Video: Panini America Takes Ryan Kesler’s Game-Used Stick from the Ice to the Insert

[blowoutcards]

Video: Panini America Takes Ryan Kesler’s Game-Used Stick from the Ice to the Insert

September 26, 2012 at 2:05 PM



Seven months ago today, Panini America’s Alex Carbajal and Tracy Hackler embarked on a most fascinating voyage. The objective? Document every painstaking step required to transform one game-used hockey stick from Vancouver Canucks superstar Ryn Kesler into a rare handful of unique trading cards.

The journey began in late February with the short drive from Panini America HQ to Dallas’ American Airlines Center, where Kesler’s Canucks were taking on the Stars. Following Vancouver’s tough 3-2 overtime loss during which Kesler scored the game’s first goal, the Canucks’ center, true to his word, emerged from the visiting locker room with game-used stick in hand.


In the 213 days since, that stick has been de-taped, estimated, expedited, sliced, diced, embedded, autographed and, just last week, hand-inserted into random boxes of 2011-12 Dominion Hockey, which releases on Friday. The best part? We had a camera rolling every step of the way.

Now, for the first time anywhere, we present the video diary tracking one stick’s extraordinary expedition from the ice to the insert.


Video: Panini America Takes Ryan Kesler’s Game-Used Stick from the Ice to the Insert The Official Panini America Blog

[Rinkwraith]

There's a certain part of that tape that just doesn't sit well with me.....

[Riverdome]

Originally Posted by Rinkwraith

There's a certain part of that tape that just doesn't sit well with me.....

What is that? I thought it was a good video, nice to see what goes into the production process.

[Rinkwraith]

Originally Posted by Riverdome

What is that? I thought it was a good video, nice to see what goes into the production process.

Thought this would be apparent, but here's what irks me;

Kesler goes back to the locker room and hands his game stick to the equipment manager. Last we see of that stick.

Kesler reemerges with a couple practice sticks (light wear, no tape on handle) and hands them to Panini.

Player-used? Sure, at some point. Game-used? Doesn't look that way to me.

Bruins store here does the same thing with player sticks, put a bunch on the rack and some you can tell never saw a game. I always look for the amount of use on the sticks to make a determination on if it saw game-time or not.

[Riverdome]

Yes but in the same cut the player signs a document that I assume says "I Ryan Kesler certify that the stick I provided was game-used. I don't ask Panini to do any more than get that signature. If Ryan lied so be it, IMO that isn't on Panini.

Better question - that stick appeared to be wooden, I thought virtually everyone had moved on to some sort of metal/composite?

[ZappBrannigan]

Originally Posted by Riverdome

Yes but in the same cut the player signs a document that I assume says "I Ryan Kesler certify that the stick I provided was game-used. I don't ask Panini to do any more than get that signature. If Ryan lied so be it, IMO that isn't on Panini.

Better question - that stick appeared to be wooden, I thought virtually everyone had moved on to some sort of metal/composite?

I think it is the responsibility of the company not the player to make sure they are actually game used. I can send you a rock and say its from the moon.

[Riverdome]

Originally Posted by ZappBrannigan

I think it is the responsibility of the company not the player to make sure they are actually game used. I can send you a rock and say its from the moon.

Aside from asking the player who supposidly used said stick in the game -how is the company supposed to confirm a stick was used in a game? The NHL has serial numbers on jerseys which makes tracking usage possible. To my knowledge there is no such tracking for sticks.

[ZappBrannigan]

Originally Posted by Riverdome

Aside from asking the player who supposidly used said stick in the game -how is the company supposed to confirm a stick was used in a game? The NHL has serial numbers on jerseys which makes tracking usage possible. To my knowledge there is no such tracking for sticks.

By actually attending the game like they used to back in the 90's.

Apparently they are too busy to do that now so they just make videos, or like some of my Topps stuff it's from some random non specific event.

[sykopat]

Originally Posted by Riverdome

Aside from asking the player who supposidly used said stick in the game -how is the company supposed to confirm a stick was used in a game? The NHL has serial numbers on jerseys which makes tracking usage possible. To my knowledge there is no such tracking for sticks.

Lots of sticks have s/n...

[cjsayde]

Originally Posted by Riverdome

Better question - that stick appeared to be wooden, I thought virtually everyone had moved on to some sort of metal/composite?

If you look closely during some of the stick slicing portions of the video, you can see that the sides of the stick chips are definitely composite.

[pnft17]

With this video, I still don't get why anyone pays big money for game used cards.

I was expecting to see Ryan to hand stick directly to Panini after coming off the ice. But no he goes into lockerroom after pre-game skate and brings out two different sticks. Not even with top of stick taped up like a gamer.

[Riverdome]

I guess I'm the odd man out here. If the player claims the stick is game used I (as the card company or collector) am going to take him at his word.

Unless there is a database of stick serial numbers, and a way to confirm they were actually on the ice during a game (NFC chips?), there's no way to prove otherwise.

[Rinkwraith]

Just think of how much cooler this video would have been if you see Kesler hand the stick in at the end of the game to the equipment manager, the camera never leaves the manager and stick as Panini walks over to get the stick from the manager. Then with stick in possession, Kesler comes out, does his signature and quick interview. That to me is "from the ice" not "from storage".

Speaking of which, where the heck are our "stick knobs" cards for hockey akin to the bat knobs in baseball. A big old taped up end of stick with player number on the end would look mighty nice.

[Inferno]

Sticks are much more disposable than jerseys and players probably use multiples a game. I can't see the motive behind giving Panini a fake stick when there's probably a locker room full of game-used ones that Kesler would never use again. I'd take him at his word too.