Preview: Leaf ITG Superlative Vault

[reoddai]

bottom of the release page says "packaged & distributed by ABL liquidations Inc.". ABL = Asset based liquidations (?) - Is this a good thing or a bad thing, I have no idea.

Dr. Price - You've always made your sets for the collectors. If you are willing to stand by one last product and say "its worth it", you'll have me as a buyer. Best of luck with your future endeavours. I hope that a checklist will be released with this product. It'll make tracking down these copies so much easier for future collectors.

Cheers,
reoddai

[reoddai]

Also, possibly re-used images for the sell sheet (?)
Looks like the Dit Clapper skate card in 12-13 release is the same as the one in this image. Its really hard to tell with the resolution, so no guarantee, but I see a similar black stains where the laces cross
http://www.itgtradingcards.com//imag...SalesSheet.jpg

Carey Price swatch looks just like the one from the ITG website too (13-14 the first six, auto plus card checklist image):
http://www.itgtradingcards.com/image...utoplus001.jpg

Ditto BBR Joliat in special insert checklists
http://www.itgtradingcardsarchive.co.../si_thecup.jpg

Cheers,
reoddai

[bdiam]

Sticking Bleu Blanc et Rouge cards which collectors paid $500/pack for in a $100/pack product, just goes to show you that ITG/Leaf is on a one-way trip.

While UD and Panini obviously have a much larger collector base, I think that it is equally safe to say that the small ITG "base", is/was a far more "loyal/dedicated" base towards ITG. Translation - people that have been buying ITG have been doing so since it was BAP. ITG collectors buy the same product (whether it be Between the Pipes or Heroes and Prospects) every year without fail.

On one hand, the "reward" has been the only product where you can still pull vintage memorabilia of some of the greatest players from the past. Further, "incredible" memorabilia pieces from many of these players to boot.

Of-course, the slap in the face to the high-end buyers for years, has been the socialist/give-aways of high-end duplicates at the expo every year. Can't afford to pay $500/pack or drop $10k on our high-end product, that's okay, you can have some free cards that look exactly alike, except for a stamp.

Everyone wants to make a buck and you can't blame anyone for that goal but when you permanently destroy large portions of hardcore buyers who have supported you for 15+years, that business "plan" should be re-examined.

To be fair/honest, if I had never spent $500/pack on Bleu Blanc et Rouge boxes or even $350/pack on Superlative boxes and had a chance to get the same cards from those products for a fraction of the price, I'd probably be a buyer to. As an earlier post pointed out, at $25/card, what have you got to lose? At the same time, if I were one of the buyers back in the day and now watch the manufacturer of the product destroy the product's worth just because they can (something that used to be reserved to Beckett), I very likely would never spend another dollar on an ITG/Leaf product again. I guess everyone (including the wholesalers who have to sell the products) will see which statement holds more water from future products.

When UD releases The Cup each year, don't think that they aren't aware of the handful of buyers that they can count on whom they know alone are good for 30, 40, 50(?) cases of the product. At one point in time, there were even some of these individuals on this site. When you lose those "guaranteed" sales, the numbers going-forward look allot different.

With Panini gone and UD back to a "almost monopoly", it would be sad to see ITG/Leaf disappear. With that said, unless there is a dramatic change in their business strategy, it's hard to see them being around two-years from now - at least in the hockey card market. Losing collector who purchased case(s) and replacing them with box and pack buyers, won't pay the bills for very long - even in Texas.

[habscards]

People have to remember that this is an ITG product. Leaf has zero to do with it.

[mortuus]

People have to remember that this is an ITG product. Leaf has zero to do with it.

But i thought ITG is no more? so how come they release something new under that name then i dont get it..

[Cunnuc]

While I have never dropped said 10k on cases of ITG products I know for a fact that many high-end collectors don't even bother with Expo 1/1s so I don't think Superlative Vault will take away from those collectors of Bleu Blanc et Rouge etc from when the product was originally released. You make it seem like it's a kick in the balls to collectors but I feel it's the complete opposite.

Even if it's repackaged by liquidators there will be 1/1 Vault stamps on them and re-released by the actual company so it's different than Pacific going bankrupt and having liquidators flood the market. All those Pacific cards are considered odd-ball items while these cards will be considered Superlative Vault.

[TRDouble]

I'm in for a box at that price. I hate the show type stamps, but I am looking at this as the bprice final ITG release. Stamps or not, quality is going to be there.

Quick OT word on Leaf/ITG... I think Panini was a mess when they first took on the NHL license. There were a few good things, some really good cards, but full product in my opinion was awful. I never came close to finishing 2010-11 Certifed base set and I opened a lot of that product. I did pull the same redemption in two back-to-back boxes though. Ugh.

I think Panini finally figured it out in 2013-14... then they lost the license. Leaf might be struggling right now, but I am not going to write them off yet and I hope, like Panini, they finally figure it out too.

That wasn't really quick, was it? LOL! Sorry!

[habscards]

But i thought ITG is no more? so how come they release something new under that name then i dont get it..

ITG is not around anymore. From everything that I understand and Dr. Price can correct me if I am wrong. ITG sold the rights to their product names and their jersey/memorabilia inventory to Leaf. ITG just had all of these extra Superlative cards around. My guess is that they were to be used as future redemptions for shows like the Expo and the National. From the looks of it Leaf purchased the previous Ultimate redemption cards from ITG and used them at this past Expo as redemptions. Maybe Leaf was not that interested in all of these Superlative cards. With this product having 2,500 packs at four a pack equals 10,000 cards. That it is a really big inventory. Now from what I understand ITG sold these cards to a liquidator and that is how these cards are getting to the market.

[RGM81]

Of-course, the slap in the face to the high-end buyers for years, has been the socialist/give-aways of high-end duplicates at the expo every year. Can't afford to pay $500/pack or drop $10k on our high-end product, that's okay, you can have some free cards that look exactly alike, except for a stamp.

Because I like to let facts get in the way of a good argument, the ITG Expo redemptions are not "giveaways"--in order to get, for example, a Superlative Bleu Blanc Rouge Expo redemption, guess what you had to open? A box of Superlative Bleu Blanc Rouge. So, in order to "have some free cards that look exactly alike, except for a stamp" you had to buy the original product from an authorized dealer at the Expo.

I know that it's easy to come on the internet and say what you want about a company, but at least try to keep comments factual, please.

[TRDouble]

The ITG Redemption program is what started me making the short track from WNY to Toronto for the Expo! Even if there were just cards from the set that were stamped, you could not deny that they redeemed some great cards for opening your boxes at the In The Gameland Booth. When the cards were specially made aka original cards for the show, like the BTP 10th Anniversary cards, those were fantastic.

And I loved when (for all the companies), you did not have to buy the box at the Expo. In fact, I don't think ITG ever made you do that. At least not last Spring, my last time at the show.