Let’s talk jerseys: Which ones we have, which ones we want, and oh hey there’s a sale

You know what’s a good way to get a bunch of hardcore Flames nerds excited? The revelation that jerseys are on sale.

This makes sense: after all, with the upcoming switch to Adidas next season, every jersey currently worn by NHL teams will become out of date. That doesn’t mean the new looks will be wildly different, but a mass switchover does mean there are going to be a lot of outdated items in stock that will have to go at some point.

Anyway. In our own little FlamesNation channel, Mike Fail noticed jerseys were on sale, and that set off a number of us yelling about jerseys for nearly a solid hour. We got pretty into it, and so figured: hey, why not bring the jersey conversation to the blog?

So! Here we are. Are you a jersey nerd? Have you got a collection of ever-growing Flames jerseys, or just one or two reliable ones to wear in and out throughout the season? Any jerseys you own have any particularly special meaning to you, or come about in a unique way? We wanna hear your jersey stories, because it’s a Sunday in May and it’s something fun to do.

Ari: I’ve got nine Flames jerseys: regular home versions of Jarome Iginla, Miikka Kiprusoff, T.J. Brodie, Dougie Hamilton, and Sven Baertschi (the only jersey I’ve ever picked up, like, right away. I got him to sign it after an AHL game in Toronto, too), an away Robyn Regehr, two retros in Craig Conroy and Mikael Backlund, and a blank Ol’ Blasty (the fire snot horse) that a friend of mine pointed out to me was available for $37 on Etsy. I don’t know if I’ll be getting a new Adidas one when they come out, due to a couple of factors (I wanna know what they look like, plus I already have three current players so I think I’m doing okay).

As a bonus, I’ve also got an away Team Canada Iggy from the Vancouver Olympics, and a regular Team Finland Kipper. I’ve also got a Hitmen Heritage Classic jersey; that’s it for me on the hockey front.

Mike: Somewhere, in a box at my parents’ I think my first jersey – a Colorado Avalanche Joe Sakic jersey – exists. I grew up super poor so getting anything hockey related quickly become a coveted possession. Now I’ve managed to accumulate a decent collection of mostly Flames jerseys including: two blank retros, a Mikael Backlund home, retro Backlund, a retro Michael Frolik, a retro Matthew Tkachuk, and an autographed Joni Ortio retro.

In terms of non-Flames jerseys I have: a Patrice Bergeron Bruins home jersey, a Phoenix Coyotes original kachina, an Arizona Coyotes Tobias Rieder jersey, the god awful Dallas Stars mooterus, a Stadium Series San Jose Sharks jersey, a Team Belarus 2010 jersey, a blank Calgary Hitmen jersey, and one of those amazing Nike Team Canada jerseys.

Christian T: For Flames jerseys, I currently have a Sean Monahan home jersey, Mikael Backlund third jersey, a blank ’80s home retro, and a blank ’90s home pedestal jersey (I hope to get it lettered at some point; quite possibly #8 Valeri Bure, but I’m open for suggestion). I’ll also count my 2005 blank home jersey among the collection, although I’m no longer a youth and it doesn’t fit me anymore. I’m probably going to get a Tkachuk retro at some point, possibly when I have money.

Other hockey jerseys include a Ron Francis Hartford Whalers jersey, Mario Lemieux, and an Atlanta Thrashers Value Village find with the numbers ripped off for some reason. Other jerseys are NBA jerseys, which might be a little too off topic even for this post.

Ryan: I haven’t bought a lot of Flames jerseys in recent years so I don’t have too many recent jerseys – I have a blank vintage, a blank CCM road jersey, a blank Heritage Classic, a Dion Phaneuf CCM home jersey and Reebok Edge homes with Eric Nystrom and David Moss on the back. I’ve also collected jerseys from many of Calgary’s AHL affiliates, notably a Turner Elson Adirondack Flames road, a Carter Bancks Abbotsford Heat home, a blank Quad City Flames home and a blank Omaha Ak-Sar-Ben Knights road jersey. In terms of non-Flames jerseys, I have a Jarome Iginla Penguins jersey I got at a heavy discount.

That’s just what some of us have – and again, we might be a little enthusiastic, but hey, what better way to show support for your favourite team and/or player? (Who could have possibly foreseen a group of FlamesNation writers all having Backlund jerseys?) True, it can be expensive, but if you’re into jersey collecting…

I love hearing what jerseys others have, so please share in the comments! Feel free to share ones you’re thinking of getting as well, or ones you’re hoping to get in the future – say you’re waiting for a prospect to make the team, or something along those lines – and let’s get into the jersey love on this fine Sunday.