2002-03 Koho Road Authentic
#27 Alexei Kovalev
Manufacturer: Koho
Size: 52
Purchased From: eBay
Lettered by: Unknown
The Story: I miss the days of being able to go out on eBay and find a jersey with the high probability that what you were going to get was a legitimate article. Nowadays, 80% or more of what you see on eBay is Chinese knockoff crap that falls apart after you wash it a few times, but there once was a time when you could look at pictures and, with a semi-knowledgeable eye, be able to distinguish the differences quickly and easily. This jersey was one of those. This jersey is also one of my favorites, due in part to the fact that the manufacturer of the jersey was a real equipment manufacturer (Koho, which was bought by CCM), as opposed to the apparel manufacturer (Starter) that had the NHL's contract for the previous few years. In my mind, things have gotten worse since Reebok became the manufacturer, but that's another story for another page.
Alexei (sorry, I refuse to call him Alex) Kovalev was a crafty goal scorer and playmaker back in the days when the Penguins had some really bad teams. However, the team's lack of success was not a reflection on Kovalev, the player. He was one of the more skilled players in the NHL, though at times, he could be accused of trying to be too cute with the puck. He was a leader on this team when they needed a leader. When Jaromir Jagr was dying alive and this team was trying to keep its reputation as a high-octane, offensive juggernaut, it was Kovalev who led the way in the regard. He was a point-plus-per-game guy while wearing black and gold after the turn of the millennium who excelled on the power play before the financially-struggling Pens sent him back to the New York Rangers in a salary dump trade that brought to Pittsburgh such top-notch talent as Rico Fata and Richard Lintner.
This jersey was a good find at a good price, and it features the Vegas Gold striping that was introduced early in the 2000-01 season as an alternate jersey. The following season, this became the road jersey while a white version became the Pens' unis inside the Mellon Arena. This jersey featured the return of the old skating Penguin logo, albeit with a Vegas Gold hue, that basically righted the wrong that marketing genius and hockey simpleton Howard Baldwin committed during his ownership stint. But even with the new old logo and the addition of the shiny gold striping, the Pens still nodded to tradition with previous logo patches on the shoulders of the jersey that kept the glacier twill, three color scheme on the numbers that was very popular. Overall, this one's one of my favorites.
Size: 52
Purchased From: eBay
Lettered by: Unknown
The Story: I miss the days of being able to go out on eBay and find a jersey with the high probability that what you were going to get was a legitimate article. Nowadays, 80% or more of what you see on eBay is Chinese knockoff crap that falls apart after you wash it a few times, but there once was a time when you could look at pictures and, with a semi-knowledgeable eye, be able to distinguish the differences quickly and easily. This jersey was one of those. This jersey is also one of my favorites, due in part to the fact that the manufacturer of the jersey was a real equipment manufacturer (Koho, which was bought by CCM), as opposed to the apparel manufacturer (Starter) that had the NHL's contract for the previous few years. In my mind, things have gotten worse since Reebok became the manufacturer, but that's another story for another page.
Alexei (sorry, I refuse to call him Alex) Kovalev was a crafty goal scorer and playmaker back in the days when the Penguins had some really bad teams. However, the team's lack of success was not a reflection on Kovalev, the player. He was one of the more skilled players in the NHL, though at times, he could be accused of trying to be too cute with the puck. He was a leader on this team when they needed a leader. When Jaromir Jagr was dying alive and this team was trying to keep its reputation as a high-octane, offensive juggernaut, it was Kovalev who led the way in the regard. He was a point-plus-per-game guy while wearing black and gold after the turn of the millennium who excelled on the power play before the financially-struggling Pens sent him back to the New York Rangers in a salary dump trade that brought to Pittsburgh such top-notch talent as Rico Fata and Richard Lintner.
This jersey was a good find at a good price, and it features the Vegas Gold striping that was introduced early in the 2000-01 season as an alternate jersey. The following season, this became the road jersey while a white version became the Pens' unis inside the Mellon Arena. This jersey featured the return of the old skating Penguin logo, albeit with a Vegas Gold hue, that basically righted the wrong that marketing genius and hockey simpleton Howard Baldwin committed during his ownership stint. But even with the new old logo and the addition of the shiny gold striping, the Pens still nodded to tradition with previous logo patches on the shoulders of the jersey that kept the glacier twill, three color scheme on the numbers that was very popular. Overall, this one's one of my favorites.