The Chicago Tribune wrote last week about $180K worth of phony Blackhawks hockey being seized by law enforcement under an effort with the oh so tricky “codename” Operation Team Player. This pales when one considers that the NHL’s big crackdown “Operation Red Zone” in 2013 netted $13.6 million in fake jerseys. Bootlegging is big business and of course takes money off the table of legit screenprint and embroidery businesses pumping out sports, fashion and music merch.

Besides enforcement, I think there are a few things that could be done to minimize counterfeiting. They could leave a little more room for creativity in designs.I see some cool prints and decent items among the obvious cheap crap imitations.They also could make it a little easier for Mom and Pop stores to buy the real thing, as chains have all the access in the hot market sales after a big sports win and little guys can’t even buy the real thing no matter how hard they try. If that is the situation, it then encourages them to buy on the black market.

Without a path to be legit, stopping the fakes is not happening. ESPN reported in 2013: Catching counterfeiters has proved to be a near-impossible task. Although the NFL told ESPN it shut down an astounding 4,200 websites this season, it didn’t completely shut down all those businesses.

“It’s a big game of Whack-A-Mole, where we try to go after counterfeiters and they pop up somewhere else,” said Anastasia Danias, the NFL’s vice president of legal affairs.

In the hockey arena since 1992, more than 10.6 million pieces of counterfeit merchandise have been seized, according to the NHL, with a retail value of more than $405.5 million. That’s a lot of moles to whack.

If you want real merch, you have to make an effort and almost be a detective. There are sites to help you figure it out.