6 cards, 12 illustrations of 90s greats
Inserted in packs of 1992-93 Pinnacle hockey trading cards, Team Pinnacle featured twelve of the greatest men to lace up skates in the 1990s. Two centers, two left wingers, two right wingers, two goalies and four defensemen are depicted in these action-oriented illustrations. While you’d think these dudes were starters in the NHL All-Star Game, or named to the NHL All-Star Team (as selected by the sports writers), that is not the case here. These guys are “Team Pinnacle”, as selected by Pinnacle (a.k.a. Score) Trading Card Company.
Player selection 4 out of 5
Awesome! One side of each card features a top-notch Campbell Conference player, and the flip side features his Wales Conference counterpart. The players featured are:
- Ed Belfour & Mike Richter
- Chris Chelios & Ray Bourque
- Paul Coffey & Brian Leetch
- Pavel Bure & Kevin Stevens
- Wayne Gretzky & Eric Lindros
- Brett Hull & Jaromir Jagr

There is no arguing with this lineup except for Eric Lindros. The 1992-93 season was Lindros’ rookie year, so featuring him on a Team Pinnacle card and saying he was one of the best centers in the game – on par with Wayne Gretzky – seems a bit premature. I mean, this was during his first year in the league. And let us not forget that Lindros is featured here instead of Pittsburgh Penguins center Mario Lemieux. Pure blasphemy! Since Lindros was a spokesman for Score Trading Cards (who made the Pinnacle set), it seems like nepotism that Lindros was featured here instead of Super Mario.
One could also argue that Paul Coffey is out of place here too, as he was on the decline at this point. Perhaps Scott Stevens or Al MacInis would have been a better choice.

Each side features an illustration of a player, along with a gold foil stripe at the bottom that has the player’s name and position. We also get the Pinnacle logo, as well as that ugly “counterfeit-proof” box thing at the bottom of the card. Not sure what that is exactly, but it’s supposed to prove that these cards are indeed authentic – or something to that effect.
Card design 3 out of 5
We also get the words “TEAM PINNACLE” emblazoned along the left edge, and the player’s respective conference logo. Other than the conference logos – which seem unnecessary – and the counterfeit-proof things – which areunnecessary – the design is OK. Being somewhat artistic, I’m a sucker for cards that use paintings or illustrations instead of photographs. That said, I’ll forgive the mediocre design since these cards are paintings and not photos. While the paintings themselves seem to be a bit pale color-wise, the likeness of each player is spot-on. No doubt, actual photographs were used as the basis for the artist to work from, as evidenced by the realism and detail – even in the backgrounds. Unfortunately, I am not sure who the artist was – the signature looks like “Greco”, but neither I nor my comic-book collecting friend Dave can figure out who the heck this guy is. If anyone knows who illustrated these, please drop me a line and let me know so I can give credit where credit is certainly due.
Stats & info
None. Sorry kids. Hope you like the illustrations, since there’s one on each side.
Why no Lemieux? Sorry, but that pisses me off. Lindros became a great player during his career, but this card was issued DURING his rookie season. While he became a mover and shaker in the NHL later on, his inclusion here in this 1992 insert set is a bit dubious. Despite the lack of Mario, this is still a very cool little insert set to pick up.
BONUS: The entire insert set
Below are all six insert cards (front and back) for your enjoyment.
NOTES
6 card insert set
Card Size: 2 1/2″ wide x 3 1/2″ tall
Click here for a printable checklist.