First Look: 2014-15 In The Game Heroes & Prospects

[LeafGregg]

I'm disapponted to hear that there will be no BTP this year. It is the product that got me back into collecting, and the one that I look forward to the most each year.

Gregg - will there be any Olaf Kolzig cards in the product? In the past, I could always count on ITG products to keep my Kolzig collection alive, so I am hoping that he will continue to be a staple in Leaf/ITG products going forward.

Thank you for all of the info.

Kolzig will have cards in Superlative this year

[LeafGregg]

So no autos of Scherbak, Domi and other guys who were drafted in previous years but haven't left their Junior teams yet?

Domi will have memorabilia in H&P, but no autos

[LeafGregg]

That's called marketing, every company does it in one form or the other. Reps from other card companies have appeared here as well. It's their job to please and thank the customer, so let's not get carried away here.

If you have ever met me before.....PR ain't my bag! I just am here to answer what I can the best way possible, respectfully. I don't do PR, I am a product guy from head to toe

[LeafGregg]

I think including BTP as a subset of HP (and maybe other future releases) is a mistake. There are a lot of avid goalie collectors out there that loved having a goalie only product - BTP has long since been my favorite ITG release and would have probably been the only Leaf product I would have considered buying (boxes, singles, and maybe both). The base/no base has been debated long and hard on another site, so I won't rehash that...but I do have one suggestion for this product, and future ones: stop the airbrushing madness. The Ultimate release had some really amazing cards that were ruined by the airbrushing - that kept me from buying anything that I might have otherwise targeted. I understand the licensing side of it and the issues that can create, but there has to be a better alternative! Just head shots? Or maybe side-shots that cover up anything that cannot be displayed? The full body shots where the entire jersey has been airbrushed a solid color (all red on an Yzerman I saw for example) just looks terrible in my opinion and detracts from the overall sharpness of the card.

I agree that the airbrushing in Ultimate was an issue and we are looking for a happy medium, but as you said, licensing forbids us from showing any logos and just head shots really limits designs

[LeafGregg]

I think including BTP as a subset of HP (and maybe other future releases) is a mistake. There are a lot of avid goalie collectors out there that loved having a goalie only product - BTP has long since been my favorite ITG release and would have probably been the only Leaf product I would have considered buying (boxes, singles, and maybe both). The base/no base has been debated long and hard on another site, so I won't rehash that...but I do have one suggestion for this product, and future ones: stop the airbrushing madness. The Ultimate release had some really amazing cards that were ruined by the airbrushing - that kept me from buying anything that I might have otherwise targeted. I understand the licensing side of it and the issues that can create, but there has to be a better alternative! Just head shots? Or maybe side-shots that cover up anything that cannot be displayed? The full body shots where the entire jersey has been airbrushed a solid color (all red on an Yzerman I saw for example) just looks terrible in my opinion and detracts from the overall sharpness of the card.

If Between The Pipes sales had been strong, or even stable, we would have kept the product in the portfolio. Truth is it has not been supported nearly enough to warrant it as a stand alone release. having said that, as we build our brands differently and look to use technology more in the future, we may bring it back as a stand alone.

[qwas]

Will you please try to get kjell Dahlin into a set this year. He seems to be a willing signer, at least for me he was and he is an ex- Montreal Canadien who won a stanley cup so that should make him a little more attractive to include in a set. Please, Please.

[kingquid]

When will the checklist be released?

[pwaldo]

That's called marketing, every company does it in one form or the other. Reps from other card companies have appeared here as well. It's their job to please and thank the customer, so let's not get carried away here.

Thanking him isn't really getting carried away. And while some company reps have been on this board before not all of them have.

[Cunnuc]

It's great to see LeafGregg being active on the forums like Dr. Price was. That alone is a reason for being a collector of their products.

I was always a fan of Heroes and Prospects and I like seeing the transition in the product over the years. This year's release is just another transition to me. I would like to see a base set but I am a huge fan of ITG products with just a plastic case of cards as the entire box. I do feel a need to 'bust wax' and collect a base set of cards every now and then though and I feel like Heroes and Prospects should fill that need. Between the Pipes was also a wax-breaking thrill and fun to open even for those who weren't avid goalie collectors as the re-sale value was great.

Personally I knew the merger would likely take a couple years for the dust to settle and become a staple in the hobby but as a huge ITG fan I would really like a base set to collect. I am more than willing (excited, actually) to give H&P a shot but I liked ITG for their wide spectrum of products and now am disappointed to see a product with such longevity to be turned into that of their specialty products which caters only to a fraction of collectors. I feel that fraction may only get smaller.

BTP being a sub-set is fine with me and I realize that a Heroes and Prospects release and a Between the Pipes release is expensive to produce for said-fraction of collectors but you should keep the ITG-flow by giving collectors what they want.

I'm a huge fan of ITG products being moderately priced and having a decent chance at pulling a card/player of someone that easily sells for what the box was purchased for. I've just never seen such variety of players and quality of cards in so many products. I sincerely hope the quality of game-used material and the creativity of cards continue in these products but unless ITG/Leaf is trying to only produce top-tier products the lack of base cards in some releases will actually decrease sales over the long-run.

P.S. Motown Madness II would be super swell after they win the cup this year :P

[subban7677]

I agree that the airbrushing in Ultimate was an issue and we are looking for a happy medium, but as you said, licensing forbids us from showing any logos and just head shots really limits designs

I'd like to know why goalie masks now have any team logos airbrushed off when they never did before. They explanation was always that it was "art" and did not count and could be shown. Is it just a case of Leaf preferring to airbrush and not open that can of worms with the league?