This beautifully framed piece features an original piece of watercolor artwork glass-framed in an attractive two inch wide black resin frame with a double mat. The outer dimensions of the framed piece are approximately 17” wide x 24.5” high, although the exact size will vary according to the size of the original piece of art.

At the core of the framed piece is the actual piece of original artwork as painted by the artist on textured 100% rag, water-marked watercolor paper. In many cases the original artwork has handwritten notes in pencil from the artist (be sure to “See the actual artwork without the frame” elsewhere in this website). Simply put, this is beautiful, one-of-a-kind artwork.

The outer mat is a rich textured black acid-free mat with a decorative inset white v-groove, while the inner mat is a complimentary colored acid-free mat reflecting one of the team’s primary colors. The website image of this framed piece shows the mat color that we suggest (Hunter Green), but since each piece is custom framed, we are happy to use whatever color mat you wish (depending on availability) – our standard mat colors are:

Light Blue / Dark Blue / Brown / Maroon (close to brown) / White / Silver / Gold / Yellow (bright yellow) / Green (dark green) / Orange / Purple / Red (bright red, somewhat close to PMS 186)

Beneath the artwork is a silver plate with black text describing the original artwork. The text for this piece will read:

This original, one-of-a-kind watercolor painting of the 1990-91 Minnesota North Stars (now Dallas Stars) jersey is the original artwork that was used in the creation of this Dallas Stars uniform evolution print and tens of thousands of other Dallas Stars products that have been sold across North America. This original piece of art was painted by artist Nola McConnan for Maple Leaf Productions Ltd.

Beneath the silver plate is a 3” x 9” reproduction of a well known, best-selling print that celebrates the history of the team. The print beautifully illustrates the chronological evolution of the team’s uniform and shows you how the original art was used in the creation of this print. If you look closely, you will see that the print features the actual artwork being offered for sale. The 3” x 9” print looks like this:

The piece is framed with an extremely high quality framing glass. We have used this glass style for many years with excellent results. We package every piece very carefully in a double layer of bubble wrap and a rigid double-wall cardboard package to avoid breakage at any point during the shipping process, but if damage does occur, we will gladly repair, replace or refund. Please note that all of our products come with a 90 day 100% satisfaction guarantee.

Each framed piece also comes with a two page letter signed by Scott Sillcox describing the history behind the art. If there was an extra-special story about your piece of art, that story will be included in the letter. When you receive your framed piece, you should find the letter lightly attached to the front of the framed piece.

If you have any questions, at any time, about the actual artwork or about any of the artist’s handwritten notes on the artwork, I would love to tell you about them. Simply email me, Scott Sillcox, at scott@heritagesportsart.com and I will tell you everything I can about your original piece of art. The artists and I spent well over ten years of our lives creating these pieces of original artwork, and in many cases there are stories I can tell you about your actual piece of artwork that might add an extra element of interest in your one-of-a-kind purchase.

Please note that all reproduction rights for this original work are retained in perpetuity by the National Hockey League unless specifically stated otherwise in writing by the NHL. For further information, please contact Heritage Sports Art at questions@heritagesportsart.com .

 

History

As the North Stars continued to struggle at the gate, the frustrations of team Co-owner George Gund grew. Feeling that Minnestoa was no longer a profitable hockey market Gund expressed interest in moving the team to the Bay Area in California. The NHL disagreed and wanted to remain in Minnesota. So the league made a compromise, it announced it would dissolve the 1978 deal that merged the North Stars and the defunct Cleveland Barons, thus giving Gund the freedom to move his half of the team and sole ownership of the North Stars to Norm Green. The following season the NHL added its 22nd franchise, the San Jose Sharks.When the 1990-91 season started nobody expected the North Stars to be a serious contender for the Stanley Cup. Perhaps that's why only 5, 730 fans showed up at the Met Center for the teams home opener.  To make matters worse the North Stars got off to a really slow start, 3-9-3, under the guidance of new head coach Bob Gainey and the attendance continued to suffer. Things started to come together after new General Manager Bob Clarke bolstered the defense by trading offensive minded defencemen Larry Murphy to Pittsburgh for defensive minded Jim Johnson and Chris Dalquist.  Then Ulf Dahlen, who was traded for fan favourite Dino Ciccerelli in 1989, picked up his play scoring 19 of his 21 goals in the last 42 games. The North Stars started playing better hockey in the second half of the season posting a 14-6-6 record from late January to mid-March. And even though they finished with an unimpressive 27-39-14 record Minnesota snuck into the playoffs by finishing in 4th place in the Norris Division.The North Stars began the playoffs facing their division rival the Chicago Blackhawks, who finished in first place overall, 38 points ahead of them in the standings. Under the guidance of 5-time Stanley Cup winner Bob Gainey the North Stars played smart, disciplined hockey and were very effective on the power play. Their play frustrated their opponents and after blowing out the Blackhawks in Game 5 6-0, the North Stars wrapped up the series at home by a 3-1 score.  In the second round they met the St. Louis Blues who finished 1 point behind the Blackhawks in the standings. And once again the North Stars pulled off the upset, knocking off the Blues in 6 games. In the Campbell Conference Finals the North Stars met another formidable opponent in the defending Stanley Cup champs, Edmonton Oilers. They split the first two games on the road, then won the next two at home. In Game 5, in Edmonton, the North Stars took the lead for good on a Bobby Smith goal to win the game 3-2, the series 3 games 4 games to 1.  And what was not suppose to happen happened, the North Stars advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals for the second time in franchise history. In the finals the met up with Mario Lemieux and the Pittsburgh Penguins and the clock struck midnight for the Cinderella North Stars. The Penguins proved to be too much as they outscored Minnesota 28-16 and won the clinching game, Game 6 by a score of 8-0, the most one-sided deciding game defeat in a Stanley Cup final since 1905.The 1990-91 season would be the last time the Minnesota North Stars used the N-star logo and green for their road jerseys.  On this jersey you can see the return of the white yoke on the shoulders. Black and yellow detailing accents the shoulders arms and waistline of the jersey.  Also on the front of the right shoulder there is a Stanley Cup patch worn by the two participants in the Stanley Cup Final. It is our belief that the custom of both teams wearing a year-specific Stanley Cup patch began in 1988-89 and has continued ever since. The NHL uses a similar patch each year on the Cup finalists uniforms. The patch features an image of the Stanley Cup, with the two conference names and a year reference.