THAT'S A BLADE WRAP: ARE STICK BLADES NEXT FOR ADVERTISERS?

          The NHL is the "first to sign a marketing agreement"
     with Toronto-based Renfrew Tape, which manufactures "Blade
     Wrap, a one-piece hockey tape that lets sponsors display
     their product in an 8-inch unbroken line along the stick
     blade," according to Annette Phillips of the TORONTO STAR. 
     Blade Wrap will be sold commercially this year, featuring
     NHL team logos, while Renfrew Tape "continues to explore the
     product's potential as a sports marketing tool."  Renfrew
     Tape spokesperson Martin LeMoine said that Blade Wrap could
     be "a lucrative advertising venue for companies like Bauer
     and Nike on the blades of superstar players."  But Phillips
     wonders, "Will advertisers really pay that much for a small
     ad in a sea of more conspicuous pitches filling the boards,
     rafters and walls of hockey arenas?" (TORONTO STAR, 8/19).