Brandon Saad (red) and Duncan Keith battle for the puck in Monday night’s Red-White Scrimmage. (Photo by Puck Junk)
So successful are the Chicago Blackhawks that they will sell their fans everything and anything they can. All the games sell out, as does the annual summertime Fan Convention. Three years ago, the team started holding an annual Training Camp Festival, which includes a 5K run and dealers selling hockey memorabilia, and culminates in a scrimmage. The Fest, at $5 a ticket, sells out too. Blackhawks fans will pay to see the team practice!
This year’s scrimmage was pretty epic. The last time I went to a Training Camp Fest — in 2010 — the team had the players work on drills, then play three casual scrimmages, where players skated on more than one team throughout the day. But this year, the team went super-oldschool, and played what fans have called “The Red-White Game.”
(FYI, my first “Red-White Game” was way back in 1990. Read about it here.)
The players weren’t wearing practice jerseys; they were decked out in full Blackhawks uniforms, with one team wearing the red home jerseys and the other team wearing white road jerseys. Where else but in a video game can you see two full teams of Blackhawks going at it?
Truth be told, I did not enjoy the 2013 National as much as I enjoyed the 2011 National.This was because I had less money to spend this time around. However, there was far less hockey this time around too. So, I had less to spend — and less to spend it on. I couldn’t be impulsive and had to carefully weight anybig purchases, but I dug around and still found a few treasures for bargain prices. Continue reading “Cards I purchased at the 2013 National”
Two weeks later, and I am still wading through the stack of cards and other assorted goodies that I got at the 2013 National Sports Collectors Convention. I’ve busted boxes, found many cool singles and acquired a lot of new autographs for my collection.
When I went to the National, I paid for a VIP ticket, which included 12 autographs from the “VIP Signers”–basically, the ex-athletes who were signing autographs for around $15 to $25. You get a sheet of tickets that have the athlete’s name printed on it. What I did on the first day of the show was trade tickets. If someone was wearing a Cubs jersey, I asked them if they would trade me their Ed Olcyzk or Murray Bannerman ticket for, say, a Jerome Walton ticket. Most people were willing to trade, and some even gave me their tickets for the ex-Hawks without wanting anything in return.
Here’s a rundown of the autographs I got at the 2013 National:
Do not adjust your monitor. This is indeed a football card.
On Wednesday, former Chicago Bears running back Neal Anderson was signing autographs for free. You did not need an autograph ticket, and since I got into the show early I was able to get in and out of his line rather quickly.
I decided to get Anderson’s rookie card autographed. Not much of a decision, as it is one of the few football cards I’ve kept from my childhood, for sentimental reasons.
When it was my turn to get Anderson’s autograph, I said “I’ve had this card since I got it in a pack of cards from 1988, and I’m excited to finally get it autographed.”
“Well,” he cheerfully replied, “I’m excited to sign it for you.” He seemed to mean it too. Anderson appeared to be having a good time talking with fans and shaking hands.
I thanked him for the autograph, and for coming to the show. I can’t say I was the only one who got a football card signed, but most others were either getting Anderson’s autograph on a photo or a mini football helmet.
Thursday was the first full day of the show. Former ‘Hawks player and current TV color commentator Ed Olczyk was signing autographs. Through trades and a few “gifts” from fellow attendees, I ended up getting eight items autographed by Olczyk. You can see the rest of the items here on my autograph blog.
On Saturday, former Blackhawks goaltender Murray Bannerman was signing autographs. In all, I ended up with 11 tickets for Bannerman’s ‘graph, which was way more than I needed. I gave three tickets away and got eight items signed, including this 5″x7″ photo of Bannerman as a member of the Vancouver Canucks. He played one game — only 20 minutes — with the Canucks in 1978 before he was traded to the Blackhawks. You can also see the rest of the items here on my autograph blog.
On Sunday, I pulled this card of baseball legend Ken Griffey Jr. from an Upper Deck redemption pack and promptly traded it to another collector for this autographed card of Jonathan Toews. (You can read more about the redemption programs at the show here).
One of the dealers — all the way at the back of the room — had this 1983 Cartophilium Hall of Fame card signed by Ken Reardon, who passed away in 2008. I love this set, and could not pass up the opportunity to get this card. Plus, the price was very reasonable.
Finally, I purchased a few cheap autographed cards over the weekend. The autographed cards of Benoit Cote and Greg Andrusak were 25 cents each.The Stephen Weiss signed mini card was $4. The 2010-11 Panini Certified autographs of Bobby Butler, Justin Mercier and Brandon Yip were $1 each.
Tomorrow, I’ll share some of my cool non-autographed finds from the show.
Wow, has it really been eight months since I last purchased a card from the 1963-64 Parkhurst Hockey set? Yes, yes it has. I did not find any Parkies from that year back at the card show in March, and I haven’t done much eBay shopping lately.
Anyway, this “common card” of Dale Balon was $12. A little steep for a common, until I noticed how perfect the corners on this card are. The only real flaw is that bit of discoloration (dirt?) along the bottom left edge. Even the borders and back are a little less aged than usual.
And thus, I’ve taken another small step towards completing this set.
Twenty-five years ago today, Wayne Gretzky was traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings. As an American hockey fan, I feel like I owe a lot to Wayne Gretzky. His presence on a U.S.-based team helped grow the sport here in the states tremendously. The effects of his trade are still felt in this country today.
Here are five effects of the “Gretzky Trade” that made hockey better, especially in the U.S.:
How many other hockey players have hosted Saturday Night Live?
1. Gretzky gave hockey a “go-to” reference in the United States. If you asked a random person on the street in a U.S. city to name a hockey player back in 1987, they probably would have answered you with a blank stare. Sure, a hockey fan would have been able to rattle off an entire roster, but not a lot of people outside of hockey circles knew much about the sport, let alone who the greatest player was.
Gretzy’s trade to the Kings gave the second-largest market in the U.S. the best hockey player ever. People took note, and Gretzky became that “go-to” hockey reference that the U.S. so sorely needed.
Gretzky hosted Saturday Night Live in 1989; the first and only hockey player to do so
Gretzky was the “hockey character” in the God-awful Saturday morning cartoon ProStars, which also featured animated versions of Michael Jordan and Bo Jackson.
In the 1990 film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, one of the turtles makes a remarks, “Who the heck is that, Wayne Gretzky?” when meeting goalie-masked vigilante Casey Jones. A generation of kids watching that film who had no idea who Wayne Gretzky even was would soon find out.
The list goes on. The mainstream population in the U.S. may not have ever watched a hockey game, but at least they could now name the game’s best player.
The trade that changed trading cards.
2. Gretzky’s trade changed trading cards.
Gretzky’s trade changed hockey cards in two ways. First, up until the late 1980s, Topps and O-Pee-Chee would “doctor” a photo if a player was traded in the offseason, so as to make the player “appear” that he was with his new team. They’d either do a “head swap,” or paint a new uniform over the old one.
But you don’t do that to the Great One.
Instead of painting a Kings uniform over a game-action shot of Gretzky — or worse, transplanting his head on another player’s body — the Topps card company used a photo of Gretzky from a press conference on their 1988-89 trading card.
Other companies would follow suit. Hoops used a similar photo for their 1989-90 card of David Robinson. The using of press conference photos became an accepted practice in the trading card industry when a game-action photo could not be secured on time.
But another big change to the hockey card industry was the increased demand for hockey cards in the late 1980s and early 1990s. Two years after Gretzky’s trade to L.A., three more companies got the license to make hockey cards. Hockey card collecting was no longer a two-horse race, with Upper Deck, Score and Pro Set joining Topps and O-Pee-Chee.
Here in the U.S., hockey cards went from being sold only in card shops to being sold everywhere: grocery stores, toy stores, sporting goods stores, comic book stores, gas stations, you name it. This would never had happened if Gretzky was still in Edmonton.
Be like Mike? Some of us wanted to be like Wayne.
3. Gretzky’s new endorsement deals raised hockey’s profile in the U.S.
Yes, Wayne Gretzky was endorsing products long before his trade to Los Angeles — including this hilariously-bad 7-Up commercial from Canada — but now he was endorsing products in the U.S., too.
Having a recognizable name and face to promote hockey-related products raised hockey’s profile significantly. Grocery stores carried Upper Deck trading cards, endorsed by Gretzky. Toy stores had the Wayne Gretzky Overtime Hockey table hockey game and the Wayne Gretzky Hockey video game for Nintendo. Shoe stores sold Gretzky-endorsed Ultra Wheels in-line skates and L.A. Gear street hockey shoes.
Street hockey shoes? Tell me about it. Do you think any company would have tried selling street hockey shoes if Gretzky wasn’t with the Kings?
Suddenly, Los Angeles noticed that it had a hockey team.
4. Gretzky helped expansion in traditional non-hockey markets
The L.A. Kings — along with the now-defunct Oakland Seals — became NHL teams in 1967 because the television networks wanted the NHL to have a west coast presence. The NHL also did this to thwart their biggest rival at the time, the “old” Western Hockey League. Hockey languished in California in the 1970s and 1980s until Gretzky came along.
Five years later, California had two more teams. Former Kings owner Bruce McNall may have had a lot to do with that. In his book Fun While it Lasted, he discusses pushing for expansion in California so that he’d get a large chunk of the expansion fee money paid by the San Jose Sharks and Anaheim Mighty Ducks, since they were encroaching on the Kings’ TV market.
Face it: no one in Anaheim or San Jose would even be interested in hockey if it wasn’t for Gretzky being on the Kings in the first place. During the 1990s, Gretzky’s presence in the U.S. would help grow the sport in other “non-traditional” markets like Florida and Texas.
Photo by battlecreekcvb via Flickr / Creative Commons.
5. Gretzky inspired the next generation of American players
More kids wanted to play hockey in the United States after Gretzky was traded to the Kings. The numbered of registered hockey players in California grew from 4,830 players in 1990-91 (the earliest year that USA Hockey has data for) to 22,305 players in 2010-11 (source). California is the seventh-largest region for hockey players in the United States.
Gretzky’s presense in L.A. was felt throughout the rest of the country, too. According to USA Hockey, the number of registered hockey players in the U.S. grew from 195,125 players in 1990-91 to 421,399 players in 1998-99 — Gretzky’s last year in the NHL. Since then, it has climbed to 510,279 registered players in the U.S.
This has also impacted the number of Americans drafted by NHL teams. From 2000 to 2012, 743 U.S.-born players were drafted by NHL teams. In the 2013 draft, 53 U.S.-born players were drafted, accounting for just over one-fourth of all players picked. How many of these young men were inspired by watching Gretzky play?
***
On August 9, 1988, Canada lost their greatest athlete, but hockey in the United States gained just what it needed to help the sport grow. Twenty five years later, the growth hasn’t stopped.
The third and final day of the 2013 Chicago Blackhawks Convention was only four hours long, starting at 9 a.m. and ending at 1 p.m. However, wristbands for the first group of players would be distributed at 8:30 a.m. There was an outside chance that I could get Bobby Hull’s autograph, as wristband distribution for “The Golden Jet” was at 9:30 a.m. However, fans had already started lining up for Hull — as early as 5 a.m.! Guessing that there were probably more than 315 fans in the line for Hull, I turned my attention elsewhere. Good thing I did, too. Continue reading “2013 Blackhawks Convention day 3 recap”
This past weekend, I attended the 6th Annual Chicago Blackhawks Convention. The convention is an opportunity for fans to get autographs from the players, attend panel discussions with players and coaches, buy hockey memorabilia, see all the NHL trophies — including the Stanley Cup — and engage in other activities.
Although every year I tell myself that I am going to focus more on attending the panels, I usually spend most of the show getting autographs. And this year, I got autographs from many current and retired players. Continue reading “2013 Blackhawks Convention day 1 recap”
It’s a great time to be a hockey fan in Chicago. The Blackhawks won the Stanley Cup, which is as good as it gets. But fans will be rewarded with a special commemorative hockey card set from Upper Deck.
The special boxed set will contain 30 card — 25 player cards and five cards of season highlights. It will also include an oversized team photo card (pictured above). The set will be released on July 23 and cost around $20.
Personally, I am psyched about this. The Boston Bruins received a commemorative set in 2011 after winning the Stanley Cup. The Los Angeles Kings did not get a full commemorative set in 2012, although a six-card giveaway set was released.
This reminds me of the old Pro Set Superbowl sets, where the company would issue cards of both the winning and losing team, as well as a special card album. I hope that Ben Smith — who played in only one game, but it was in the Finals — gets a card, along with other bit players like Jamal Mayers and Daniel Carcillo. That’s very likely, as 25 player cards would pretty much cover everyone who appeared in the 2013 playoffs for the ‘Hawks. Now, if only they’d make cards of the coaches, too.
Most people in the United States spend the Fourth of July by either barbecuing some hamburgers or blowing up fireworks. My love for explosives ended in my mid-twenties, when I realized that losing a hand while lighting a faulty firework would be a stupid way to end my career as a web designer.
I still love hamburgers, though, and will go to a barbecue if invited. Otherwise, I use the Fourth of July – especially if it is part of a holiday weekend — as an excuse to “hole up” and focus on a dorky, hockey card enjoyment spree.
This started in 2008, when I purchased over 500 packs of 1995-96 Panini stickers, and opened and collated them over Fourth of July weekend. Since then, I’ve tried to have some cheap wax on hand to open and sort, while the idiots outside get drunk and shoot off their M-80s in the 90-degree Chicago heat.
For this go-around, I have on-tap two boxes of 1988-89 O-Pee-Chee stickers (48 packs each) and two boxes of 1990-91 Panini stickers (100 packs each). I actually need a set of 1990-91 Panini stickers, and hopefully will get a set or two out of the deal, considering how amazingly bad Panini hockey stickers collate.
The OPC stickers, once sorted, will end up on my Complete Sets for Trade page, as I already have two complete sets (one in a sticker album, the other in 9-card pages) and surely don’t need any more.
The bad news, if you could really call it that, is that my dork-out hockey card session will be cut short by Anime Midwest — a Japanese cartoon, comic book and video game convention that my friends insisted on going to. I love Japanese comics and cartoons, and would love to get my hands on the Go Ahead comic series (right) if I find it at the con.
