The Ottawa Citizen, May 19th 1993

Add manufacturers and suppliers to the list of hockey experts confounded by the overachieving Toronto Maple Leafs.

Retailers and industry insiders said Tuesday that bottlenecks in the system are leaving many retailers short of two highly prized souvenirs -- Maple Leaf hats and jerseys -- just as the hoopla hits its height.

"There are no jerseys and that's definite, said one industry source, who asked not to be identified.

"CCM's out of stock. They're the exclusive supplier . . . and they've got none. They're back ordered two months.

Currently requests for Leaf home jerseys account for 95 per cent of the calls CCM is receiving, said Mireille DeBruycker, a spokeswoman for CCM in St-Hyacinthe, Que.

"We do a forecast, but nobody has a crystal ball when it comes to the playoffs, DeBruycker said.

But she denied it will take the company until July to fill back orders.

"A couple of days if we have it in inventory, she said. "If we don't it takes a couple of weeks to make a sweater like that.

Lorne Eisen, manager of a Locker Room sports store in downtown Toronto, said while T-shirts and other souvenirs are plentiful, the supply of hats and jerseys has dried up.

"We haven't had a Leafs pro shirt in our store in six months, Eisen said of the top-priced jersey that sells for about $130 blank, and costs typically about $180 with a number and name.

The store still has replica jerseys that cost about half that, and some Leaf hats. But sales are increasing daily as the Leafs battle Los Angeles for the Campbell Conference title and supplies could run out long before new orders arrive. And that means thousands of dollars in potential sales could be lost, he said.

Eisen said he understood that whatever jerseys are available are being sent to the Maple Leafs, who have first call on such merchandise.

And a new shipment of hats, which are made in the Orient, is not expected to arrive until May 25, Eisen said.

"By then we think we could have sold a couple of thousand.

Gary Rouse, president of Toronto-area distributor Home Game, said suppliers were caught unaware because demand began to soar only during the past few days.

But the company expects an emergency order of 5,000 Leaf hats produced in the U.S. to arrive by Friday.

The company is also planning a run of Campbell Conference and Stanley Cup champion hats, he added.