Matt Nieto succumbs to Dark Side with custom Star Wars figurine (Photos)
Matt Nieto, San Jose Sharks forward, famous team DJ and member of the Galactic Empire.
View the above amazing custom “Star Wars” Clone Trooper that Nieto bought for himself from Factory Xtreme, a store based next to Disneyland in Anaheim. Nieto is living in Anaheim for the summer.
Sadly, Nieto has not seen any of the “Star Wars” films. But he was more drawn to the coolness of the figurine.
“I’ve collected hockey dolls since I was a kid and I went out to lunch the other day and walked past the store and saw these Storm Trooper dolls and Clone Trooper dolls with players on them,” Nieto said in a phone interview with Puck Daddy. “So I kind of just walked into the store and said, ‘Where can you get these?’ And the guy said ‘I actually make them myself.’ I asked if he could make one for me and he did.”
According to Paul from the store, Nieto’s custom-made model ran about $400, so you don’t have to break the bank to join the Dark Side apparently.
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Just look at the detail. The helmet has a CCM logo on it. It even has Nieto’s CCM stick. Nieto was even amazed by how closely Paul (who didn’t reveal his last name), followed his pattern. Nieto went for the black Sharks color scheme because he thought it was the “meanest.”
“I showed him a picture of me in the jersey and he didn’t really take any notes down or anything,” Nieto said. “He said he would figure it out online. It’s crazy because the hockey stick he used was actually a Bauer mini hockey stick, but he saw I use CCM sticks, so he painted over that.”
Check out the front:
And the back:
That is just so … awesome.
This is not the only hockey-related Clone Trooper figure. Take at look at the Alex Ovechkin 2015 Winter Classic version and a Teemu Selanne Anaheim Ducks look.
(Note: Nieto said Clone Troopers, rather than Storm Troopers, are used by the store as hockey player models because it’s easier to fit a stick in how the hands are shaped.)
Nieto said he immediately heard from woolly Sharks defenseman Brent Burns about the figurine. Because really, what other teammate would you expect to react right away at such Sci-Fi related awesomeness?
“I’m sure he’s going to want one done. I don’t know who wouldn’t want one. It’s a cool toy to have and keep forever,” Nieto said.
Could there be a specialty request for Burns as Chewbacca?
“That would be pretty funny,” Nieto said.
Per Paul, Nieto is the first hockey player who has inquired about a model from his store.
Considering the amount of reaction Nieto has gotten on this purchase, could this lead to him to actually watching all six films?
“I feel obligated to now,” Nieto said
Just don’t watch the prequels dude … except “Revenge of the Sith,” which isn’t horrible and is mostly Jar Jar free.
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Josh Cooper is an editor for Puck Daddy on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter! Follow @joshuacooper
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