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Grey-Market Unlicensed NHL Goalie Cut Jerseys
When it comes to goalie-cut hockey jerseys here on eBay, an unlicensed "replica" or "custom" jersey is more likely to come from a place like New York than from China. This guide is intended to help you identify and avoid unlicensed knock-off jerseys (and there are a LOT of them out there). How can a buyer tell? There are several dead giveaways.
1. Licensed goalie-cut jersey availability & production
NHL-licensed goalie cut jerseys are not now, nor have ever been, produced for the public. This is why you can't find them in retail shops or established online stores. As such, most NHL and minor-league goalie cut jerseys found on eBay are unlicensed homemade knock-offs. Sellers located in the USA and Canada routinely purchase blank "gamewear" goalie cut jerseys (in team colors as well as cheaper "practice" jerseys), affix aftermarket logos to them, and pass them off as the real thing. A large portion of the price you pay for a licensed jersey goes towards, well, licensing fees. What do the knock-off sellers do? They spend about five minutes affixing the crest, and skip out on paying the licensing fee, but do they pass on the savings to the buyer? Absolutely not. They charge basically the same price as licensed jerseys sell for and pocket the difference, making $50-60 from a $79.99 "sale" price.
There are a few authentic goalie cut NHL jerseys out there. These are generally team-issued, and are of much higher quality. They also usually bear a size tag with a number, which is located on the collar of the jersey, for example 58-G or 60G. Beware of item listings containing wording such as "GOALIE4X-62" and "SZ-60." These are usually just the rip-off artist's measurements of the jersey, not the tagged size. Gamewear and practice jerseys usually have one small white tag indicating size. Tags on CCM gamewear jerseys have a small Canadian flag, and read "goalie style" with no other size indicated.
Example 1: a one-color or practice CCM, RBK or AK goalie-style jersey with an NHL logo sewn-on is most likely unlicensed. Buyer beware!
Example 2: a CCM or AK goalie-style jersey with Chicago Blackhawks colors and stripes, with an undersized Blackhawks crest attached, is an obvious knock-off. Missing tomahawks on the shoulders are dead giveaway.
2. Cresting
Unlicensed jerseys frequently have poor cresting. The chest crest is often much smaller than that of a genuine jersey, and shoulder crests are often too small, inaccurate, or completely missing. Some of the chest crests on unlicensed jerseys are so small that they look downright silly. In addition, sellers may add a name and/or number to the jersey in an attempt to make it look more authentic or to command a higher price. They usually use the wrong font, size and style for the name and numbers. Don't let a seller pass off a generic font as an NHL font. Here are the most common generic fonts.
These fonts are not NHL/NHLPA-licensed, and no NHL teams use these fonts on their jerseys. A full set of these numbers (sleeve and back) for a jersey costs the seller less than $1, as opposed to $15-40 for an NHL/NHLPA-licensed set.
Many of the materials used by sellers offering these unlicensed jerseys can be found right here on eBay. In fact, one seller started to offer minor-league goalie jerseys just a week or two after another eBayer started selling the crests. Do a search for "<team name> crest" and you may find the exact same patch for sale individually. They're virtually all iron-on crests. If you must have one, buy the crest and jersey separately, iron it on yourself (use plenty of steam and pressure), and save yourself a lot of money. Here's how to make your own jersey.
3. Hangtags
Don't be fooled by a CCM or RBK jersey listing that reads "NWTS" or "new with tags." These refer to the tags from the blank jersey, not the licensing tags. Is there an NHL logo on those tags that proves the jersey is licensed?
Don't be fooled if a seller tells you they're "licensed" - this may just mean the business is licensed in its community or state. The jersey itself may still be unlicensed. Remember, a few of these people have been lying to and cheating customers for a long time, and they are not likely to be honest with you.
When it comes to goalie-cut hockey jerseys here on eBay, an unlicensed "replica" or "custom" jersey is more likely to come from a place like New York than from China. This guide is intended to help you identify and avoid unlicensed knock-off jerseys (and there are a LOT of them out there). How can a buyer tell? There are several dead giveaways.
1. Licensed goalie-cut jersey availability & production
NHL-licensed goalie cut jerseys are not now, nor have ever been, produced for the public. This is why you can't find them in retail shops or established online stores. As such, most NHL and minor-league goalie cut jerseys found on eBay are unlicensed homemade knock-offs. Sellers located in the USA and Canada routinely purchase blank "gamewear" goalie cut jerseys (in team colors as well as cheaper "practice" jerseys), affix aftermarket logos to them, and pass them off as the real thing. A large portion of the price you pay for a licensed jersey goes towards, well, licensing fees. What do the knock-off sellers do? They spend about five minutes affixing the crest, and skip out on paying the licensing fee, but do they pass on the savings to the buyer? Absolutely not. They charge basically the same price as licensed jerseys sell for and pocket the difference, making $50-60 from a $79.99 "sale" price.
There are a few authentic goalie cut NHL jerseys out there. These are generally team-issued, and are of much higher quality. They also usually bear a size tag with a number, which is located on the collar of the jersey, for example 58-G or 60G. Beware of item listings containing wording such as "GOALIE4X-62" and "SZ-60." These are usually just the rip-off artist's measurements of the jersey, not the tagged size. Gamewear and practice jerseys usually have one small white tag indicating size. Tags on CCM gamewear jerseys have a small Canadian flag, and read "goalie style" with no other size indicated.
Example 1: a one-color or practice CCM, RBK or AK goalie-style jersey with an NHL logo sewn-on is most likely unlicensed. Buyer beware!
Example 2: a CCM or AK goalie-style jersey with Chicago Blackhawks colors and stripes, with an undersized Blackhawks crest attached, is an obvious knock-off. Missing tomahawks on the shoulders are dead giveaway.
2. Cresting
Unlicensed jerseys frequently have poor cresting. The chest crest is often much smaller than that of a genuine jersey, and shoulder crests are often too small, inaccurate, or completely missing. Some of the chest crests on unlicensed jerseys are so small that they look downright silly. In addition, sellers may add a name and/or number to the jersey in an attempt to make it look more authentic or to command a higher price. They usually use the wrong font, size and style for the name and numbers. Don't let a seller pass off a generic font as an NHL font. Here are the most common generic fonts.
These fonts are not NHL/NHLPA-licensed, and no NHL teams use these fonts on their jerseys. A full set of these numbers (sleeve and back) for a jersey costs the seller less than $1, as opposed to $15-40 for an NHL/NHLPA-licensed set.
Many of the materials used by sellers offering these unlicensed jerseys can be found right here on eBay. In fact, one seller started to offer minor-league goalie jerseys just a week or two after another eBayer started selling the crests. Do a search for "<team name> crest" and you may find the exact same patch for sale individually. They're virtually all iron-on crests. If you must have one, buy the crest and jersey separately, iron it on yourself (use plenty of steam and pressure), and save yourself a lot of money. Here's how to make your own jersey.
3. Hangtags
Don't be fooled by a CCM or RBK jersey listing that reads "NWTS" or "new with tags." These refer to the tags from the blank jersey, not the licensing tags. Is there an NHL logo on those tags that proves the jersey is licensed?
Don't be fooled if a seller tells you they're "licensed" - this may just mean the business is licensed in its community or state. The jersey itself may still be unlicensed. Remember, a few of these people have been lying to and cheating customers for a long time, and they are not likely to be honest with you.
Guide created: 10/29/07 (updated 09/28/09)
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