2011 Reebok Edge 2.0 NHL All-Star Team Lidstrom Authentic
#29 Marc-Andre Fleury with Penguins Logo and 2011 All-Star Game Patches
Manufacturer: Reebok
Size: 56
Purchased From: eBay
Lettered by: Unknown
The Story: As is the case with many Penguins fans, Marc-Andre Fleury is a very revered player. He played an integral role in the team's success from 2003 to 2017, including three Stanley Cup championships. More importantly in the minds of many, he was a pillar of the community. He adopted Pittsburgh as his home and the Pens faithful adopted him as their own as well. "The Flower" was also known as one of the team's biggest pranksters, as illustrated by the way he made rookie defenseman Simon Despres feel welcome when he was called up from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. His charity work in the community and his investment in his fans also combined to make the summer of 2017 a very difficult time in Penguins history.
The Pens had just won their fifth Stanley Cup and a new expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights, were preparing to become the 31st NHL franchise the following fall. As a result, the NHL held an expansion draft, and teams could only protect one goaltender. The Penguins were left in a position where they had to choose between Fleury, their longtime stalwart in goal, and Matt Murray, a young goaltender on the verge of becoming elite, who had unlimited upside potential. The business side of NHL hockey took center stage, and the time came where the Penguins had to bid farewell to "The Flower." A lot of good players have come and gone over the years, but none of their departures brought forth the amount of sadness, well wishes, and appreciation than Marc-Andre Fleury's. The Pittsburgh hockey community was deeply invested, emotionally, in the friendly kid from Sorel, QC, and he was just as invested in them. This was never more apparent than the night the Pens played the Knights in Las Vegas for the first meeting between the two teams, when thousands of Penguins fans were in attendance, holding signs honoring Fleury and cheering for their longtime friend as he backstopped Vegas to a 2-1 win. But when he returned to Pittsburgh for the first time, the reception for him was like none I've seen before or since.
Fleury created a lot of memories for Pens fans prior to his departure, one of which was his first All-Star Game appearance in 2011. This All-Star Game would be unlike any other, as the NHL replaced its "conference vs. conference" format with a nod to fantasy hockey. Each team had a captain - Detroit's Nicklas Lidstrom and Carolina's Eric Staal - and the captains held a "fantasy draft," where they picked their respective teams. Lidstrom chose "The Flower," the leading vote-getter among goalies in the NHL's All-Star fan voting, to start for his squad. Fleury didn't shine in his appearance, stopping only five of nine shots in the first period, before Team Lidstrom made a comeback to win the game, 11-10, but Fleury would be unfazed by his All-Star experience to help lead the Penguins to an Atlantic Division title with 106 points, with Fleury contributing 36 wins to the effort.
I've made my feelings on All-Star jerseys known on other pages of this website. There are some that I absolutely love, while there are others that I've always thought were hideous looking. The 2011 Team Lidstrom jerseys are among my favorites. I've always been partial to blue (as opposed to the white and red jerseys worn by Team Staal, as pictured above), and I think the striping on the back numbers and the jersey number on the front of the jersey lends a different look to these sweaters. I was happy to add this jersey to my collection in December, 2017, as a Christmas gift to myself (though at the behest of The Mrs.). Authentics from this year are hard to find, and this one has all the little details as well, like the rounded nameplate and patchwork on the shoulders. A bit of a rare jersey commemorating one of the most beloved players in Pens history!
Size: 56
Purchased From: eBay
Lettered by: Unknown
The Story: As is the case with many Penguins fans, Marc-Andre Fleury is a very revered player. He played an integral role in the team's success from 2003 to 2017, including three Stanley Cup championships. More importantly in the minds of many, he was a pillar of the community. He adopted Pittsburgh as his home and the Pens faithful adopted him as their own as well. "The Flower" was also known as one of the team's biggest pranksters, as illustrated by the way he made rookie defenseman Simon Despres feel welcome when he was called up from Wilkes-Barre/Scranton. His charity work in the community and his investment in his fans also combined to make the summer of 2017 a very difficult time in Penguins history.
The Pens had just won their fifth Stanley Cup and a new expansion team, the Vegas Golden Knights, were preparing to become the 31st NHL franchise the following fall. As a result, the NHL held an expansion draft, and teams could only protect one goaltender. The Penguins were left in a position where they had to choose between Fleury, their longtime stalwart in goal, and Matt Murray, a young goaltender on the verge of becoming elite, who had unlimited upside potential. The business side of NHL hockey took center stage, and the time came where the Penguins had to bid farewell to "The Flower." A lot of good players have come and gone over the years, but none of their departures brought forth the amount of sadness, well wishes, and appreciation than Marc-Andre Fleury's. The Pittsburgh hockey community was deeply invested, emotionally, in the friendly kid from Sorel, QC, and he was just as invested in them. This was never more apparent than the night the Pens played the Knights in Las Vegas for the first meeting between the two teams, when thousands of Penguins fans were in attendance, holding signs honoring Fleury and cheering for their longtime friend as he backstopped Vegas to a 2-1 win. But when he returned to Pittsburgh for the first time, the reception for him was like none I've seen before or since.
Fleury created a lot of memories for Pens fans prior to his departure, one of which was his first All-Star Game appearance in 2011. This All-Star Game would be unlike any other, as the NHL replaced its "conference vs. conference" format with a nod to fantasy hockey. Each team had a captain - Detroit's Nicklas Lidstrom and Carolina's Eric Staal - and the captains held a "fantasy draft," where they picked their respective teams. Lidstrom chose "The Flower," the leading vote-getter among goalies in the NHL's All-Star fan voting, to start for his squad. Fleury didn't shine in his appearance, stopping only five of nine shots in the first period, before Team Lidstrom made a comeback to win the game, 11-10, but Fleury would be unfazed by his All-Star experience to help lead the Penguins to an Atlantic Division title with 106 points, with Fleury contributing 36 wins to the effort.
I've made my feelings on All-Star jerseys known on other pages of this website. There are some that I absolutely love, while there are others that I've always thought were hideous looking. The 2011 Team Lidstrom jerseys are among my favorites. I've always been partial to blue (as opposed to the white and red jerseys worn by Team Staal, as pictured above), and I think the striping on the back numbers and the jersey number on the front of the jersey lends a different look to these sweaters. I was happy to add this jersey to my collection in December, 2017, as a Christmas gift to myself (though at the behest of The Mrs.). Authentics from this year are hard to find, and this one has all the little details as well, like the rounded nameplate and patchwork on the shoulders. A bit of a rare jersey commemorating one of the most beloved players in Pens history!