Month: February 2008

My breakdown for the second OPC box I opened recently…

– 185 base cards
– 18 Marquee Rookies
– 4 Base Parallels
– 3 Team Checklists
– 2 Season Highlights
– 2 In-Action
– 1 Stat Leaders
– 1 Record Breakers
– 1 Marquee Rookies parallel
– 2 OPC Buyback (1989-90 OPC Scott Young; 1982-83 OPC Bernie Federko In Action)

This box yielded three more insert cards than the previous box break, but overall I’m not overly impressed with the inserts.

In this box, I also got not one, but two OPC buybacks. One is from the ubiquitous 89-90 OPC set, while the other one was a bit more interesting–a 1982-83 OPC “In Action” card of Bernie Federko, who in actuality *not* in any sort of action (he’s lining up for a face-off).

I just purchased five wax boxes and five collectors tins of 2007-08 OPC, in my quest to build a set.

Here’s the breakdown of the first wax box (36 packs):

– 185 base cards
– 18 Marquee Rookies
– 3 Base Parallels
– 2 Team Checklists
– 2 Season Highlights
– 2 In-Action
– 2 Stat Leaders
– 1 Record Breakers
– 1 OPC Buyback (1989-90 OPC Benoit Hogue)

An OK break, I guess. Got some rookies, but no one notable (no Price, Toews or Kane).

I’m not getting the whole “OPC buyback” thing. I have hundreds of 89-90 OPC cards. Why would I want more? They are neither all that hard to find, nor are they all that attractive (though I *do* like the set). I mean, if I got a card from like 1978 or something, that’d be cool because it at least 30 years old…and not this 18-year old junk.

The third (and final so far) blaster box I purchased. I hit the jackpot!!!.

The breakdown:

– 69 base cards
– 7 Marquee Rookies
– 2 Base Parallels
– 1 Rookie Parallel
– 1 Stat Leaders
– 1 Record Breakers
– 1 Team Checklist
– 1 OPC Buyback (1989-90 OPC Jon Casey)
– 1 OPC Buyback Autograph (1983-84 Marcel Dionne)

This is awesome! The card of Marcel Dionne–a Hall of Fame player–is signed neatly in blue ink. The odds of getting one of these cards is 1 out of every 1440 packs (or so). Not only am I surprised to get this card in a blaster box from Target, but I got this after buying only three blaster boxes–42 packs total. It’s one thing to buy a ton of packs and finally get a card; it’s another thing to get a card relatively early on in collecting a set.

The Dionne auto came with a certificate of authenticity, from Upper Deck:

I am really glad that I bought all of the blaster boxes at Target that day, as they had three of them and I bought all three. As many of you know, I collect hockey autographs.

The second blaster box of 2007-08 O-Pee-Chee that I opened was better than the first one, as I got a Carey Price rookie card. I got six other rookie cards too, but nobody noteworthy.

Here’s the breakdown for my second OPC blaster box:

– 71 base cards
– 7 Marquee Rookies
– 1 Team Checklist
– 1 Stat Leaders
– 1 Season Highlights
– 1 In Action
– 2 base parallels

OK, I am totally convinced that Upper Deck could crap in a cardboard box, label it O-Pee-Chee, and people would still buy it.

I should know…because I am proof. Guilty as charged.

But my whole diatribe about the quality of the new O-Pee-Chee set will have to wait. Right now, I’m here to bust open some packs in the hopes of getting some good cards, and maybe even build a set.

Since I missed the boat on Upper Deck Series 1, I figured I would try and build out a set of 2007-08 O-Pee-Chee. I recently went to Target, and bought a few “blaster boxes”–14 pack wax boxes that are $20 each. I think what fueled my sudden desire to buy this set is that the local dealer told me that the new OPC set was “Canada only”, and apparently boxes were going for a lot on the secondary market.

Honestly, though, I just love hockey cards. And since I could not stomach the thought of buying some set that costs $100 a box(!), I figured this would be a good set to get into.

So, without further ado, here is my first OPC Blaster Box Breakdown:

– 71 base cards
– 7 Marquee Rookes
– 2 Team Checklists
– 1 Season Highlight
– 1 Stat Leaders
– 2 base parallels

I think I like this set a little better than other Upper Deck sets–but not Upper Deck proper–because the rookie cards are seeded 1 in every 2 packs, instead of 1 in every 4 or 6 packs, like other sets. So, that means that I’d have to buy, oh, 200 packs of these cards to get 100 rookie cards. Looks like I’ve got some work to do…