Clayton Keller wore this Red Set 1 game worn jersey for the Arizona Coyotes during the first half of the 2017-2018 season. It was his rookie season in the NHL.
Some jerseys are just that; a simple piece of memorabilia, a favorite player, or a preferred style. Others can transcend those basic collecting tenets. Those items can be one of a kind, or showcase an amusing error, or be hammered so much that it looks like it was worn in actual battle. This Keller jersey is a little of column A and column B.
In the realm of game worn hockey jerseys, a Clayton Keller jersey is already fairly unique. The 5’10 (more like 5’8), 170 pound winger wears a size 52; that’s right, the same size a healthy portion of NHL fans wear which is significantly smaller than the common 56’s and 58’s. That isn’t all that causes this Coyotes gamer to stand apart, however.
Scroll through the pictures and take a look at the close-up of the shoulders. Then go back and look at the first six pictures again.
“Wait, what?!” you may find yourself saying.
That’s right, this jersey is a made in Canada game worn jersey that somehow lacks the signature deep dimples that are the most prominent feature of Canadian made adidas era jerseys. Here’s a comparison between a Jordan Weal Coyotes game worn jersey (also size 52) and this Keller jersey. The difference is stark, yet despite this one rather odd feature the rest of the jerseys from the patches on down to the fabric, tagging, and cut are identical.
With it’s “retail” dimples, it would seem this makes this particular game worn jersey a bit of a unicorn.
Moving past it’s oddities, Keller’s jersey does have some wear as well. Both sleeves have stick and puck marks, with the left sleeve also having an odd light yellow mark that is about a quarter to half inch long. The right sleeve has a board burn hole that has been patched from behind with a piece of black adhesive, causing the hole to show up well in photos. This allowed photomatches to five different games, including to a 5-0 win over New Jersey where Keller is pictured in this jersey celebrating Dylan Strome’s first career goal in which Keller got the secondary assist.
There is decent wash wear on the numbers and crest, as well as pilling inside the jersey. The jersey also features the brand new Coyotes set tags that Detroit Hockey Co. are using starting with the 2018-2019 season jerseys. This jersey was held by the Yotes and not given to DHC to sell until they released the 2018-2019 jerseys, hence why it has the new set tag instead of the old.
Clayton Keller played all 82 games for the Arizona Coyotes in 2017-2018, setting franchise rookie records for goals, assists, and points. He had 23 goals and 42 assists for 65 total points in his rookie season. He was named a finalist for the Calder Trophy and finished third in the voting.