Howe has his sweater all cut up

Pieces of Howe's sweater, plus swatches of All-Star jerseys from 25 current NHLers including Wayne Gretzky, Paul Kariya and Eric Lindros, will be fastened to a card and included as random inserts in the NHL/NHL Players' Association Be a Player hockey card set, to be issued about Jan. 23. Profit from that set is used to assist ex-NHLers. The expectation is that the jersey cards will make the Be a Player set a hot product in the memorabilia market. Interest in Be A Player sets, which also features autographs from 150 current players, waned last season.

This comes in the wake of Upper Deck taking heat for cutting up a game used Babe Ruth bat and attaching pieces to cards.

"I've not heard anything negative about (our project)," said Brian Price, brought in by NHLPA and NHL to run the project. "To me, it was giving more people an opportunity to have a piece of hockey history, many of whom would never come close to having a chance to have a Howe jersey."

Price declines to say how much was paid for the jersey, although the value is estimated at about $25,000.

Howe was brought in to verify that it was genuine, and he also is providing autographs to be inserted randomly. Price said Howe was nostalgic about the jersey but appreciates that many will now "share in the history."

"Because of how many years Gordie played (1946-80), there are a lot more Howe jerseys out there," Price said. "I think most Howe fans will appreciate what we are doing, and there will be some Howe fans who won't."

Price was brought in specifically because he earned industry praise for the nostalgic touch he showed in issuing retrospective Parkhurst sets in the past. He had a moment of regret. "Once you actually buy the jersey and have it, it's hard to (let it go)," he says.

He said Howe has been very accommodating. "He's a superstar even off the ice," Price said. "If you met him and didn't know who he was, you'd love him. You'd love him if he was filling up your tank with gas."