Horrible ‘Hawk

1986-87 O-Pee-Chee card #243 – Gary Nylund

1986-87 O-Pee-Chee card #243 - Gary NylundNo, Gary Nylund was not horrible–but this card sure was. That slack-jawed look of disgust on Nylund’s face says it all about this awfully airbrushed card. After 4 years with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Nylund was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks on September 6, 1986–giving O-Pee-Chee just enough time to alter the photo on this card to make it look like he was with his new team. So, what’s wrong with this picture? Where to even start?

First, Nylund’s Maple Leafs jersey was painted red, with white stripes around the neck and sleeves–but no black stripes. Tsk, tsk…it’s all about the details. A little black paint would have made this brush job a little more believable, as would have numbers and shoulder crests.

1986-87 O-Pee-Chee card #243 - Gary NylundSpeaking of black, Nylund’s helmet and glove were spared the cover-up. Upon closer scrutiny, you’ll see that both are still navy blue, and not black. Like we wouldn’t notice?

The crowning jewel of this card is that deformed Blackhawks logo on Nylund’s chest. It is surprisingly detailed, but wonky nontheless. Just look at the Indian head and note how the nose is too big, the hair is thinning at the top and it has almost no neck. It kind of looks like my Uncle Guido from Italy.

Of course, it doesn’t help that a real ‘Hawks logo for comparison is less than an inch away, making the fake look, ahem, fake.

What makes the least amount of sense is the back of the card. Flip it over, and it reads:

Acquired: 1st Round Choice (3rd Overall) 1982 Draft

That is how Toronto acquired Nylund, who is clearly with the Blackhawks now. It should instead read:

Acquired: Trade with Toronto, 9-6-86

So, after going through all the trouble of altering the photo on the front, O-Pee-Chee forgot to update the text on the back–a relatively easy change to make. Go figure.

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Author: Sal Barry

Sal Barry is the editor and webmaster of Puck Junk. He is a freelance hockey writer, college professor and terrible hockey player. Follow him on Twitter @puckjunk

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