Whether it’s deceptive and unethical business practices, ruining sports merchandising, or running secondary sites that sell counterfeit merchandise, I’ve spent a lot of time calling out Fanatics. However, the time has come to direct that ire towards Adidas and the NHL. Any TealTownUSA follower knows a few of us here are jersey geeks. Hockey jerseys are simply one of the coolest things in sports. But for the love of all things NHL, it’s time for Adidas to make the pro stock jerseys players wear available for fans to buy at retail outlets. Since Adidas is readying a new jersey production process based on the 2019 All Star Parlay jersey, it’s also time to stop referring to the jerseys they currently sell in stores and online as “authentic”.To get more news about custom jerseys, you can visit buyviagraonline24hours.com official website.
Prior to 2007, there were only 2 types of jerseys available for fans to purchase in stores. You had the choice of an authentic, which meant the same stock as what players wear on the ice, or you could purchase a replica. This was the same in baseball, too. As you may expect, authentic jerseys are a tad roomier since they’re designed to be used with equipment whereas replicas are a little more form fitting. But when you saw the jerseys side-by-side, generally the only way to discern one from the other was authentic jerseys have a fight strap and elbow stitching. The nameplate, numbers, and patches were the same between both as you can see in the photos below. Click on the images for large versions.
In 2007, after teams used a revolving door of jersey company names such as Maska, CCM, Koho, Nike, etc…, Reebok’s purchase of The Hockey Company led to all jerseys being Reebok branded. In 2017, that deal rolled over to Adidas despite the fact that Adidas owns Reebok. However, when that 2007 Reebok announcement was made, Reebok unveiled what’s known as Reebok Edge 1.0 and it was considered pro stock. However, two months into the ’07-’08 season, players complained that the jersey material, with its Scotchguard-like ways, soaked skates and gloves with sweat. It forced Reebok to create Edge 2.0 in Canada. However 1.0 remained available to fans and is how “Indo-edge” apparently came to exist, giving fans 3 levels of jerseys to now choose from:
The problem for jersey hounds is that the retail authentic jerseys replaced pro stock in stores. Suddenly, fans could no longer get what the players wear unless they find them on auction sites or at equipment sales.
Obvious shortcuts were taken when Reebok rolled out their replica jerseys in 2007. The beautifully embroidered shoulder patches were replaced with cheap looking plastic decals, as seen in the photo below. The material of the replicas are also noticeably lighter and thinner than the retail “authentic” and pro stock jerseys. The Reebok replica model, called “premier”, is essentially what Fanatics currently calls “breakaway”. It’s basically a nice way to say “cheap”.
Aside from the ridiculously inferior plastic shoulder markers, the Reebok premier replica jerseys are actually quite comfortable, consistent and, in my opinion, far better than the Fanatics replicas and Adidas “authentic” jerseys made today. In my opinion, Reebok replicas were better quality and fit than current Adidas “authentic” jerseys. And for half the price of a Reebok retail authentic, you got a quality jersey that you weren’t worried about spilling beer on. In the photos below, you can see the three different jersey styles. Notice how the premier material is different from the retail authentic and pro stock. However, when you compare the retail authentic to the pro stock, there’s not much difference, and all 3 have a comparable fit.
While the Reebok retail authentics were good quality, they still weren’t the same as what the players wore. It appears Reebok was trying to combine the best of both worlds, marrying the pro stock quality with replica fit. However, the $299 starting point was tough for some to stomach when it wasn’t the same as what the players wear. Especially when you could buy 2 replicas for the same price as 1 retail authentic.