The Flagg Collection #4 – “Mr. Hockey and The Great One” (Nike 1990) – Gordie Howe and Wayne Gretzky

For real, serious sports poster collectors and enthusiasts, this feature is for you! On a periodic basis, I’ll be using this blog to display and describe the holdings of The Flagg Collection – the personal collection of rare and vintage posters held by me, Neil Flagg, the founder and President of SportsPosterWarehouse.com.

For the fourth entry in this blog series, I’m bringing you a rare Nike classic with a controversial history. The content isn’t controversial at all – “Mr. Hockey”, Gordie Howe and “The Great One”, Wayne Gretzky, in uniform, together on the ice in a classic pose, what could be wrong with that?

It was Nike’s use of the image that was the problem. According to a story I heard told way back in the late 1990s, this poster was discontinued and recalled by Nike soon after publication in 1990, due to a licensing issue with the picture. It seems the photo was part of a private shoot done for, I believe, the Coca-Cola company, and was not supposed to be released for any other use outside of Coke advertising. Apparently, the lawyers got to Nike, and the poster had to be discontinued and withdrawn from the market.

That didn’t stop a small quantity from getting out to the market, and we managed to obtain a stack of about 20 of them back in the day. They’re all long-gone, sold off to prime customers over the years, until we only had this last one left – and into the personal collection it went. As with most of the posters in The Flagg Collection, I’ve had this one canvas-transferred to preserve it forever with durability, in an easy-to-display format.

O, Canada! Top 10 Canadian Sports Posters from SportsPosterWarehouse.com

The Sports Poster market may be dominated by the great United States of America, but that hasn’t stopped Canada from having its own unique favourites! SportsPosterWarehouse.com is proud to present our Top 10 Canadian Sports Posters:

10. Steve Nash, Canada’s future NBA Hall of Famer – His track record of MVP performances, deep playoff runs, and revolutionary point guard style, make him a must-have addition to the sports wall of any proud Canadian fan!

Steve Nash “Golden Star” (2012) L.A. Lakers Action Poster

9. Canadian Skiing Vintage Poster Reprints – Canada has had some of the world’s best skiing destinations for nearly a century. Banff-Lake Louise, still a world-renowned resort, was made famous in the first half of the 20th century as the prime destination on the Canadian Pacific railway. Thanks to the Eurographics Corp. of Montreal, we now have six classic vintage reprints from this era in our Vintage Skiing Poster Reprints collection, along with other Canadian and non-Canadian vintage ski posters.

SKI IN CANADA c.1938 Triple Gelandesprung Vintage Skiing Travel Poster Reprint – Canadian Pacific

8. Canadian MLB Baseball Superstars – Take pride in Canada’s baseball heroes who managed to make it through all those long, harsh winters to persevere and make it to the big leagues! We’ve got the 5-tool superstar of the 1990s, Larry Walker; Canada’s first Hall-of-Famer, Ferguson Jenkins; Cincinnati’s super-slugger Joey Votto; and Toronto Blue Jays third base dynamo Brett Lawrie.

7. Canadian NHL Hockey Superstars – There’s just far too many players to mention here – but we’ve got ’em all! Whether it’s old-school heroes like Maurice Richard and Gordie Howe; 1970s sensations Bobby Orr, Bobby Clarke, Darryl Sittler or Guy Lafleur; 1980s legends Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, or Mike Bossy; 1990s dominators Patrick Roy, Steve Yzerman or Joe Sakic; or contemporary favourites Sidney Crosby, Steven Stamkos or Jonathan Toews; you’ll find endless ways to bring your wall alive with Canada’s greatest contributions to the sporting universe!

Wayne Gretzky “Canada’s Turning…” – 7-Up 1982

6. Official Olympic Games Posters – Imported from the IOC’s Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland, we are North America’s exclusive online distributor of official Olympic Games reprint posters. And we are proud to always have in stock, the official poster designs for Montreal 1976, Calgary 1988 and Vancouver 2010.

5. Ken Danby’s Iconic Hockey Art – Ontario artist Ken Danby went from unknown local painter, to one of Canada’s most beloved legends, when his “At the Crease” captured the imagination of Canadians everywhere in 1972. Is it a painting of Ken Dryden? Tony Esposito? According to the late Danby, it’s neither – it’s loosely based on his Guelph, Ontario Friday Night pickup league buddy. We are proud to be the last remaining retailer of Danby’s full-sized poster prints – At the Crease, as well as the two companion pieces, 1973’s “Lacing Up”, and 1997’s “Face Off”.

AT THE CREASE Hockey Goalie Art Poster Print – Goaltender By Ken Danby (1972)

4. Team Canada Hockey, Salt Lake City 2002 Winter Olympic Champions – After the debacle of Nagano 1998, Canada came through at Salt Lake 2002 to regain our hockey pride, and return to our rightful place on the gold medal podium. Thanks to the heroics of Martin Brodeur, Rob Blake, Scott Niedermayer, Jarome Iginla, Paul Kariya, Mario Lemieux, Joe Sakic, Brendan Shanahan, Steve Yzerman and the rest of this group of contemporary superstars and all-time greats, Team Canada overcame the host Americans and reigned supreme once again!

Team Canada GOLD MEDAL CELEBRATION 2002 Olympic Hockey Poster (Salt Lake 2002 Olympics)

3. Joe Carter “Touch ’em All” 1993 World Series Game 6 – In 1992, the Toronto Blue Jays made it onto everyone’s baseball map with their first World Series Championship. In 1993, Joe Carter did Canada one better, giving us an iconic moment that will live forever in the pantheon of baseball history! When he connected off Mitch Williams of the Philadelphia Phillies and gave baseball only its second World Series walk-off homer of all-time, Joe gave us a moment to be proud of forever, and an image we can all proudly hang on our Canadian sports wall-of-fame!

Joe Carter TOUCH EM ALL Poster Print (1993 World Series Game 6) – Toronto Blue Jays Baseball

2. Sidney Crosby’s “Golden Goal”, Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympic Games – If you thought the pressure to win was heavy on Team Canada in 2002, try adding home-country expectations to the equation! In 2010, Canada’s Men’s Hockey Team was once again coming off a disastrous performance in the previous Olympic Games, and with the Gold Medal game against the Americans heading into overtime, it looked like the pressure may have been too much, after all. Then, Jarome Iginla and Sidney Crosby worked their magical give-and-go, and the rest is history – the golden moment, now available for your wall and your collection!

Team Canada Hockey Vancouver 2010 Olympics GOLDEN GOAL Premium Poster Print

1. Paul Henderson “The Goal” , Summit Series 1972 Winner in Moscow – Need we say more? It was the defining sporting moment of several generations, and the drama of the image matches the drama of the series. It was a clash of styles, a clash of cultures, a clash of ideologies, and a story of perseverance and excellence that may never be matched in hockey history. When Paul Henderson beat Soviet goaltender Vladislav Tretiak with less than a minute to play, a nation roared, and Henderson became the poster-boy of all-time for Canada.

Paul Henderson THE GOAL 1972 Team Canada Summit Series Commemorative Poster – Canada vs. USSR

Madison Square Gardens In All It’s Glory-Poster Format

When it comes to sports, Madison Square Gardens is one of the most historic, prestigious and memorable buildings in the world. It derives its name from the park where the first two gardens were located. As the venue moved to new locations, the name still stuck. Home of the New York Rangers, New York Knicks and countless of other headline events of the years, the Gardens is a focal point in the sports and entertainment world. MSG hosts over 300 events per year, however some of them are more prolific than others. Thus, Sports Poster Warehouse will help you recall some of the most significant moments in Madison Square Gardens history!

Michael Jordan Power Slam Poster

November 8, 1984 – Michael Jordan plays his first game as a professional at MSG, and drops 33 against the Knicks. He left midway through the 4th quarter of this game to a standing ovation from the energized crowd.

WWE Super Stars Poster

March 31, 1985 – The World Wrestling Federation presents the inaugural WrestleMania. The annual event would return to Madison Square Garden in 1994 and 2004 for WrestleMania X and WrestleMania XX, celebrating the 10th and 20th anniversaries of WrestleMania.

Victory On Ice Panorama!

The long wait is over! After more than 50 years, The New York Rangers finally capture the ultimate goal, the Stanley Cup. A game 7 victory over the Vancouver Canucks, winning goal by Captain Mark Messier – life couldn’t be sweeter. Madison Square Garden hasn’t seen excitement like this in years.

Wayne Gretzky FINAL FAREWELL Panoramic Poster

It was one of the most emotional moments in hockey history – after 20 years of thrilling crowds, setting records and winning cups, The Great One decided it was time to move on. In the pre-game ceremony, with friends and colleagues from throughout his career on hand, and a packed house at Madison Square Garden applauding as one, Wayne Gretzky gave his next-to-final salute to the fans while in uniform.

Kobe Bryant Airborne

On February 2, 2009, Kobe Bryant of Los Angeles Lakers scored 61 points in a 126–117 win over the Knicks. It is the highest single game scoring total for an NBA player at MSG.

For these and other great sports posters, visit http://www.sportsposterwarehouse.com.

Vintage NHL Posters

Hi everybody, happy January!

Mid-winter is always a time of great anticipation in the world of sports. The Super Bowl is weeks away, March Madness is just around the corner and the NHL and NBA seasons are both increasing with intensity by the day. The staff here at Sports Poster Warehouse want to take time to honor some of the most memorable moments in sports. With that said, we will honor some of the great vintage and not so vintage memories, one major sport at a time, with hockey and the NHL being first up.

5. From the 1975 Stanley Cup Semifinals, this rare, spectacular image features one of the greatest Philadelphia Flyers of all-time, the Hall of Fame superstar Bobby Clarke, helping the old Spectrum erupt in joy after scoring a goal that helped finally bury the New York Islanders in Game 7.

4. This rare, beautiful poster features the great Super Mario Lemieux circling the ice at old Chicago Stadium on June 1, 1992 with hockey’s holy grail, the Stanley Cup, after his Pittsburgh Penguins completed a sweep of the Chicago Blackhawks.

3. This spectacular poster commemorates what will go down as one of the most beloved days in the history of Buffalo sports, the 2008 Winter Classic at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Taking you back to the thrilling conclusion of the dramatic game, this poster features the signature image of the day – the Pittsburgh Penguins’ sensational Sidney Crosby breaking in on toque-capped Sabres goaltender Ryan Miller on the final breakaway of the overtime shootout, just a second away from potting the winner and celebrating victory.

2. It was one of the most emotional moments in hockey history – after 20 years of thrilling crowds, setting records and winning cups, The Great One decided it was time to move on. In the pre-game ceremony, with friends and colleagues from throughout his career on hand, and a packed house at Madison Square Garden applauding as one, Wayne Gretzky gave his next-to-final salute to the fans while in uniform.

1. It was the greatest hockey series of all-time – Canada vs. Russia, The Summit Series 1972. The greatest rivalry in hockey, played out over the month of September, four games in Canada, four in Moscow. At the end of this greatest series came the greatest goal – Paul Henderson’s game-winner with less than a minute to play. It is a legendary moment in hockey history.

For these and other great vintage sports posters, visit http://www.sportsposterwarehouse.com.