2006 Reebok Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Road Game Worn
#11 Krys Kolanos
Manufacturer: Reebok
Size: 56
Purchased From: eBay
Lettered by: Sports-Jes
The Story: This was the first game worn jersey I ever owned. And it cost me exactly $0.00!
Okay, a couple of qualifying statements. I call this the first gamer I ever owned because it was the first of two jerseys that came out of the same box. I did buy the other one and this one was basically a throw-in on an eBay auction to make the deal more attractive. So I did buy the other jersey, and this one was listed as a free addition, so that's how I'm arriving at the $0.00 price.
As I was rounding out my collection, I decided I wanted a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Christmas jersey. They have all sorts of jerseys every year - Christmas jerseys, St. Patrick's Day jerseys, warm-up jerseys, all in addition to their home, road, and alternate game jerseys - and I didn't have one. I figured it'd be a neat addition to the collection. As I said, this was a throw-in. Turns out, I really like this jersey! First of all, I'm not one of those people who look to by a jersey that's hammered with game wear and damage. This jersey turned out to be part of WBS's playoff set. The Baby Penguins played in 11 playoff games that year, so we're talking about a jersey that only has about five or six games of wear on it. The wear really is minimal. But I like the playoff tagging inside the rear bottom hem.
I dug a little deeper into who the player was - I never heard of Krys Kolanos - and what I found was a pretty sad story. Kolanos was a first round draft pick back in 2000 and was a pretty highly-touted prospect after scoring the NCAA Championship-clinching overtime game-winning goal for Boston College in 2001. He was on a steady path upward until he was hit from behind by Vaclav Varada. The hit left him unconscious on the ice and with a severe concussion. He was never the same player after that. He played a little over 100 NHL games in a little over four seasons with Phoenix, the team that drafted him, until he was traded to Edmonton in 2005-06. After a cup of coffee with the Oilers, he was sent down to their AHL team that they shared with Pittsburgh, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. He played in 18 regular season games with WBS and 11 more playoff games before bouncing around to the Minnesota and Calgary organizations, but he never really did get back on track after his concussion. I couldn't find any pictures of him in a WBS uniform during a road game, hence the home game pictures above.
Size: 56
Purchased From: eBay
Lettered by: Sports-Jes
The Story: This was the first game worn jersey I ever owned. And it cost me exactly $0.00!
Okay, a couple of qualifying statements. I call this the first gamer I ever owned because it was the first of two jerseys that came out of the same box. I did buy the other one and this one was basically a throw-in on an eBay auction to make the deal more attractive. So I did buy the other jersey, and this one was listed as a free addition, so that's how I'm arriving at the $0.00 price.
As I was rounding out my collection, I decided I wanted a Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins Christmas jersey. They have all sorts of jerseys every year - Christmas jerseys, St. Patrick's Day jerseys, warm-up jerseys, all in addition to their home, road, and alternate game jerseys - and I didn't have one. I figured it'd be a neat addition to the collection. As I said, this was a throw-in. Turns out, I really like this jersey! First of all, I'm not one of those people who look to by a jersey that's hammered with game wear and damage. This jersey turned out to be part of WBS's playoff set. The Baby Penguins played in 11 playoff games that year, so we're talking about a jersey that only has about five or six games of wear on it. The wear really is minimal. But I like the playoff tagging inside the rear bottom hem.
I dug a little deeper into who the player was - I never heard of Krys Kolanos - and what I found was a pretty sad story. Kolanos was a first round draft pick back in 2000 and was a pretty highly-touted prospect after scoring the NCAA Championship-clinching overtime game-winning goal for Boston College in 2001. He was on a steady path upward until he was hit from behind by Vaclav Varada. The hit left him unconscious on the ice and with a severe concussion. He was never the same player after that. He played a little over 100 NHL games in a little over four seasons with Phoenix, the team that drafted him, until he was traded to Edmonton in 2005-06. After a cup of coffee with the Oilers, he was sent down to their AHL team that they shared with Pittsburgh, the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins. He played in 18 regular season games with WBS and 11 more playoff games before bouncing around to the Minnesota and Calgary organizations, but he never really did get back on track after his concussion. I couldn't find any pictures of him in a WBS uniform during a road game, hence the home game pictures above.