Unlicensed Hockey Card, circa 1991

If there was ever a hockey card that made me both laugh and vomit at the same time, this would be the one. Entitled “New Kids on the Ice,” this bootleg card pictures Eric Lindros, Sergei Fedorov and Ed Belfour on the front.

Those players remind me of hockey in the early 1990s, which in turn makes me smile. But the title at the top is an obvious reference to the popular boy band of the time, New Kids on the Block. And that makes me nauseous. Hence the dual feelings elicited by this fake card.

Continue reading “Card of the Week: New Kids on the Ice”

2010-11 Score Rookie & Traded #659 – Taro Tsujimoto

Back in the 1970s, the NHL draft was not televised or open to the public. They were either held in a hotel or conducted via telephone. In the 1974 NHL Amateur Draft, Buffalo Sabres general manager George “Punch” Imlach was bored. So, in the 11th round he had a little fun and drafted a player that did not really exist – Taro Tsujimoto from the Tokyo Katanas of the Japan Hockey League. Continue reading “Card of the Week: Invalid Claim”

1993 Classic Superheroes #SS2 Manon Rheaume

Anyone who remembers hockey in the early 1990s of course remembers Manon Rheame – the first woman to play in an NHL exhibition game. Trading card company Classic issued over two dozen cards of Rheaume, including this odd super hero-themed card. Continue reading “Super Manon”

1992-93 Pinnacle card #233 – Sidelines Doug Gilmour

Why is Doug Gilmour dressed as a metrosexual cowboy?

Anyone who collected hockey cards in 1992 might have asked themselves that question. Of course, this was a good decade before the term metrosexual was even coined. Continue reading “Cattle Thief & Maple Leaf”

1992-93 Score American #486: Ray Leblanc

Goaltender Ray LeBlanc is not your typical One Game Wonder. Sure, he played exactly 1 game in the NHL, but he was the focus of national attention during the 1992 Winter Olympics, when he lead an unlikely U.S. squad into the medal round. Continue reading “Card of the Week: U-S-Ray!”

1973-74 Chicago Black Hawks Postcards – Dale Tallon

A number is more than just a number when it comes to sports . Many times, it becomes synonymous with the player itself. Thus, it is unwise to give a new player number last worn by a superstar. Those are some big skates to fill, and fans are always going to draw comparisons. But the Chicago Black Hawks ignored that logic in 1973 when they issued Dale Tallon number 9 – the very same digit made famous by Bobby Hull for 15 seasons. Continue reading “The Other Number Nine”

1992 Upper Deck Christmas card #8 of 10 – Ruff Play

Every so often, trading card companies would release Christmas-themed cards. The most famous for hockey collectors is most likely the 1991-92 Parkhurst Santa Claus card. A distant second might be this card, of a humble dog-turned-goalie. Continue reading “Puck-Stopping Pooch”

1970-71 O-Pee-Chee card #231 – Terry Sawchuk

When a player changes teams, card makers always found a way to respond. Current companies like Upper Deck and Panini will get a very recent photo that shows the player with his new squad, while back in the day Topps and O-Pee-Chee would alter the photo to “change” the player’s uniform–or at the very least mention the trade somewhere on the card. But how do card companies respond when a player passes away? This heavy topic is almost always avoided by card makers. There have been a few notable exceptions, like this tribute card of Terry Sawchuk released by O-Pee-Chee in their 1970-71 set. Continue reading “In Memory of…”

2010-11 Panini Playoff Contenders card #13 – Sean Avery

The biographical blurb on the back of a hockey card usually mentions some sort of accomplishment – an award won, a multi-point game or other accolade. In their 2010-11 Playoff Contenders set, Panini America highlighted Sean Avery’s antics in the 2008 playoffs that led to a rule change. Continue reading “Game Changer”

1991-92 Upper Deck cards #647 – Bloodlines: Valery and Pavel Bure

When the hockey card market suddenly got crowded in 1990, companies had to find a way to stand out from their competition. Parallels and inserts were not yet commonplace, so card makers resorted to an age-old tactic to make as many cards of the most popular players as possible: subsets. One subset in particular – Upper Deck’s “Bloodlines” from their 1991-92 release – features a memorable card of the Bure brothers “enjoying” a day at the beach. Continue reading “Bures and the Beach”