Friday: Knockoffs In the North

Welcome back to another Friday post on HJC.

If you are reading this, I'm currently flying back to Toronto from Halifax for Winter Break.

This post is a long one so go get some popcorn, but earlier today, the Sharks unveiled their Stadium Series jerseys, and no, it is not sleeveless (Boo!).

(Photo from Sharks.nhl.com)

+ Lots of teal

+ Big numbers look good on the back

+ THAT NEW SHOULDER PATCH! If it's one thing the Outdoor games get right, it's the shoulder patches. Last year we got the LA and OC logos, now it's Northern California, excellent job!

- Those sleeve numbers without a black outline

- Black not carrying around to the back, that's really bothering me 

- New collar shape isn't horrendous, but it's not fantastic, looks stretched out 

7.25/10- Could have been a lot worse 

Looking cautiously forward to the Kings, hopefully the BK logo?

I know it's late, but last week's podcast was awesome to record! Thanks to Ryan, Caz and Dylan for making this one of the more entertaining podcast to date to record (I've only done two and both have been entertaining so...yeah). Remember though, if you like the podcasts, you NEED to comment about that you liked/disliked about them and future topics. So long as there is interest, they will be recorded.

In the podcast and past posts on HJC and the HJC Design Blog, it should be obvious that knock off jerseys are not well received and avoided. They hurt the teams, the industry, make the wearer look like an idiot and just suck in general.

You know, these things... (No this isn't a black ice jersey, this doesn't look THAT bad!)

(Image from Juicy-wholesale.com)

 I've only ever received one knockoff as a gift and it's heartbreaking to have to tell someone, let alone your own mother that the jersey is fake. Thankfully the jersey was returnable but what was supposed to be a James Van Riemsdyk Winter Classic jersey christmas gift was ruined because someone who lied online about the authenticity of the jersey.

With the holiday shopping season in full swing, I thought I'd offer some tips on buying jerseys for your loved ones and how to avoid getting swindled.

1). If the deal looks too good to be true, DON'T BUY IT!

Of course there have been some amazing deals in the past, like $30 Buffalsug jerseys and Black Islanders Alternate and $19 Islanders away jerseys, but if you find a Winter Classic jersey or "authentic" jersey for $40 or some outrageous price like that, there's something wrong with it.

2). Use a Reputable Site/Store

NHL Shop.com, especially the Canadian site, is pricey and sometimes low on selection, but there are plenty of sites across the web that offer a wide selection of authentic NHL licensed jerseys. If you've been reading HJC for a while, some of these names will sound familiar, but these are some trustworthy sites.

eBay*
http://www.jerseycity.ca
http://www.sportsk.com
http://www.icejerseys.com
https://rivercitysports.com/US/
http://coolhockey.com

Use these sites and you should not have a problem with fakes. Of course, buying the jersey in person is always better as it's usually much easier to spot a fake, but remember to go to a store that is credible. If you're going to a flea market, be especially weary, many booths do sell legitimate products, but some will swindle you.

*If you are using eBay, analyze very carefully! You can find a lot of good deals and older jerseys there, especially pre-edge, but make sure there are lots of photos of the jersey, up close on the crests or any defects. DO NOT UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES BUY A JERSEY FROM A LISTING THAT USES A STOCK IMAGE AS A THUMBNAIL!

3). Know the Signs of a Fake

Like most knockoff products, fake hockey jerseys are easy to spot. If you are new to jersey buying, then take a quick peak at nhluniforms.com or NHL shop.com to know what the actual jerseys look like, and the number styles, logos, striping etc. Most fakes get the numbers wrong and the logos are puffy and off proportioned. The striping sometimes won't even line up with itself on the arm seam. Look at the material as well, many fakes have very coarse, porous material while the authentic replicas have smooth porous material. A 5 second google search could save you lots of time and money in a brutal return process.

4). Know Your Patches

As Dylan listen in his post this week, improper patches and player names are a great way to sell a fake from a real jersey. You may find a Chris Mason Atlanta Thrashers jersey with a 10th anniversary patch on it but the Thrashers only wore that patch on their helmet. Teams do not wear championship patches and Winter Classic patches do not come pre-sown onto jerseys. Some sites will offer the patch to be sown on professionally and others may have jerseys with the patch sown on as part of a special but be wary, they cost extra usually. Again, 5 seconds of research could save you money

5). Keep your receipt!

So you bought your loved one a jersey, you thought it was real, and even appeared real in the ad, but you received a knockoff. It happens, don't get discouraged. Explaining to the receiver of your gift what happened shouldn't be hard, but getting your money back and returning the crappy product can be. If you found the jersey through Amazon or an external reputable source, complain to them and demand your money back! Write an email to the company and if they do not respond, don't hesitate reporting them. Remember, knockoff products are illegal, and these fake venders are in a lot of trouble if they are caught, so keep a paper trail just in case.

Those are just my tips. Obviously this is something I take seriously, but to lighten the mood, here are some knockoffs for my favourite team.

Image from blog.thescore.com

Obviously the striping is not what the Jets have worn or do wear, but look at the tags and logos. The primary logo is puffy and has a cheap, reflective outer rim rather than a more subtle one. The collar is the biggest clue, it looks like the most uncomfortable turtle next ever, not to mention collars don't even go up that far let alone fold like that. One way that knockoff vendors like to get a jump on a new jersey is to go off of whatever leaks or concepts are found on the web (That's how Ryan's concept was made into a knockoff). This jersey was based on a leak of a prototype that was made during the design process when the Jets came back, making whoever bought one look like an even bigger fool when the actual jerseys were unveiled. 

Image from media.winnipegfreepress.com

Not as easy to tell as the last one, but I can assure you this is a fake. The inner tag is wrong and the gray outer circle on the logo does not reflect. The biggest give away is the font however, the numbers on a real Jets jersey are white and have a light blue outline, not gray. The jersey's arms are also way to wide, and look like they're in the goalie cut, but goalie cuts are ONLY released as game issued or game worn, and rarely come onto the market. 

So use caution folks, it'll make these holidays better and keep these fraudulent vendors out of our game as well as expose them for what they are, stupid. 

COTW ends tonight! COTY November also ends tonight! Two major votes which you need to be a part of. If you have forgotten up until this point, go click open a new tab and email your vote now, don't worry....I'll wait.

COTY-November vote (ends Friday @ 11:59pm Eastern)
COTW Nov 30-Dec 6 vote (ends Friday @ 11:59pm Eastern)
COTY Logo Comp (Ends Saturday, December 13, 2014 @ 11:30am Eastern)

Let's look at some of the entries that have come in since last post for the HJC COTY 2014 logo competition. 

Scott G.

On to the concepts: 

===================================

Vancouver Canucks Concepts (By: Jake88)

+ No more whale as the primary

+ Unique striping pattern that's original but very simple

+ Keeping the current font but adding an outline 

+ Gray makes a tertiary colour

- Not using the Jonny Canuck head V on the shoulders 

- If you don't wanna use that, use the VC and use the 40th anniversary pants 

9/10: Solid set, solid improvement, and excellent execution, as expected by Jake88

Utica Comets Concepts (By: Bpoe96)

+ Not copying the Canucks in the primary set (I actually like the script 3rd jersey, keep that)

+ The striping does look like a Comet, with lots of swooshes and fiery bursts on the hem 

+ It's a minor thing, but using the Stick in Rink and Utica shoulder patches work well, they aren't that different but the shoulders aren't just Vancouver logos

+ The pants are really unique

- Copying the Jets font, yes it is nice, but the Comets aren't the Jets team

- The upper part of both jerseys look a little bare, but more so on the white jersey, adding a yoke will fix that

- Not sure if the socks need to be so extreme

8.5/10: Well executed, and with a few changes would be a perfect replacement

Vancouver Canucks Concepts  (By Jonny J.)

+ Updating the '94 style jerseys
+ That new font, while it looks very 70's like, it goes with the logo
+ The V helmet lost is hilarious! It's so dated but in the right way
+ 3 yoke outlines instead of one

- Primary logo and numbers are way too large
- Stitching should stop at the hem stripe
- The inside of the white jersey's hem should be black
- The pants would benefit from a logo
- Black socks should match white socks

6.5/10 execution needs work, but the a good start

Tampa Bay Lightning Concept (By: Ben S.)

+ Better than current alternate any day of the week
+ The neon blue that isn't actually that bright, but stands out against the black
+ Simple striping
+ A GOOD LOOKING JERSEY (Note Tampa, you would have been better off with the ugly christmas sweater jersey)

- One thing that the current alternate got right was the unique font, would have been nice to keep that
- No lightning bolt pants
- No shoulder patch

- No blue on the logo

7.75/10 An improvement but could be better

Hartford Wolfpack Concepts (By: Ryan C.)

+ No more navy and silver outside of the logos/brighter colour scheme
+ Striping pattern has a college feel to it
+ Using the Lady Liberty HWP logo as a shoulder patch

- Execution needs some work
- Primary logo  and numbers are much too large

- Piping in that stroll almost never works
- Using just the wolf head logo would be better than the red circle

6.75/10 The Wolfpack do need a new set, and with some changes, this would be a good replacement

Houston Aeros Concepts (By: Mario A.)

Check out Mario's GHL game between the Aeros and Devils 

+ Bring the AHL/IHL Aeros back, logos looked better than WHA
+ Lots of blue and green and
+ White jersey is near perfect to what I'd expect the Aeros to have if they came back

- The blue jersey seems more like an alternate, a home jersey would go better if it were green with white cuffs and striping
- The primary logos are too small
- No shoulder patches or tv numbers
- Swap the green from the top of the sock to the bottom

White - 7.5 Blue- 6.25

Team Prussia Concepts (By: Stephen T.)

+ Arm pattern is beautiful
+ Iron cross makes a good shoulder patch
+ Unique font

-Plain pants
- Hem pattern is just a black line without the gold side parts
- The logo needs to be cited where it was found since it is not a common hockey logo
- Putting the white shield on the black jersey as opposed to a white outline is laz7

6.75/10 Unique but still has some work and common errors

Pats Beer League Concepts (By: Tyler C.)

+ 'Murica
+ The right amount of uniqueness that is expected in beer league
+ Hem script
+ simple logo
+ Half chest stripe and arm stripes that for circle patterns around the numbers and logos

- There are two versions of the same logo, one that is a circle and one that is a ellipse
- Socks logos never work
- Primary logo on blue jersey is too big
- Use only one shoulder patch and shrink in size
- Inside of the jersey should be the same colour as the yoke inside the collar

6/10 Good for beer league but execution needs work

That's the post folk!

Remember to vote and send in your logo entries! Come back tomorrow for the Weekend Update

Go Jets Go! Have a great weekend