Sports Card Girl Strikes Back

Three weeks ago, I wrote an article entitled Sports Card Girl is a Scam. In it, I raised some questions about  new card blogger SportsCardGirl–real name allegedly Brandy Ruth–and the legitimacy of “her” online business.

Some bloggers agreed with the points I raised, others disagreed, and most didn’t really care. But Sports Card Girl…well, “she” tried to bully me. Which is ironic given this August 25th exchange on Twitter:

captainbohica: wow. care to respond to this accusation @SportsCardGirl ?
http://tinyurl.com/255bep8 #collect

SportsCardGirl: @captainbohica wow I appreciate someone taking the time to write about me!!! So much of that is wrong it’s not even funny.

SportsCardGirl: @captainbohica that guy can think what he wants. Shame on him for trying to make it even harder for a girl collector, no wonder there’s few

So, Sports Card Girl said that “she” appreciated the free publicity, that I was wrong and that I could think what I want.

But later that same day, “she” sent me this email, accusing me of defamation and threatening to take legal action

From: Brandy Ruth
Date: August 25, 2010 at 11:39 PM
Subject: your blogI just wanted to drop you a note and let you know that I am kind of shocked you never even tried to talk to me in person before trying to slam me online. You are WAYYYYYY not even close to the truth with this post.Either way, you are entitled to your opinion and I won’t bother trying to justify anything I do to you. I am just a simple girl collector who has my own viewpoint on things and don’t expect you to feel the same way about things as I do.

I wanted to contact you and ask politely to remove that post since it is dangerously close to Defamation.

You are also in violation of Copyright Infringement law. I will give you 24 hours to remove the infringing images/properties. If you do not comply then I will have my lawyers proceed with the appropriate legal course.

I feel that bloggers should have the right to their thoughts, however trying to hurt someone is not cool. I am not trying to push you around, but you if we can’t just be civil then I will be forced to take the legal route.

B

(Bold added by me for emphasis)

This is all wrong for three reasons:

1. Viewpoint. I did not attack any of “her” viewpoints. I just raised questions about the legitimacy of her business and the security of her website.

2. Defamation–with a capital D, no less–is being libelous. Calling Joe Schmoe is a liar without proof is defamation. Saying that Joe Schmoe–or Brandy Ruth–writes grammatically poor English and has an unsecured website is not libel because they are proven facts.

3. Copyright Infringement: “Her” images that I used in my previous post are not Copyright Infringement (again, capitalized for some reason) because they fall under fair use, which means that you are allowed to use copyrighted works for purposes of review, criticism or news reporting…or even parody.

Since I had done nothing wrong–and she had done nothing to address any of the issues I raised in my article–I decided to ignore her email. But 5 days later, I was threatened again:

From: Brandy Ruth
Date: August 30, 2010 at 9:10 AM
Subject: 72 hour noticeThis is to advise you that you are using copyrighted and protected material on your website/blog. Your illegal use of My Logo, Images and Likeness at http://puckjunk.blogspot.com/2010/08/sports-card-girl-is-scam.html is originally from my website/blog called SportsCardGirl.com at http://blog.sportscardgirl.com. This is original content and I am the author and copyright holder. Use of copyright protected material without permission is illegal under copyright laws.Please take the following actions immediately:

* Remove the copyrighted material immediately.

I expect a response within 72 days to this issue. Thank you for your immediate action on this matter. If no action has been done within 72 hours, this matter will be forwarded to my copyright lawyer who will then take the needed action.

SportsCardGirl.com

(Bold added by me for emphasis)

Again, I don’t know why words like My Logo are capitalized. And how much time do I have-72 hours or 72 days? I don’t think Sports Card Girl knows for sure, either. In “her” first email, “she” threatened to send “her” lawyers (plural) after me; now it’s just one copyright lawyer. If “she” really did have one or more lawyers, then they’d probably draft a better letter than this one.

It gets better. A few minutes later, “she” also emailed the company that hosts my website:

From: Brandy Ruth
Date: August 30, 2010 at 9:25 AM
Subject: Copyright InfringementThe site hosted by your company: puckjunk.com is infringing on my copyrighted materials and needs to be removed.The post is on blogger, however his main domain is promoting this copyright infringements.

Puckjunk.com points to:
http://puckjunk.blogspot.com/2010/08/sports-card-girl-is-scam.html

The owner is the same and he will not release his data for us to send him a cease order.

The articles he is infringing on are:

SportsCardGirl.com Custom Logo (not stock)
My photos, and graphics
My video stills
My site screen-shot with graphics.

All of these are the offenders and need to be dealt with by the owner. Let us know if you need me to have my legal team contact you.

SportsCardGirl

“All of these are the offenders…” Wow, I guess her lawyers / copyright lawyer / legal team didn’t proofread this message too well either.

Obviously, my web host took no action, because no law was transgressed. And the emails stopped after that. But like I said before, I have to call people on their bullshit. I am not vindictive, but I don’t take kindly to threats, either.

In closing, I would like to reiterate a few important points to my fellow legitimate bloggers:

1. Using an image for purpose of review, criticism, news reporting–and even parody–is not copyright infringement, as those are protected by fair use.

2. If you are going to threaten someone with legal action, make sure you know the law first.

3. Defamation is when you write/say hurtful or incorrect statements about someone–not when you write/say something factual that they disagree with or don’t like.

4. When someone gets mad at what you said or wrote, but does not address the issues you raise, then you are probably right.

 

Put Away 10 Cards per Day

“An empty table can be a card collectors best friend. A full table, his worst enemy.”

– Sun Tzu, The Art of War*

That said, in a moment of clarity, I decided to take all of the cards that were cluttering my designated “card table” in my Room Of Hockey, and throw them in a two-column shoebox.

Now, I have a clear table–limitless potential!

But I also have a box of stuff that needs to be sorted and put away. A box…of CHAOS!

I wonder how these things happen. A year ago, I used to sit at this same table and open packs, or put cards into pages. I had the space to do that.

Then the table became overrun with hockey cards…

  • Numerous cards pulled for trades that never happened
  • Unopened packs of Stadium Club from 1999
  • A stack of Classic Hockey cards I picked up last summer at a small card shop downtown
  • Cards that were meant to be sent out for TTM autographs, but never were
  • Old, used top loaders that can be used for trades or as card dividers
  • An insert set of Upper Deck Scoring Predictors from the mid-1990s
  • Some 1990s promo cards
  • A Ryan Kesler Young Guns rookie card
  • Numerous odds and ends 

Behold, this Box of Chaos: 

So, I am going to attempt a new collecting habit. 

Instead of putting things on this table and never dealing with them, I am going to put them in this box.

And each day, I am going to put away at least 10 cards. Maybe more if they are all from the same set.

Sure, that sounds like a chore–but it still beats “real” chores like taking out the garbage, washing dishes, walking the dogs, doing laundry or making the bed.

* – Just kidding…Sun Tzu never said that. 

In other news, I rented a space at a neighborhood Art, Craft and Collectibles Fair over the weekend. I was hoping to cash in on what is left of Blackhawks Mania, but not too many people were interested–even those wearing ‘Hawks apparel. I did manage to unload a few 2010-11 Victory base sets, and a few low-end ‘Hawks cards. But my biggest seller over the weekend was Star Wars action figures. I guess in Chicago, Darth Vader is still more popular than Patrick Kane.

Seven Savard Autographs FTW

This past Saturday was an awesome day for my autograph collection. Former Blackhawks superstar and Hall of Famer Denis Savard was signing autographs at Super Low Foods in Elmwood Park, and I got a bunch of stuff signed. 

Super Low is a small grocery store chain in the Chicago suburbs. I have no idea how they scored Savard to come to their store. And Elmwood Park is a small, insignificant suburb that borders Chicago. I lived in Elmwood Park from 1986 to 1993. My sister R.J. still lives there, and luckily for me she shops at Super Low every week.

About two weeks back, my sister found out about this autograph signing when she saw a picture of Savard, nestled between the sweet corn and the 79-cent pasta

This was the best photo of Savard they could find?

My girlfriend Shellie, sister R.J. and her boyfriend Chris came along too, to help get a few things signed for my collection. We got there at 12:15 pm, and only 10 people were in front of us. The event was very under-publicized–I think it was only mentioned on this flier–so not many ‘Hawks fans showed up. Maybe 60 or 70. Because of the low turnout, everyone was allowed to get 2 things signed. 

R.J. and I each got an 8″ x 10″ photograph signed by Savvy. The ‘Hawks are her second-favorite team (after the Pittsburgh Penguins), and she used to watch hockey with me when we were growing up.

The four of us also got some cards signed…

1982-83 O-Pee-Chee – I now have 73 cards signed from this set, including 11 Blackhawks.

1986-87 O-Pee-Chee – I am working on getting all the ‘Hawks cards from this set signed.

1988-89 O-Pee-Chee – I have the whole team set autographed. But the Savard card I originally got signed as a kid was autographed in pen. This card replaces the one signed in pen.

2006-07 Blackhawks Team Issue – I have 22 out of 28 cards signed from this set. At the time this card was issued, Savard was the Blackhawks head coach.

2009-10 O-Pee-Chee – An awesome card. It says LEGEND at the top. While Savard’s play was legendary when with Chicago, he had some good years with Montreal too. This card looks especially great signed in blue.

2009-10 Champ’s – Last year’s Champ’s set had a classy design. This is the first card I got signed from that set. I have a stack of extras, so I’ll probably try to get more cards in this series ‘graphed.

Savard signed a photo and card for me.

So, after less than an hour waiting in line, I ended up with 7 autographs from one of my favorite players from my childhood. An Epic Win For The Sal.

As usual, Savard was very friendly. In all the years that I have seen him at signing events (going back to 1989), Savard has always been a class act, talking to fans and thanking them for coming. 

I thought about getting in line to get more cards signed–the line was really short, it was barely past 1 pm, and Savard was scheduled to stay until 3 pm.

But I decided not to be so obsessed with autographs (like I was at the Blackhawks Convention last month). After all, I got 7 things signed by a Hall of Fame player. I thanked my lucky stars for that, and the four of us went to lunch.

Photos by Chris Marsh.

Bobby Hull Mural Painting

About 2 weeks ago, I checked out a card shop that I pass by every now and then but have never visited. Once inside, the first thing I noticed was this large painting of Bobby Hull on the wall. It even bears his autograph (dated 1997).

Now, you’d think that any card shop that had a badass painting of The Golden Jet on their wall would have an awesome selection of hockey cards, right?

Wrong. Despite the Hull mural – and the Blackhawks winning the Stanley Cup this year – the store had next to no hockey cards; just a 2007-08 Ovation Update Set and a few packs of In The Game 1972.

It is sad when you visit a card shop for the first time, ready to see what hidden treasures you may unearth for your collection, and find nothing. 

The owner of the store was polite, and explained that hockey was hot right now, and he couldn’t keep it in stock. In fact, he was sold out of the new 2010-11 Victory cards.

So I asked him if he would be interested in buying any hockey cards from the 1960s and 1970s –  I have quite a few duplicate commons and semi-stars I wouldn’t mind parting with. But the owner flat out told me “No,” he only buys baseball cards.

*Sigh*

I don’t understand how a dealer wants to SELL hockey cards, but does not want to BUY hockey cards. Especially with the ‘Hawks being the most popular sports team in Chicago (next to Da Bears, of course).

Not wanting to leave empty-handed, I forked over $10 to buy an Ovation Update Set. Now, I need to find the actual set.

The moral of the story (if there was one) is that a cool Bobby Hull mural on the wall of a card shop is no guarantee that they sell hockey cards.

Historic Hologram

1991-92 Pro Set NHL 75th Anniversary HologramEveryone who collected hockey cards during the early 1990s knows of the Stanley Cup Hologram released by Pro Set during the 1990-91 season. But many don’t know about his little brother – the NHL 75th Anniversary Hologram, produced a year later. To commemorate the NHL’s diamond anniversary, Pro Set made 10,000 copies of this card and randomly inserted them into foil packs of 1991-92 Pro Set Series 2 hockey cards. Continue reading “Historic Hologram”

Sports Card Girl is a Scam

Normally, I’m pretty a pretty laid back person–but once in a while someone on the blogosphere makes me mad, and then I have to call them on their bullshit. Such was the case last year when another hockey blogger stole content from my site. What is irritating me now is a relatively new person on the sports card blog scene, a fabrication known as Sports Card Girl.

Be warned–do not buy anything from Sports Card Girl. Her website is not secure, and the whole thing smells of a scam.

Sport Card Girl started following my blog last week. Whenever I get a new follower, I immediately check out their blog or website. Upon looking at “her” site, many of the links were broken. Intrigued, I did a bit more digging around. Here is what I figured out.

#1 – Too good to be true

Yes, it is completely possible that a super-attractive woman would like sports cards AND blogging AND also happen to run an online retail store. Possible, but highly unlikely.

Many companies have hired attractive women to promote their goods. My old boss–who once worked for Marvel Comics–told me that he used to hire Playboy Magazine models to work at the Marvel Comics booth at Comic-Con. Sex sells.

And those Topps “Rip Party” videos feature an attractive model/spokeswoman. Everyone does this–from beer companies to automobile manufacturers.

The pretty girl that you see on the Sports Card Girl website is just a spokesmodel.  No harm in that, but it gets better (and worse!)

#2 – Her name is Brandy Ruth
Well, that’s the “character’s” name,  Brandy Ruth. And she is an attractive woman–a “babe,” you could say. Babe Ruth. Obviously, an alias–and a poor one at that.

#3 – Have you seen the videos?
Pretending to be the blogger that “she” isn’t, Sport Card Girl has a website, a Twitter account, and a blog that features videos of the model opening packs of cards and such.

One video is particularly telling, where the pretty girl opens up a box that has a signed football helmet inside. Once she gets the box opened, she goes straight for the certificate to read off that it is a Cedrick Benson autograph. Most REAL collectors would look at the item first, and then the certificate of authenticity.

In another video, the footage is flipped. You can tell because the text on the cards is backwards.

This just gets funnier and funnier.

#4 – Her website uses a foreign IP address
A foreign IP means that “her” website is hosted overseas. Why, when there are tons of web hosts in the United States? Over the weekend, fellow blogger and Twitter user Project1962 brought this matter to light, and questioned “her” use of a foreign IP:

Aug. 20, 3:09 PM – @SportsCardGirl what’s your true story? Why the suspicious IP address and the overabundance of stuff for sale?

Aug. 20, 6:28 PM – @Project1962 I hire people to help promote my site (who doesn’t outsource). I have all this stuff to sell because I’m starting a business

Aug. 20, 6:41 PM – @SportsCardGirl Fair enough. It still doesn’t explain the foreign IP address. Not hating, just questioning.

Aug. 20, 6:43 PM – @SportsCardGirl To me it looks like a dist. trying to use a pretty face to boost sales. I could be terribly wrong but that’s my thinking.

Aug. 21, 10:17 AM – @Project1962 i have outsourced to other countries for building links for my site (main purpose of building up search engine rankings)

Aug. 21, 10:18 AM – @Project1962 well, I am trying to turn my hobby into a business. After all, who wants to work for someone else? This is 2yr in makings 4 me

Sports Card Girl didn’t really explain that too well, did “she?” Why a foreign-hosted website? And how can a new business afford a TON of product and to outsource for help with search engine rankings? If none of that is suspicious to you, read on…

#5 – “She” writes like an ESL student…and a man

In my August 14 write-up about the upcoming Ultimate Memorabilia 10 set from ITG, Sports Card Girl gave this lively response:

“Cool cards, but expensive hobby, that best way to have it like what they have said is a group break. And it is fun doing it also.”

A day later, she replied to a thread on The Real DFG:

“I like your story, it is true that a woman [sic] are hard to understand (you can’t read their minds). Just be thankful and place the cards that matters [sic] to you. Keep it simple but contented.”

What…? I know we live in the age of LOLspeak and Tweeting. But who really wrote this? This “broken English” grammar ties in nicely with the website having a foreign IP address.

And what REAL woman (singular) would talk about women (plural) in the third person? According to my girlfriend, an actual woman would say “us” or “we” when referring to women as a collective group.

#6 – “Her” site is NOT secure
Thus far, all of these points have been to prove that Sports Card Girl is not a real person, but a fabrication–a model/actress and a piss-poor social media user. Most likely, this is the efforts of two or more people here. “She” likes and agrees with everything on other blogs, and seems to have an awful lot of trading cards for sale. So I tried to buy something, and noticed that the pages that collect personal data (name, address, payment information) are not secure

A secure page starts with https in the address bar–the “s” stands for secure. Here is an example of a secure web page:

A non-secure page starts with http–no “s”–and is fine for most web pages so long as you are not entering any personal data. Here is an example of a non-secure web page:

Pages that collect personal data on the Sports Card Girl website–as illustrated above–are not secure. Name, email password–all that stuff could easily be intercepted by a hacker if you input it into that site.

All online sellers have to have a detailed Privacy Policy–a page that tells the visitor what information is collected, why it is collected, how it is stored and for what purpose it could be used for. An example would be stating that the site collects a username and password to expedite future purchases. The Privacy Policy on the Sports Card Girl website tell us nothing–literally:

No Privacy Policy and no secure server for ordering. That’s two strikes. Having worked in e-commerce for 6 years, I have spent quite a bit of time writing and revising privacy policies for my former company’s various websites. No credible business collects personal data without telling you how it is used.

Of course, credit card information should never be entered on an unsecure page. Strangely, payment information is collected on another site, which brings me to my final point…

#7 – Who is really selling these cards?
I decided to go through the order process, and bail out once it asked for a credit card number. I added two items to my cart:

  • 2004-05 Upper Deck Exquisite Basketball Cards Hobby Box/Pack @ $2,300.00
  • 2010 Donruss (Panini) Classics Football Hobby Box @ $99.99

I tried creating an account on “her” site, and that did not work (strike three!).

But I was still able to check out my $2,400 “order.” After filling out a a fake name, I was told that the final step of my order would take me to Amazon.com

Upon clicking to Amazon.com, I discovered that one box of cards would be shipped by an Amazon.com Marketplace seller named hotwheelskingdom, while the other box would be fulfilled by Georgetown Card Exchange, Inc.

I went back and tried ordering a different product to see what happened, and according to the Amazon checkout it would be fulfilled by Charm City Cards. 

So, who is really selling these cards?

Is Sports Card Girl just a front for a conglomerate of Amazon Marketplace sellers who need someone sexy to sell their stuff?

Or is “she” really a third party that is trying to cull personal data from sports card collectors easily hypnotized by boobs?

Either way, all of this proves that Sports Card Girl is not a real collector, is not a real blogger and is not a real business. This whole thing is suspicious. Thus, I have blocked her from commenting on my blogs, and would urge others to do the same.

Update (9-14-2010):
Things didn’t end here. Read what happened after I posted this article.

 

‘Hawks sign ulcerative colitis spokesman to 1-year deal

Last week, the Chicago Blackhawks signed free agent winger Fernando Pisani to a 1-year deal.TSN reported this signing on August 18, and pretty much every article has pointed back to TSN’s report–even NHL.com, who you think would really be in the know on these things. The Blackhawks have yet to mention Pisani anywhere on their website. It’s almost been a week, and yet nothing concrete. Continue reading “‘Hawks sign ulcerative colitis spokesman to 1-year deal”

Memphis Card Store Pickups

Put on my blue suede shoes,  
And I boarded a plane…

OK, in reality a few friends and I rented an SUV and drove to Memphis, Tennessee earlier this month. And for the record, I don’t own any blue suede shoes.

So, you’re probably wondering if I saw any historical Civil War sites, or went to Graceland.

Nope. My friends are more into eating barbecue and drinking beer than going to historical places. And Graceland was crowded because it was Elivs’ “death week,” so we avoided going there.

But I did convince the guys to stop at a card shop near Memphis. The shop didn’t have much hockey, but I found a few odds n’ ends that I wanted for my collection.

1994 Classic Pro Prospects Manon Rheaume Autograph – I love the old Classic sets, and Rheaume was a trailblazer who made history. Cost: $10 (though the dealer pointed out that it had a Beckett Value of $80…guess he had this card since ’94 and was sick of looking at it.)

1994 Signature Rookies Wendell Young Autograph – Wendell Young is shown in a non-licensed NHL set–notice that the Lightning logo has been airbrushed off. Back in the day, Young played for my 2nd favorite team, the Pittsburgh Penguins, and later played 7 seasons for the minor league Chicago Wolves. I once had the opportunity to have dinner with Mr. Young; it was almost surreal to “talk hockey” with a pro hockey player. Cost of this card: $2

2000-01 Be A Player Josef Marha Autograph – After playing 3 seasons on a crummy Chicago Blackhawks team, Marha has played the last 9 years in Switzerland. Not really high on my priority list, but it is an autograph of a Blackhawks player. Cost: $2.

1998-99 Be A Player Manny Malhotra Autograph – Manny! It’s Manny! This guy did awesome last season. I was actually hoping that he’d sign with the Blackhawks, but that didn’t happen. Anyway, this Mannygraph cost me $3.

1998-99 Be A Player Grant Fuhr Autograph – How could I pass up an autograph of this Hall of Fame goaltender? It was only $7. I think the dealer made a mistake when he looked up this card on the Beckett Online Price Guide, because other than the Rheume card the guy wasn’t really cutting me any real breaks. He was quoting Beckett like it was The Bible. Then again, I was in Tennessee…

2005-06 In the Game Heroes and Prospects John Tavares – Chronologically, this was Tavares’ first hockey card. One day, I hope to have this entire set. Cost: $10.

Jeremy Roenick / Keith Tkachuk Dual Jersey Card – Yes, a jersey card. I usually hate on these things, but this one was particularly nice. Roenick is probably my 2nd favorite player of all-time after Chris Chelios, and I’ve liked Keith Tkachuk ever since he played for the 1992 U.S. Olympic Team. At $14, this was the most expensive card I purchased there.

1997-98 Leaf International Complete Set – At this point, the card dealer’s internet stopped working, so he couldn’t look up any more Beckett prices. He sold this to me for $12. Not sure what this set is “worth,” but a complete set for twelve bucks is a complete set for twelve bucks.And it’s soooooo shiny.

There were a few other cards I would have liked to have purchased, but I wasn’t really “feeling it” at this card shop. The dealer was cordial, but seemed inconvenienced by my presence–especially since he had to look up EVERY SINGLE CARD that I was interested in.

The dealer also wasn’t willing to negotiate on any of his prices. Specifically, I wanted to purchase 2 other cards at $38, but he wanted $45 for the pair. Granted, I was asking him to knock off $7, but then I would have spent an even $100, instead of $62. It seemed like a fair request but the guy wouldn’t budge.

So I decided to spend the other $38 on beer and barbecue.

Card Imitates Life

1992-93 Topps Stadium Club card #410 – Pat Elynuik

1992-93 Topps Stadium Club card #410 - Pat Elynuik“Art imitates life,” or so the saying goes. Sometimes, cards imitate life too. Such is the case with this card of former NHL player Pat Elynuik. On his 1992-93 Topps Stadium Club trading card, Elynuik poses with a bunch of Topps, Bowman and O-Pee-Chee cards from the previous year.

It is a worthless hockey card that shows a bunch of equally worthless hockey cards. Continue reading “Card Imitates Life”

Vintage Rookie Card Haul

I have been a bit slow on getting this post together. About 2 months back, I picked up a monster lot of vintage hockey rookie cards. And I mean MONSTER. Most of these players were “names,” and quite a few of them are now in the Hall of Fame.

1972-73 O-Pee-Chee Rene Robert (RC) -Robert, along with Rick Martin and Gilbert Perreault, played on Buffalo’s famed “French Connection” line.

1972-73 O-Pee-Chee Jerry Korab (RC) -“King Kong” Korab played 14 seasons in the NHL, with Chicago, Buffalo and Los Angeles.

1972-73 O-Pee-Chee GuyCharron (RC) -Charron would eventually go on to captain the Atlanta Flames.

1972-73 O-Pee-Chee Dave Hudson (RC) – Never again will card companies superimpose players over a bright pink background, but I can dream. By the way, I’m slowly building a ’72-73 OPC set. Only 300 cards (or so) to go…

1974-75 O-Pee-Chee Lanny McDonald (RC) – Now we’re talking! Lanny before the mustache. He is in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

1974-75 O-Pee-Chee Scotty Bowman (RC) -A Hall of Fame coach, general manager and executive. The greatest mind in hockey.. Unfortunately, this Scotty Bowman card has a few creases and rough corners.

1974-75 Topps Denis Potvin (RC) – A third HOFer in this lot. Potvin played 15 seasons with the New York Islanders.

1975-76 O-Pee-Chee W.H.A. Larry Pleau  (RC) – Pleau played for the New England Whalers of the World Hockey Association.

1978-79 Topps Doug Wilson (RC) -Wilson played 16 seasons in the NHL, won the Norris Trophy in 1982, was the first-ever team captain of the San Jose Sharks, played in 8 All-Star Games, was a 1st Team All-Star once and a 2nd Team All-Star Twice. And he should be in the Hockey Hall of Fame. I think he was blacklisted by the NHL owners because Wilson was heavily involved in the Players’ Association

1978-79 O-Pee-Chee Brian Sutter (RC) -The most successful of the six Sutter Brothers who played in the NHL.

1980-81 O-Pee-Chee Michel Goulet (RC) -Another Hall of Fame player, Goulet started his playing career in the World Hockey Assocation with the Birmingham Bulls. He then played for the Quebec Nordiques and Chicago Blackhawks. Unfortunately, a concussion ended his career in 1994.

1980-81 O-Pee-Chee Brad Marsh (RC) -Notice the giant “A” was airbrushed off of Brad Marsh’s jersey. That’s because in 1980 the team moved from Atlanta to Calgary. Also notice that Brad Marsh has hair! By the time I started watching hockey, he was practically bald.

1980-81 O-Pee-Chee Craig Hartsburg (RC) -This guy was a teammate of Michel Goulet’s with the Birmingham Bulls, then played a decade for the Minnesota North Stars.

1980-81 Topps Mike Gartner (RC) -Gartner played a season in the WHA before going on to a 19-year Hall of Fame career.

1981-82 O-Pee-Chee Darryl Sutter (RC) -Here a Sutter, there a Sutter, everywhere a Sutter Darryl eventually became the team captain of the Blackhawks, but his career was cut short by injuries.

1981-82 O-Pee-Chee Dino Ciccarelli – Dino was inducted into the Hall of Fame this year.

1981-82 O-Pee-Chee Peter Stastny (RC) -Stastny won the Calder trophy in 1981. He played 15 seasons in the NHL with  the Quebec Nordiques, New Jersey Devils and St. Louis Blues.

1981-82 O-Pee-Chee Jari Kurri (RC) -A major reason why the Oilers were such a powerhouse in the 1980s.

1981-82 O-Pee-Chee Glenn Anderson (RC) – Another Hall of Fame Edmonton Oilers player.

1981-82 O-Pee-Chee Andy Moog (RC) – Moog was a backup goalie for several seasons until he got traded to the Bruins.

1981-82 O-Pee-Chee Kevin Lowe (RC) – With players like Gretzky, Messier, Kurri, Anderson and Lowe,s it any wonder that the Oilers won 5 Stanley Cup Championships in 7 years?

1981-82 O-Pee-Chee Paul Coffey (RC) – Oh, and Paul Coffey too. Unfortunately, this card has a light crease to the left of the Oilers logo on Coffey’s sweater. Still, it is a pretty badass card to own.

1984-85 O-Pee-Chee Tom Barrasso (RC) -Barrasso won the Calder, Vezina and Jennings Trophy during the 1983-84 season, and had a lengthy NHL career.

I got a few non-RCs in the lot too…

1972-73 O-Pee-Chee Rick Martin – This is Martin’s 2nd card. Along with Rene Robert and Gilbert Perreault, Martin was on the Buffalo Sabres famed “French Connection” line.

1985-86 O-Pee-Chee Chris Chelios – The 2nd-year card of my hero, Chris Chelios. I am actually trying to collect every Chelios card ever made, and still needed this relatively easy-to-find card.

1975-76 O-Pee-Chee W.H.A. Poul Popiel – Popiel was the first person from Denmark to play in the National Hockey League, and was later an All-Star player in the World Hockey Association (as indicated by this card). One day, I hope to own this entire set.

1975-76 O-Pee-Chee W.H.A. Jacques Plante – I’ll leave you all with arguably the best (not necessarily most valuable) card of the lot–Jacques Plante. After retiring a year to coach the Quebec Nordiques, Plante made a 1-year comeback with the Alberta Oilers of the World Hockey Association. I love the way Plante is gazing off into the distance, and that he is holding his invention–the goalie mask. A fitting “last” card for the legendary player.