avspodcast

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New show for you, friends. James and Jay talk about the first quarter of the season, how the roster currently looks, Cale Makar doing Cale Makar things, and plenty more Avs and hockey stuff!

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New pickup. Getting jerseys is getting tougher and tougher for all the right reasons.

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April 30, 2014. Avs vs. Wild

Game seven.  There's nothing quite like it.  It's where heroes are made.  When it came to clutch skaters, especially in the Stanley Cup playoffs, there were none better than number 19.  Pretty easy choice for me for tonight's game.

Joe Sakic owns the record for playoff overtime winning goals in NHL history with eight.  That's two more than anyone else who has ever played the game.  I'm hoping the Avs won't need an overtime hero tomorrow night, but if that's what it takes to advance I'll take it. 

#WhyNotUs and Let's Go Avs.

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April 26, 2014. Avs vs. Wild

Trying to bring back some of the magic from the last Stanley Cup run by wearing this to the game tonight. 

It's the Stanley Cup playoffs so I thought a Stanley Cup patch would help me fit in just fine.  And there's no such thing as going wrong with Shjon Podein.  Period.

HUGE game five tonight.  There's not much more to say than...

Let's Go Avs.

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April 19, 2014. Avs vs. Wild

After game one’s clutch shenanigans it was made pretty clear whose jersey I was going to wear to game two tonight.

This is not a game worn jersey. I had this jersey made to replicate a game worn jersey though. The patch you see on it was worn in one game and one game only during the 2006-2007 season.

Every NHL team wore a set of jerseys with this patch on them during their first home games early in 2007.  The Avs wore their special set at Pepsi Center on January 5, 2007.  Paul Stastny recorded a goal and two assists as the Avs defeated the Tampa Bay Lightning that night by a score of 4-2.  The money made from auctioning these jerseys off benefited the Garth Brooks Teammates for Kids Foundation.

The jersey Paul Stastny wore during that game in 2007 has now been cut up and placed in jersey cards.  Here's my biggest clue to that fact via a card that now lives in my collection.

The Avs did what they do on Thursday night and came back late in the game to defeat the Wild 5-4 in overtime. I'm hoping a comeback won't be necessary tonight, but I wouldn't mind seeing another one if that's what it takes to grab a 2-0 lead in this series.  2-0 leads are good.

Let's Go Avs.

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April 6, 2014. Avs vs. Penguins

Little known fact: Wearing the jersey of an injured player has special healing powers and brings positive energy. That’s why a jersey buddy of mine and I are wearing our Cody McLeod game worn jerseys to tonight’s game. Mine is a preseason game worn jersey from the 2006-2007 season.

The Avs could have definitely used 55’s presence and energy as many of the St. Louis Blues had a tough time dealing with their frustration yesterday afternoon. I’m sure Cody was taking appropriate notes and will have a nice chat with the appropriate Blues players when the time is right.

Tonight is the last home game of the regular season. I love adding "regular season" to sentences again. It’s a welcome change from the past few seasons.

I’m also curious which jerseys I’ll choose to wear to the upcoming playoff games. Important games call for important jersey decisions. Stay tuned.

#WhyNotUs and Let’s Go Avs.

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April 3, 2014. Avs vs. Rangers

Going with Lappy for tonight’s game because any time is a good time to wear a Lappy jersey.

This jersey was worn during the last part of the 2007-2008 regular season as well as the playoffs. It saw some action as the intense series against the Wild unfolded. Stephane Veilleux stretched the neck out on this jersey quite a bit during this scrap with Lappy on April 15, 2008.

The other fights this jersey was a part of are documented in a post on my blog.  Check it out here:

http://www.avshockeypodcast.com/2010/05/its-still-all-about-lappy-part-2/

The Avs are looking for two more big points as they battle for home ice in the first round of the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs.  I didn't think I’d be typing that this season and that’s okay because #WhyNotUs.

Let’s Go Avs.

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March 29, 2014. Avalanche vs. Sharks

The Captain is playing very well lately.  He's doing what captains do.  He gave me no choice but to wear this to this afternoon's game.

Please don't worry about the spots on the image of the front of the jersey.  That's just futher proof that photography is not what I do for a living.

This jersey used to be a Patrick Rissmiller game issued Avalanche jersey.  Since many of us aren't familiar with Patrick Rissmiller (or never will be) is the exact reason why it became a Gabriel Landeskog jersey.

The Avs can clinch a berth in the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs this afternoon and that's pretty awesome.  I wasn't expecting this from this season's team, but I'll definitely take it.

Let's Go Avs.

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March 14, 2014. Avalanche vs. Ducks

I don't really prefer wearing jerseys with signatures on them.  As a result of that, I don't have many signed jerseys in my jersey collection.  This jersey is an exception to that rule.

Fact about this jersey: The signature was on this jersey before I had it made into a 2000 Joe Sakic all-star jersey.  

Another fact: The signature on the jersey is not Joe Sakic's signature.  

Confused yet?  You should be.  I wrote a blog post about this jersey that will help make some sense out of the whole situation.  Check it out here:

http://www.avshockeypodcast.com/2011/07/joe-sakic-2000-all-star-jersey-with-a-mystery-signature/

Two more huge points are up for grabs Friday night against Anaheim.  The Ducks were beaten handily by the Calgary Flames on Wednesday night.  Between that and the beat down the Avs put on the Ducks during the season opener I'm counting on a spirited match up between two pretty decent hockey clubs.

Let's Go Avs. 

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March 12, 2014. Avalanche vs. Blackhawks

Andrew Brunette has a history with the Blackhawks as well as the Avalanche.  Andrew Brunette also has a history of being clutch. 

Case in point, April 30, 2006.  Bruno ended the opening round series against the Dallas Stars in overtime of game five wearing the jersey you see below.  

I featured this jersey in a blog post just after I acquired it in July of 2010.  Highlights, history, and plenty of details are one click away:

http://www.avshockeypodcast.com/2010/07/andrew-brunette-2005-2006-playoff-worn-jersey-clutch/

Another huge four-point game at Pepsi Center Wednesday night.  Here's hoping this jersey brings some positive energy to this Avs club.

Let's Go Avs. 

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February 28, 2014. Avalanche vs. Coyotes

James "Tapeleg" Gralian and I are recording episode number 87 of The Avs Hockey Podcast (Your Home for Almost Everything Avalanche) on Sunday morning.  Did someone say 87?

Pierre Turgeon played 79 games in an Avalanche jersey and scored 20 goals during the time he played here.  One goal shines in that list of 20.  Turgeon scored his 500th career goal on November 8, 2005 against the San Jose Sharks.  500 goals will usually end a player up in the Hockey Hall of Fame.  I imagine it's only a matter of time before 87 gets that call.

Let's Go Avs.

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Avs vs. Sabres. February 1, 2014

All of the game worn and game issued Avalanche jerseys in my collection have a story behind them since they were either worn in or were prepared to be worn in NHL games.  The retail authentic jerseys in my collection generally replicate a game worn jersey so they usually don't have their own unique stories.  The jersey that I'm wearing to this afternoon's game is a HUGE exception to that rule.

This jersey began its life as a blank game issued 2001 All Star jersey.  Someone acquired it, used it to play hockey in, and then listed in on eBay.  I then took a gamble when I won it on eBay and transformed it to what you see above.  This blog post covers this jersey's journey back to glory:

http://www.avshockeypodcast.com/2010/07/a-nice-little-fixer-upper/

Two more big points are available this afternoon.  Two points that would get the Avalanche that much closer to earning a playoff spot.  

Let's Go Avs.

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Avs vs. Leafs. January 21, 2014

The Avs are hosting a classic NHL team tonight, so I thought I would wear a classic Avs jersey in turn.

The burgundy Koho brand alternate jerseys, which the Avs wore between 2001-2002 and 2003-2004, is a jersey that pretty much every hockey fan enjoyed.  Even non-Avs fans liked this style jersey.  Following the 2004-2005 lockout Reebok became the official jersey provider for the NHL.  The Avs jerseys didn't change, but the branding did.  One of the two differences between the Koho/CCM jerseys and the Reebok jerseys was the patch on the top of the back of the jersey. 

Here is the Koho branding from the jersey I'm wearing tonight.

And the Reebok branding from the alternate jerseys the Avalanche wore during the 2005-2006 and 2006-2007 seasons.

Also, the Koho jersey I'm wearing tonight originally was a team-issued blank jersey.  The indicator to know this is the lack of a large Koho brand tag above the tag that has the size on it. 

For example, here is the neck of a team-issued/game worn jersey.

As compared to a retail authentic jersey:

Team issued as well as game worn jerseys from this era (and currently) lack that branding tag on the inside of the back of the neck because they simply don't need them.

Enough of the jersey history, let's get our game faces on, shall we?

Thanks for the read and Let's Go Avs!

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Avs vs. Devils. January 16, 2014

I'm going to Thursday night's game with one of my best friends in the whole world.  His name is Garrett.  He's one of the biggest Martin Brodeur fans you'll ever find.  When he's not rooting for Martin Brodeur he's a big Avs fan too.  I'm cool with that. 

The Devils wear a special set of jerseys for one game near St. Patrick's Day every year.  Martin Brodeur didn't dress for that game last year because he was injured.  The team made a jersey for Brodeur to wear in that game though.  My buddy ended up buying the jersey Brodeur would have worn if he had played in or dressed for that game. He's going to wear it to Pepsi Center on Thursday night. 

Garrett isn't playing around, so naturally I'm not going to play around either.  I'm going with this.

This Peter Forsberg jersey is one of my favorite jerseys in my collection.  It's very difficult to acquire game worn jerseys from Hall of Fame players for an affordable price.  I definitely got lucky on this one.  There are plenty more details about how this jersey ended up hanging in my closet here.

Avs/Devils games bring back great hockey memories for me.  I'm sure they do for many other Avalanche fans as well.  Thursday night will be no different.

Let's Go Avs.

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Avs vs. Senators. January 8, 2014

I forgot to post which jersey I wore to last Wednesday's overtime win against the Sens.  Better late than never.

Most of the Ray Bourque white CCM jerseys you see will include the 2001 Stanley Cup patch.  That's a no-brainer from one of the most memorable moments in NHL history.  I made sure I added that Bourque Stanley Cup jersey to my collection before I added this one.  This jersey features the all-star patch the team wore all the way through the season and playoffs until the Stanley Cup final series against the New Jersey Devils.

I usually end my jersey posts with something like "Let's Go Avs!"  Since I'm posting this after the fact and the Avalanche won the game I'll say "Way to go Avs!" instead.

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Avs vs. Flames. January 6, 2014

Joe Sakic only wore this patch for three games during his career.  I hope you all still approve of it.

If you're a jersey snob (like me) you may have noticed that the nameplate on this jersey might look just a bit off.  It's a different material than the rest of the jersey.  Denver Athletic was running low on Air Knit when I had this jersey done.  The nameplate is stretch mesh, the same material they use on the jerseys now.  I can assure you that the flash on my camera makes it looks way more off than it really is. 

If you didn't notice the difference at all, please don't worry any further about it!

Let's Go Avs!

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Avs vs. Flyers. January 2, 2014

Celebrating Paul Stastny being named to the 2014 United States Olympic team by wearing this to the game tonight.

Happy New Year and Let's Go Avs!