, Balsille is disliked by the NHL which has thwarted his attempts to purchase teams and move them to Hamilton in the past. So the NHL has owned the team since September 2009 and has attempted to find buyers with little luck until recently when Matthew Hulsizer made an offer. Part of the offer required the City of Glendale (where the Coyotes play) to make a $100 million payment to Hulsizer which he would in turn use as part of the payment to the NHL. The city planned on using bonds to accrue the cash to make the payment but a public watchdog group (the Goldwater Institute) has publicly denounced the bonds and urged citizens to not purchase them because the original reports detailing how the city would recoup the money to pay off the bonds was skewed and there was no way the City of Glendale could cover the repayment of the bonds.

Confused yet?

OK, so now we stand in a situation where the NHL was expecting to sell the team to Hulsizer, who was expecting the City of Glendale to foot a portion of the purchase price, but has now stalled because the bonds are not being sold. The NHL is now working with the watchdog group (Goldwater Institute) to try and work out a deal to where the bonds can be sold thus allowing the sale of the team to go through. To muddy up the situation, the City of Glendale will be filing a lawsuit against the Goldwater Institute Monday morning stating that if the team leaves the city then Glendale will lose more than half a billion dollars.

The kicker of the whole dealio is that if the sale does not go through with Hulsizer then the NHL plans on relocating the team. Where you ask? Why none other than Winnipeg, Manitoba. That is right, the NHL in all its wisdom plans on moving the Phoenix Coyotes to Winnipeg, where the team was located as the Winnipeg Jets before moving to Phoenix in 1996. The Jets moved to Phoenix initially because of financial trouble, the inability to find qualified buyers who wanted to keep the team in Winnipeg and because the city was the smallest market in the NHL. The NHL had publicly questioned whether Winnipeg could even support an NHL team in 1996. Has something changed in 15 years or is the NHL gone bonkers?

Panini Signs With The NHL/NHLPA

Panini just announced that they have signed a non-exclusive multi-year contract with NHL and the NHLPA. Panini plans on releasing the first set for the 2010-11 NHL season in August under the Score label and will also be releasing sets using the Donruss, Pinnacle and Pacific labels.

This now gives Panini licenses with the NBA (exclusive), NFL and NHL plus FIFA for the upcoming World Cup (and the 2014 World Cup). Are they going to be taking over the collecting world in just a short time of existence in the US?

Topps can survive on baseball, that is for certain, but can Upper Deck survive? There is the current rumor that they will be dropped from the NFL license, and if that is true will the NFL reward Topps with their license back or will Panini become the NFL’s exclusive brand? Can Upper Deck survive on the NHL and NCAA or will the potential loss of the NFL license be the death strike to the company? Also, can the NHL/Panini agreement mark the beginning of an exclusive license for Panini? Now that would almost certainly mean a quick end for Upper Deck if they loose the NFL too

Chris Chelios The Next Legend?

It is rumored that Chris Chelios had skated around with the AHL’s Chicago Wolves during practice earlier today and may possibly sign with the team some time this week. After playing 25 seasons in the NHL, AHL, IHL and Swiss League it looks like Chelios is not done playing the game that he loves so much. Recently he even said that he would like to return to the NHL, so this may be the first step for him to return. The Chicago Wolves are the Atlanta Thrashers’s top minor league team so there is a possibility of call-up from the NHL team.

Is Chelios this generations Gordie Howe? Not counting Howe’s one shift with the Detroit Vipers of the IHL in 1997 he played a total of 2,421 games over 32 seasons of professional hockey. If Chelios, who has played 1,673 total professional games, does sign with the Wolves this will be his 26th season so it is not inconceivable that he may play another 6 years.

Besides Graded copies of his 84-85 OPC rookie and a couple of upper-end autographs his cards are actually quite affordable. You can find raw copies of his 84-85 OPC rookie for less $30 if you don’t mind an un-graded version.