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The Display Case: Junior Jersey Mail-Order Mayhem!!! |
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The collectibles game can be nothing short of a hustle if you want to do it smart! It’s not cheap, so budgeting and hitting the ground running to find those additional “cheap hits” can be essential. Don’t get me wrong here though: “cheap hits” doesn’t mean garbage ones by any stretch! Rather, it means making some smart choices and being creative. My McDavid, Marner, and Hall autographs were affordable to me as I got in on them before these guys were drafted. Other ones I’ve hit, such as Brodeur and Lindros, came from purchases of things people offloaded after severely underestimating what they were putting out for a garage sale or donating to a thrift shop. Great finds, but they took some hustle and patience.
We all develop our methods to keep our collections building in an affordable manner. Today I share with you the collection of Scott H., who has built up an insane jersey collection with some great hustle, creativity and sticking his neck out! Check this admirable story out and enjoy the accompanying pics (two sets you can scroll through). Mad respect for this beautiful collection…
It was Fall 1995, when my father took me to a preseason Islanders game. At 10 years old I thought I knew just about all you could know about the sport. I religiously studied the stats on the back of my Fleer Ultra hockey cards- I knew all the names there was to know, or so I thought. But then I heard the rumblings from fans around me, names being volleyed about that I had never even heard of; Bertuzzi, McCabe, Fichaud. How could that be? The whole arena seemed to know these guys like they were superstars but I never even knew they existed. A little bit of research lead to my discovery of Junior hockey and the realization that way before Eric Lindros would become a household name, he was a teen sensation that knowledgable hockey fans had already known all about for years. Years before there were entire arenas filled with “88 Lindros” jerseys, there was one kid wearing it on the back of a Compuware jersey in Michigan. I wanted to be in that group of people “in the know”
So I dove into the lower levels of hockey, desperate for any info I could find. The internet was still young in the mid-90’s and information about leagues like the OHL, WHL and QMJHL wasn’t accessible to a kid in New York the way it is today. Over the next five years I’d watch the drafts and study the players that came out of the first round. It was a great tool for my card collecting hobby. Suddenly, I knew which rookie cards were “worthy of a plastic case” and collecting became far less of a guessing game.
Then in 2000, I read an article online about a 14 year old offensive whiz-kid from Central New York- Robbie Schremp. The article referred to Schremp as the “next-one” with stick handling skills that had to be seen to believe. After finishing the article, I realized knowing about this kid’s existence so long in advance of any prospective fortune and fame presented me with an opportunity to try and obtain a unique collectible. So a quick search of AOL profiles lead me to the discovery of the screen-name “Tugnut44”. A few Instant Messages and a USPS package later and my passion for a very unique collectible was born: Youth Worn Jerseys of Top Prospects!
Normally jerseys like the one above only exist in the private collection of players, or their friends and family. Collecting NHL game worn jerseys can cost a fortune, and often the jerseys are over produced and lightly used. But this jersey was a really unique one-of -a-kind grassroots collectible. I thought If Rob Schremp makes it as big as they predicted, that thing could be worth a fortune. Six months after receiving that Syracuse Stars jersey, the Mississauga Ice Dogs made Rob Schremp the first American to be drafted 1st overall into the OHL. I would closely follow the career of Robbie, which included some ups (OHL rookie of the year, 1st round pick of the Oilers, an incredible Memorial Cup winning season with the London Knights, and eventually earning his way onto my Islanders for a couple seasons) and plenty of downs. But i learned a valuable lesson: that even the “can’t miss phenom” can miss. However, owning that jersey made me feel personally invested in Rob’s career from the time I was 15 and it made me feel more connected to the game than ever before. I never lost the passion and desire to obtain a jersey of the “next one,” but college and my career took over my life for a while. That passion to get the “next one’s” jersey would be reinvigorated with the emergence of Connor McDavid.
I reached out to Connor McDavid via social media to ask about acquiring his Toronto Marlboros jersey. By then he was already a well known sensation in hockey circles with the Erie Otters. Unsurprisingly, I received no response and settled for a cheap reproduction of my dream jersey. This made me realize that if I was ever going to hit it big, I'd have to approach the player prior to Major Junior. So I began reading scouting reports and rankings from players eligible for the 2016 OHL Priority Selection. It was through this that I discovered the existence of an offensive defenseman playing for the Toronto Jr Canadiens by the name of Ryan Merkley, heavily favored to go 1st overall. So i took a shot and fired off a DM to Merkley's Instagram. I kept it real simple and asked "Would you be willing to sell me an old jersey?" Sure enough, he agreed and sent a blue Toronto Jr Canadiens jersey that he had worn a few years back and only asked for a few bucks in return to cover shipping costs. Once the Merkley jersey was in my collection, it became much easier to get a "yes" from other top flight 1999 and 2000 born prospects. I guess it lent credibility to what I was trying to accomplish. I was sending out the same message to top tier 14 and 15 year olds all over North America via instagram but suddenly the jerseys were rolling in fast and furious, costing me an average of about $40 each. Other players that would mail me jerseys included Isaac Ratcliffe - London Jr Knights (2017 35th overall PHI), Jack Studnicka - Detroit Compuware (2017 53rd overall BOS), Akil Thomas - Miami Toros (2018 51st LAK), Jacob Pivonka - Chicago Mission (2018 103rd NYI), Curtis Hall - Cleveland Barons (2018 119th BOS), and Christian Krygier (2018 196 NYI).
My collection was becoming more well-known names throughout the hockey community, so much so that players from the next birth year (2001) were sending their sweaters free-of-charge to be a part of it. This included Alex Turcotte (2019 5th overall LAK) sending his Detroit Honeybaked jersey. The Alex Turcotte acquisition was HUGE because it got me in with the 2001 US crop that would become the best US NTDP team of all time. Other players that would follow in sending me their jersey included Trevor Zegras - Mid Fairfield Jr Rangers (2019 9th overall ANA), Spencer Knight - Mid-Fairfield Jr Rangers (2019 13th overall FLA), Cam York - Ana Jr Ducks (2019 14th overall PHI), Cole Caufield - Team Illinois (2019 15th overall MTL), Marshall Warren - NJ Colonials (2019 166th overall MIN). In addition, 2001 born Alex Newhook (2019 16th overall COL) would send me his York-Simcoe Express Jersey. In total, 6 of the first 16 picks of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft would agree to send me their jerseys. Other 2019 Draftees include Robert Mastrosimone - NY Jr Islanders (2019, 54th DET), John Farinacci - East Coast Selects (2019, 76th ARI), Graeme Clarke- East Coast Selects (2019, 80th, NJD) Sasha Mutala - Burnaby Winter Club (2019, 140th COL), Tyce Thompson - Team Alaska (2019, 96th NJD), and Nick Porco (2019, 142nd DAL).
Thus far the highest player drafted into the NHL that has sent me his jersey is former Sudbury Wolves star, Quinton Byfield. Byfield went 2nd overall to the LA Kings in 2020 approximately 3 years after shipping me his York-Simcoe Express jersey. Eight picks after Byfield went to the Kings, the Winnipeg Jets selected Saginaw Spirit high scoring forward Cole Perfetti 10th overall. Perfetti had sent me his Whitby Wildcats jersey way back in 2017. Other 2020 NHL draftees included Ty Smilanic (74th FLA), Michael Benning - Northern Albert Xtreme (95th overall FLA), Carter Savoie - AJHL (100th overall EMD), and Tyler Tullio Oshawa Jr Generals (126th overall EDM).
Perhaps my quest to get my own piece of hockey history received its greatest odds of success when I began to follow the 2003 born Don-Mills Flyers. Oddly enough, the player I'm referring to wasn't born in 2003, as it was 2004 born Shane Wright. This could turn out to be the best $40 I will ever spend in my lifetime. Approximately one year after sending me his game worn Don Mills Flyers jersey, he was granted exceptional status to play in the OHL as a 15 year old. Wright joined well-known names like John Tavares, and Connor McDavid by being allowed to play in the OHL as a 15 year old, and put up a remarkable 66 points in 58 games played. Challenging Shane Wright for the top spot in the 2022 NHL entry draft as the best 2004 born prospect will be Winnipeg Ice forward Matthew Savoie. Savoie sent me his Western Canada Selects jersey when he was just 14.
I realize there may come a day where I need to prove authenticity of these jerseys. For that reason I’ve saved the envelop containing the player’s return address with the post marked shipping label from each and every jersey I’ve received to date.
Monster collection and effort Scott! The hustle on this brings so much to the collection above and beyond the physical jerseys! Much respect to you for your creativity and efforts in putting together this beautiful collection!
Well wishes and positive energy to you all. Please put some care into you and yours and look out for one another where possible! Even the smallest of actions can lead to far bigger impacts than we realize. Cheers!
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Do you have a piece of treasured memorabilia that has a great story behind it? Let me know and you can be featured in an article. Doesn't matter how big or small the piece is, how valuable it may be, or whether it's a common item or more oddball. If you think it has a story, contact me via the information below and we'll chat. In the meantime, check out some previous "Display Case" articles via the links below to see what others have submitted in the past...
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Shawn Gates
[email protected]
Facebook: ShawnMcShawn
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Previous ”The Display Case” Posts
#1: The “Frankenstick!”
#2: Your desk has the right to remain collectable!
#3: Have Pads, Will Travel
#4: Pick a Pekka (Rinne) Autographed Mask
#5: Ted Lindsay Gets Kronwalled?
#6: The Only Thing We Have To Fehr Is Fehr Himself
#7: “Hungary” For Team Canada Swag
#8: The Soldiers Kid and “The Kid”
#9: Fan Appreciation & Player Humility Via The '72 Series
#10: Bobby Orr and....Birth Control?!?!?!
#11: Johnny Bower The “Portrait” Of Health At 88!!!
#12: Scotty Bowman – Stick Detective!!!
#13: Touch 'Em All Joe!!!
#14: Joey and Sergei's European (Lockout) Adventure!!!
#15: I’d Give The Jersey Off My Back For You…
#16: The Case Of The 1940’s Era Leafs
#17: Scrapping The History Of The Isles...
#18: Gretzky “Re-Signs” in Edmonton
#19: Gilmour Is Such A Caricature!!!
#20: Toys In The Attic
#21: The Right King Place At The Right King Time
#22: Momma Bear Takes On A “Killer”!!!
#23: Leafs Lunch Stool
#24: The 50 Goal Stub
#25: Scoring From The Rafters
Previous “Devil In The Details?” Articles
Centering,
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Previous “Ultimate Set Build” Articles
1980-81 O-Pee-Chee
80-81 Base
20008 UD Champs
Champ’s Mini Signatures
2016-17 Upper Deck Parkhurst
Rookie Red Parallel
2017 Upper Deck Toronto Maple Leafs Centennial
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Previous Random Hockey Musings
Oh? Canada? A Hockey History…
Industry Blow To Topps Possible Foreshadowing For The NHL, NHLPA & UD
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