Hockey cards, collectibles and culture
Last week was a busy one for the NHL. It was the first week in more than a month where I had backup takes (more on those next week). This week, I’ll touch on the interesting dynamic between AHL and NHL teams. Also, the Blackhawks made a huge move in their front office which warrants a look. Plenty more, too. Stay safe everyone!
Happy Monday and welcome back to my takes. The NHL was buzzing this weekend with big stories and exciting plays. I’ll obviously write about Hurricanes instant superstar, David Ayres, and Ovechkin finally reaching another milestone. You’ll want to read all five takes for a few other fun stories I highlighted this week.
On Monday, the Philadelphia Flyers beat the Boston Bruins 6-5 in a game that came down to literally the last shot. Travis Konecky, shooting second-to-last, scored in the fifth round of the shootout. Then it was Brad Marchand’s turn for his shot. Only, he forgot to take the puck with him.
Marchand overskated the puck, and the Flyers won the game. This was after the Bruins blew a 5-2 lead, making Marchand’s mistake even more epic. He is the first player since the shootout was instituted in 2005 to overskate the puck on a shootout attempt.
“I was just trying to get going and just missed it,” Marchand told NHL.com. “I know the rule, you touch it on a penalty shot, it’s your shot. Unfortunate. It’s a tough way to lose on a play like that.”
But on Tuesday, Marchand — instead of showing a little bit of humility, or even taking a joke like he is sometimes willing to do — decided to tweet a photo of himself hoisting the Stanley Cup in 2011.
— Brad Marchand (@Bmarch63) January 14, 2020
Of course, the peanut gallery that is Hockey Twitter had to get involved and razz the Rat.
Continue reading “The Best Twitter Clapbacks at Brad Marchand’s Shootout Whiff”
The takes are hot this week. We’re in the midst of the World Juniors and there have been plenty of storylines from the tournament thus far. The All-Star Game rosters were just released and I have a lot to say about that. I’ll also take a look at another gem of a press conference by the one and only John Tortorella.
Continue reading “Blake’s Takes: All-Stars and World Juniors”
For this week’s takes, I dive into the entire Bill Peters saga and why his comments illuminate a growing issue in the NHL. I also comment on a few notable extensions up in Boston and look into a team moving up in the standings.
Continue reading “Blake’s Takes: Peters Out in Calgary After Frequent Player Abuse”
How many synonyms can I use for the word extension? You will have to keep reading to find out because this edition of Blake’s Takes is all about extensions. Mitch Marner finally signed an extension. Many of the other big-name RFAs followed suit, making last week one of the most memorable weeks of the summer in the hockey world.
Continue reading “Blake’s Takes: The Marner Bomb Drop and Other Extensions”
During the past season, several rookies like Elias Pettersson, Rasmus Dahiln, Andrei Svechnkiov and Brady Tkachuk were extremely popular with collectors based on their performance. Add them to the list of players who had breakout performances last season, but rookie cards from prior years like Jordan Binnington, Nikita Kucherov, Dylan Larkin, and Mikko Rantanen. The better a player performs, the higher the demand for — and the cost of — his rookie card becomes.
But collectors can still find several bargains out there, though these players’ rookie cards may not be bargains much longer. Here is a list of young NHLers that can still be considered bargains based on how they have developed with their teams and how they have been received by collectors up to this point.
Continue reading “Five Hockey Rookie Card Bargains for Next Season”
Boston Bruins center Jozef Stumpel is about to sneeze. Or maybe he’s yawning. Or maybe…
Last week was a big one for the hockey community. We saw another missed call in a major moment as well as the Bruins push the series to a Game 7. I dive deep into the Conn Smythe race as well as how the Bruins won Game 6. The one bit of news outside of Boston and St. Louis comes from Buffalo as one of the game’s best players is much richer.
The Stanley Cup Finals continue. The Blues are now down 2-1 to the Bruins after Jake Binnington’s worst game as a pro. Torey Krug has put the Blues on notice and the Bruins’ powerplay continues to roll. We also have some exciting news in the AHL and ECHL.