2022-23 Upper Deck MVP Box Break

Upper Deck MVP is usually the first new hockey card set to hit the shelves, and this year was no exception. The 2022-23 MVP Hockey set was released in early September, roughly one month before the season started. MVP is relatively-affordable and easy enough to put together, usually weighing in at 200 base cards and 50 short prints.

A hobby box of 2022-23 MVP costs around $60. Each box has 20 eight-card packs for a total of 160 cards. Although I reviewed this set in an episode of the Puck Junk Podcast last month, I thought you might like to see what is inside a hobby box of MVP.

So, as Mr. Owl once said, “Let’s find out!”

Continue reading “2022-23 Upper Deck MVP Box Break”

Puck Junk Podcast: The Upcoming Fall 2022 Sport Card Expo Toronto

Special Guest: Expo Promoter Mikey Singer
Episode #133 – October 31, 2022

In this episode of the Puck Junk Podcast, Sal Barry is joined by Mikey Singer, promoter of the Sports Card Expo — which is THE ultimate hockey card show in North America. Mikey talks about all the cool activities planned for the upcoming Fall 2022 Sport Card Expo in Toronto, including autographs from former NHL stars, panel discussions with hobby experts, a hockey card trade night, and more. It’s 35 minutes of hockey goodness!

Show Notes and Links:
Sport Card Expo website
Sport Card Expo Tickets page
Sport Card Expo Autograph Guests page
Sport Card Expo Events page
Mikey Singer’s event promotions company MKEM website
The Strongville (OH) Vintage Sports Card Show website

Follow
Follow Sal Barry on Twitter @PuckJunk & Instagram @PuckJunk.
Follow Tim Parish on Twitter @TheRealDFG & Instagram @therealdfg66.
Podcast music by Jim “Not the Goalie” Howard (Instagram @flyingV2112)

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Puck Junk Podcast: 1990-91 Upper Deck Hockey

Part 5 of the ’90-91 Retrospective Series
Episode #132 – October 18, 2022

Sal Barry and Tim Parish continue their ’90-91 Retrospective Series with an in-depth look at the 1990-91 Upper Deck Hockey card set. What made the set so significant back then, the best cards from that set, the controversy over the French-language versions — and why every serious hockey card collector needs to own the 1990-91 Upper Deck Hockey set. It’s 70 minutes of hockey goodness.

Images, Show Notes and Links
We refer to the book “Card Sharks” a lot in this episode. If you want to read it — and every card collector should — then you can get he Kindle version for just $10 at Amazon.

More about the Mario Gosselin card here.

More information about the 1990 Upper Deck Prototype Cards here.

More information about the “lost” Chris Chelios cards here.

Here are a few more great cards from 1990-91 Upper Deck Hockey.

The “Canada’s Captains” card that pictures Eric Lindros.

Ed Belfour “Star Rookies” RC

Sergei Fedorov “Young Guns” RC

Pavel Bure “Young Guns” RC

Frank J. Zamboni RC

Mike Modano RC

Jaromir Jagr “Draft Picks” RC

Jeremy Roenick RC

Bob Probert

How’s the weather up there, Mario?

Even the photo on the back of Lemieux’s card is awesome!

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Support this podcast and buy a shirt from the Puck Junk Online Shop. ■

The Best 2022-23 NHL Game-Night Giveaway Items

It’s the start of the 2022-23 NHL season, where 32 teams play a slate of 82 regular-season games, with the hopes of winning enough to make the playoffs — or losing enough to get a high draft pick. But what better way to draw fans to a meaningless home game on a frigid Tuesday night in February than by giving them some novel trinket that they’ll soon sell on eBay — be it a bobblehead, poster, or the ever-popular magnetic schedule?

Surprisingly, nearly half of the teams — 14 out of 32 — are not giving anything away this year. These tended to be either Canadian teams or U.S. teams in large markets like New York or Boston.

Of the 18 teams that are having at least one giveaway, nine of them are giving out magnetic schedules. In fact, the Penguins are giving out magnetic schedules TWICE.

Some of the better items that hockey fans can hope to get at a game this season include a Trevor Zegras action figure, a Devils-themed Marvel comic book, and a Gritty hula dancer figurine.

Both the Ducks and the Coyotes are giving away something called a “Dad Hat.” If you are a father and know what that is, please let me know.

The Kraken are giving away a league-high five bobblehead figures this year, while the Red Wings will give away four. The Blues are also giving away four bobbleheads, but all on the same night. I bet that will cause a few fights amongst the kiddos on the drive home. (“No fair! I got the Colton Parayko bobblehad! Why can’t I have the Brayden Schenn bobblehead? Mom!”)

Below is a list of the best promotional items that NHL teams will be giving away to help draw fans to games over the season.

Continue reading “The Best 2022-23 NHL Game-Night Giveaway Items”

Book Review – 1972: The Series That Changed Hockey Forever

Fifty years ago was the 1972 Summit Series, where the best NHL players from Canada faced off in an eight-game exhibition series against the top hockey players from the Soviet Union. But, as it turned out, this was no mere exhibition series. In the book “1972: The Series That Changed Hockey Forever,” author Scott Morrison gives a comprehensive, almost exhaustive history of the Summit Series. Many books have been written on this subject, but “1972” might be the best.

Continue reading “Book Review – 1972: The Series That Changed Hockey Forever”

It’s Puck Junk’s 15th Anniversary!

Earlier this week was the 15th Anniversary of when I launched Puck Junk. After several months of designing and developing, PuckJunk.com made its debut on October 5, 2007. My first article published on this site was about the 2007-08 Victory Hockey card set, followed by articles about the fake Wayne Gretzky Indianapolis Racers card, and the 1988-89 Frito Lay Hockey set.

The first-ever article on PuckJunk.com was about the 2007-08 Victory Hockey card set. My opinion on Victory has softened over the years.

I originally wanted to start a hockey website in 2006, when I got back into hockey card collecting as a hobby. But my job at the time kept me busy and with little energy for any extracurricular activities. When I quit my job in late summer of 2007, I finally had the time to make Puck Junk happen.

Another incentive for me to start this website was that I — incorrectly — thought that no one would ever give me a chance to write about hockey or hockey collectibles. Starting this website gave me an outlet to do that, but it led to so much more.

Over time, my writing improved. I became a freelance writer for The Hockey News, Beckett Hockey Magazine, and several other publications — some that are no longer around. I was a regular guest on XM Radio and later on Sports Byline USA to talk about sports collectibles. And in 2015, I got my Master’s Degree in journalism. That was also the year I started the Puck Junk Podcast with Tim Parish.

A lot of my thoughts about running Puck Junk for so long are unchanged from when I reflected on this site’s 10th Anniversary back in 2017, so I don’t want to rehash any of that here.

Instead, I thought it would be fun to look at some of the old screen shots and site banners from over the years. Admittedly, I did not take many screen shots of this website; I mean, why would I?

But I do have all of this website’s banners, which shows how Puck Junk’s look and feel has changed over the years, and how it has evolved from *just* a hockey card blog to a website about hockey cards, collectibles, and culture.

Please take a visual stroll with me down memory lane.

Continue reading “It’s Puck Junk’s 15th Anniversary!”

Puck Junk Podcast: 2022-23 MVP Hockey Cards

Plus: Buoy, the Kraken Mascot!
Episode #131 – October 6, 2022

Sal Barry and Tim Parish talk all about the new 2022-23 Upper Deck MVP set — the first hockey cards for the 2022-23 season. They also discuss the Seattle Kraken’s new mascot, Buoy. Plus, a look back at the 1972 Summit Series between Canada and the USSR, digitally-enhanced dasher boards, the St. Louis Blues Hall of Fame, and more! It’s 81 minutes of hockey goodness.

Show Notes and Links
Oh, ‘Buoy!’ Mascot Reveal! (NHL.com)
1972: The Series that Changed Hockey Forever (Simon & Schuster Canada)
NHL to Debut Digitally Enhanced Dasherboards (ESPN)
Introducing the St. Louis Blues Hall of Fame (NHL.com)
Fake Dallas Stars Patch Cards (Twitter 1, 2, 3, 4, 5)
1986 McDonald’s Football Cards (Sports Collectors Digest)
Sal’s Favorite Chris Chelios Jersey Card (Twitter)
Here are some images from 2022-23 MVP Hockey:

2022-23 MVP base card

Card backs do NOT have any statistics on them

Ice Battles parallel

Silver Scripts parallel

Short Printed Rookie Card

Domains insert

Encounters on Ice insert

Pinpoints insert (Silver)

Pinpoints insert (Gold)

20th Anniversary insert

20th Anniversary Colors and Contours insert

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Support
Support this podcast and buy a shirt from the Puck Junk Online Shop. ■

Puck Junk Podcast: Defenseman Retirement Special

Episode #130 – September 30, 2022

This week, Sal Barry and Tim Parish talk about the four NHL defensemen who retired recently: Duncan Keith, Zdeno Chara, P.K. Subban, and Keith Yandle — including career accomplishments, who of the four will make it into the Hockey Hall of Fame, and their best hockey cards to collect. It’s 87 minutes of hockey goodness!

Show Notes and Links
Duncan Keith career statistics (Hockey Reference)
Keith Yandle career statistics (Hockey Reference)
Zdeno Chara career statistics (Hockey Reference)
P.K. Subban career statistics (Hockey Reference)
P.K. Subban announces his retirement (Twitter)

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Connect with us and other hockey fans on the Puck Junk Facebook Group.

Support
Support this podcast and buy a shirt from the Puck Junk Online Shop. ■

2021-22 Upper Deck Extended Series Hockey Hobby Box Break #1

Don’t call it Series Three! The 2021-22 Upper Deck Extended Series Hockey card set was released in August of 2022, and adds another 250 cards to Upper Deck’s Series One/Two set. Extended Series has 200 base cards and 50 Young Guns rookie cards; technically 198 base cards, two base checklists, 49 Young Guns, and one Young Guns checklist. This makes Upper Deck’s flagship set a whopping 750 cards over three series.

Admittedly, there was less fervor over the release of Extended Series as there was for Series One and Series Two; perhaps because it doesn’t have the big-name rookies like Series One (Cole Caufield, Trevor Zegras) or Series Two (Moritz Seider, Mason McTavish) had.

However, what it does have is a plethora of interesting, retro insert cards; some styled to look like cards from the mid-2000s, and others that have designs inspired by late 1990s hockey cards.

2021-22 Upper Deck Extended Series is currently selling for around $100 for a hobby box. Each hobby box has 24 packs, and each pack has eight cards. Let’s take a look at what is inside a box of Extended Series.

Continue reading “2021-22 Upper Deck Extended Series Hockey Hobby Box Break #1”

Puck Junk Podcast: Upcoming Hockey Cards for 2022-23

Plus: How a Fanatics/Panini Merger Could Affect Hockey Cards
Episode #129 – September 22, 2022

Sal Barry and Tim Parish discuss some of the upcoming hockey card releases for the 2022-23 season, including Upper Deck Series One and O-Pee-Chee. They also talk about the hockey cards that are still coming out for the 2021-22 season, and how a merger between Fanatics and Panini America could potentially affect hockey cards in the future. It’s 77 minutes of hockey goodness!

Show Notes and Links:
Sept. 24, 2022 LUDEX Card Show at the Skyline Room (Facebook)
Puck Junk Podcast: 2022 National Recap Episode (Puck Junk)
Trading Card Database and Sportlots Announce Partnership (Sportlots)
Puck Junk Podcast: How to Complete Your Card Sets Episode (Puck Junk)
Puck Junk Podcast: Is Alexis Lafreniere Living Up to the Hype? (Puck Junk)
2022-23 Upper Deck Series One Young Guns Checklist (Upper Deck Blog)
The Great Hockey Card Comeback (The Hockey News)
Brady Tkachuk autographs some upcoming hockey cards (Twitter)

Connect
Connect with us and other hockey fans on the Puck Junk Facebook Group.

Support
Support this podcast and buy a shirt from the Puck Junk Online Shop. ■

Special Guest: Expo Promoter Mikey Singer Episode #133 – October 31, 2022

Part 5 of the ’90-91 Retrospective Series Episode #132 – October 18, 2022

Plus: Buoy, the Kraken Mascot! Episode #131 – October 6, 2022

Episode #130 – September 30, 2022

Plus: How a Fanatics/Panini Merger Could Affect Hockey Cards Episode #129 – September 22, 2022

Special Guest: Expo Promoter Mikey Singer
Episode #133 – October 31, 2022

Part 5 of the ’90-91 Retrospective Series
Episode #132 – October 18, 2022

Plus: Buoy, the Kraken Mascot!
Episode #131 – October 6, 2022

Plus: How a Fanatics/Panini Merger Could Affect Hockey Cards
Episode #129 – September 22, 2022