Hockey cards, collectibles and culture
By John Geoffrion
What follows is an entirely fictional account, but based on the 1970-71 Topps Hockey set and the transactions that happened right around the print deadline, it’s probably close to reality… Continue reading “Card of the Week: 1970-71 Topps Bob Baun”
Every NHL head coach has either played or coached at some level before becoming a “bench boss” in The Show. Maybe he was a solid NHL player. Or maybe he was a minor leaguer who grinded out a career. Or maybe he quit playing after junior hockey and got into coaching at a relatively young age.
Thus, almost every NHL head coach for the 2023-24 season had at least one hockey card issued during either their playing or coaching career. Here is each coach’s “rookie card” if they played in the NHL, or “first-ever” card if they played elsewhere. This list includes all the coaching changes made during the 2023-24 season.
Continue reading “Rookie Cards of Every NHL Head Coach for the 2023-24 Season”
You are probably asking yourself, who are “Those Guys” – those two middle-aged men clad in yellow polo shirts.
Are they the team’s owners? Coaches? Equipment guys?
The ushers? Ticket takers? Concession stand workers?
Nope – they are the guys who produced a team set of minor league hockey cards. This might be the most self-serving hockey card of all time.
The front of this hockey card says “Crowd Records.”
But what record is this crowd setting?
And why was this card even made, anyway?
On Tuesday, former minor hockey league legend Cornelius “Connie” Madigan passed away at age 89. He has the record of being the oldest rookie to play in the NHL, which he set when he suited up for the St. Louis Blues towards the end of the 1972-73 season at the age of 38. Madigan’s stint with the Blues indirectly lead to a bit part in the film Slap Shot, which indirectly led to him getting his own rookie card – albeit 38 years after his NHL debut.
With the year winding down, it’s about time we enshrine some of the worst hockey cards ever made into the Puck Junk Bad Hockey Card Hall of Fame: Class of 2023.
This year’s Bad Hockey Card Hall of Fame Class is headlined by three new members in the Bad Paint Job category as well as three members in the Bad Photo category. Also represented this year is the Bad Idea category, the Bad Mistake category, and the Bad Head Swap category. But really, is there such thing as a good head swap on a trading card?
Anyway, I present to you, the Puck Junk Bad Hockey Card Hall of Fame: Class of 2023!
Continue reading “The Puck Junk Bad Hockey Card Hall of Fame: Class of 2023”
Every NHL head coach has played hockey at some time in their life prior to stepping behind the bench. Some were NHL superstars, others grinded it out in the minors for years, while others got into coaching soon after their junior or collegiate careers came to an end. All 32 NHL coaches for the 2022-23 season has had at least one hockey card issued picturing them — either as a player or as a coach, because not all of them were “good enough” to get a card while they were playing.
Here is my annual list of rookie cards for every head coach in the NHL this season — updated to include Rick Tocchet’s replacement of Bruce Boudreau midway through the season. I’ve also included the comparative monetary value of each card — spoiler alert: most are worth very little — as well as how tough it is to track down…you know, in case you want to start a John Tortorella hockey card collection.
Continue reading “Rookie Cards of Every NHL Head Coach for the 2022-23 Season”
I’ve collected hockey cards for over 30 years, and in that time I’ve seen a lot of bad cards. Really bad cards. So, in 2017, I started the Puck Junk Bad Hockey Card Hall of Fame to spotlight the worst hockey cards ever made.
Just as the Hockey Hall of Fame is enshrining new members this weekend, so too is the Puck Junk Bad Hockey Card Hall of Fame. This year, 10 pieces of cardboard get honored for being horrible — be it for bad photography, bad paintjobs, or just being awful all around.
Continue reading “The Puck Junk Bad Hockey Card Hall of Fame: Class of 2022”
Last week, Cobra Kai Season 4 premiered on Netflix and quickly became the streaming service’s most-watched series. But did you know that Cobra Kai and Karate Kid star Ralph Macchio had his own hockey card 30 years ago? Here’s how –and why — it happened.
The year 2021 would not be complete until 10 more cards are inducted into the Puck Junk Bad Hockey Card Hall of Fame. Since 2017, this website has honored the most-horrendous hockey cards ever made. Some cards use bad photos, other cards have janky paint jobs…and some cards are just straight-up awful and should not have been made in the first place.
So, before we can ring in 2022, let’s take a look at some of the worst hockey cards ever made.
Continue reading “The Puck Junk Bad Hockey Card Hall of Fame: Class of 2021”