Although Bruins jerseys "have flown off" shelves during
the playoffs, the FleetCenter Pro Shop and other retailers
say that they "might have sold more" Bruins gear, "were it
not for the recent failure" of Starter Corp., according to
Greg Gatlin of the BOSTON HERALD. NHLE VP Brian Jennings
acknowledged that Starter's "liquidation is drying up the
pipeline." Jennings: "Other licensees ramped up as quickly
as possible, but there's no doubt that it's affected sales
in the Boston marketplace." Pro Shop Manager Lauma Cerlins
said Starter doesn't have a "great stock for us in terms of
jerseys. ... That is an area where we could sell more, if we
could get them." Pro Player Dir of Promotions Neil
Hernberg, whose company will outfit 15 of the 30 NHL teams
-- including the Bruins -- next season, said that the league
is "becoming an increasingly important part" of its growth
strategy. Jennings, on Pro Player: "They are cleary
positioning themselves as a company that will try to grab a
lot of Starter's market share" (BOSTON HERALD, 5/14).
ICE, ICE, BABY: In Toronto, Gordon Pitts profiles
three-year old Calgary-based hockey equipment company Graf
Canada, which is experiencing "growing popularity" among
NHLers. Despite players wearing the skates, Graf Owner Mike
Hill said, "We don't pay any player to wear our product"
(Toronto GLOBE & MAIL, 5/14)....The NHL has named PA-based
FrontLine Solutions' Rink Management Systems the "official
software of the NHL" (FrontLine Solutions).
