News & Views

Completing Your Sets is a Lot of Work!

Time is Money…and Money is Money. 

Earlier this month, I was writing an article about goalie-themed hockey card sets and mentioned the Between the Pipes sets that came out in the 2000s and 2010s. I went into my closet and found my 2013-14 Between the Pipes set so I could scan a few of its cards. 

Or, rather, I should say I found my near-complete set of 2013-14 Between the Pipes, as it is missing 14 cards. That means that, in over 10 years, I’ve never bothered to finish the set. I opened one box, put the cards in order, then promptly forgot about it for a decade.

I was then reminded that I made a Collecting Resolution for 2025 that I was going to try and complete as many sets as possible this year. Heck, I even wrote about it back in January, thinking that by making this proclamation public, I would follow through on it. 

Do you care to guess how many sets I’ve finished in 2025 so far? Continue reading “Completing Your Sets is a Lot of Work!”

Clemente’s Corner: Matthew Schaefer Ready to Anchor Islanders’ Future

When the New York Islanders stepped up to the podium at the 2025 NHL Draft, they didn’t just select a defenseman — they chose resilience.

Matthew Schaefer, an elite two-way blueliner from Ontario, was taken No. 1 overall this past June. At 6-foot-1 and loaded with skills that include smooth skating and crisp passing, Schaefer checks every box for a franchise looking to make the playoffs this season and be relevant again.  

But his game is only part of the story. The 17-year-old endured a year that would shake anyone – overcoming mono and sustaining a broken collarbone at the 2025 World Junior Championships. It also included the deaths – just months apart – of his mother and his billet mom. On draft night, he kissed a pink breast cancer ribbon stitched into his Islanders jersey.

Schaefer models his game after Cale Makar, but his mentality may be even more important to the Isles’ rebuild. Now, as he eyes his first NHL training camp, I caught up with Schaefer at the annual NHLPA Rookie Showcase, co-sponsored by Upper Deck, at the MedStar Capitals Iceplex near Washington, D.C.

Continue reading “Clemente’s Corner: Matthew Schaefer Ready to Anchor Islanders’ Future”

Mattel Releases Tim Horton’s PWHL Barbie Dolls – Then Promptly Sells Out!

Last week Monday, the Tim Horton’s donut chain teamed up with Mattel and the Professional Women’s Hockey League to sell two special hockey-themed Barbie dolls. One of the Barbie dolls is blonde and modeled after Marie-Philip Poulin, while the other has darker hair and is modeled after Sarah Nurse. 

But if you are looking for one, you’ll have to check eBay, because the dolls sold out the day they were released.

Continue reading “Mattel Releases Tim Horton’s PWHL Barbie Dolls – Then Promptly Sells Out!”

I Had a Blast at the 2025 National Sports Collectors Convention

I Met Great People & Got Some Great Cards, Too! 

Puck Junk Podcast hosts Tim Parish, Clemente Lisi, and Sal Barry.

About six weeks ago, I was disappointed to learn that my usual booth space at the National Sports Collectors Convention would no longer be available. With the show only weeks away, there was zero chance for me to get a booth for the 2025 convention. 

So, once I got over the initial disappointment, I decided that I would go to the National as a fan. I purchased a 5-Day VIP pass and updated my want list. 

And boy, did I have fun! 

This year, I had time to hang out with friends at the show, including Puck Junk Podcast co-hosts Tim Parish and Clemente Lisi, who have a knack for helping me find things I am looking for. I got to talk with many listeners of the podcast, as well as readers of the Puck Junk newsletter and blog. 

I also had tons of time to look around and find new treasures for my personal collection. This is pretty much impossible to do when I am tied (figuratively speaking) to a booth at the National. Instead, I got to roam freely around, get a few autographs, and buy some great hockey cards. 

Here are some of my best pickups from the 2025 National Sports Collectors Convention.  Continue reading “I Had a Blast at the 2025 National Sports Collectors Convention”

Clemente’s Corner: Hockey Cards a Surprise Hit at the 2025 National

The 45th edition of the National Sports Collectors Convention at the Donald E. Stephens Convention Center on July 30 to August 3, 2025, was expected to be dominated by baseball.

And it was.

With nearly 700 vendors and record-breaking attendance, the five-day bonanza in Chicago was a massive showcase for cards and memorabilia.

What I didn’t anticipate – and was happily surprised by – was the large presence of both vintage and modern hockey cards across the show floor. Continue reading “Clemente’s Corner: Hockey Cards a Surprise Hit at the 2025 National”

How Should You Invest in Cards?

Here’s Two Things to Know if You Invest in Cards

Earlier this week, I was a guest on the XM Radio talk show NHL Morning Skate LIVE, talking about hockey cards, as well as the upcoming National Sports Collectors Convention. Host Mick Kern asked me an interesting question – one that I do not get asked too often.

He asked what I would tell someone if they asked how they can get started investing in trading cards. Continue reading “How Should You Invest in Cards?”

Making Lemonade from Lemons

I’ll be at the National This Year – But Not as a Dealer

A few weeks back, I got some disappointing news. The vendor that I set up with at the National Sports Collectors Convention over the past four years informed me that they sold their booth space for the upcoming National to another company.

That means that I will not be setting up to sell hockey cards and collectibles at the National this year because it was way too late for me to get a booth on my own. 

Initially, I was disappointed. Heck, I was bummed. I jokingly told a friend that it felt like getting dumped, minus the crying. 

But then I asked myself, would going to the National as a shopper – not as a seller – this year be such a bad thing? 

Continue reading “Making Lemonade from Lemons”

Clemente’s Corner: The Sharks, Rollerblades and a Time Machine to the ‘90s

We collectors do love nostalgia. It’s a way to connect our memories about legendary teams, players and games to the present using small pieces of cardboard. It’s a wonderful pursuit and the reason why so many of us have binders full of cards on our shelves and in our closets from the 1980s and ‘90s.

Another way to connect with the past is through books. One book that will take hockey fans back to that analog time is Brad Porteus’s “Roll With It.” It’s a heartfelt and humorous memoir that delivers exactly what its subtitle promises: “A trip back to the ‘90s – Gen X style.”

Continue reading “Clemente’s Corner: The Sharks, Rollerblades and a Time Machine to the ‘90s”

Rookie Cards of Every NHL 1st Overall Pick

Which Top Picks Were Booms – or Busts? 

The 2025 NHL Draft took place last weekend, and defenseman Matthew Schaefer was taken first overall by the New York Islanders. If Schaefer makes his NHL debut this fall, collectors will undoubtedly be looking for his Young Guns rookie card when it appears in 2025-26 Upper Deck Series Two. And depending on how good the young d-man plays, collectors may even buy his RCs found in other sets like O-Pee-Chee Platinum or SP Authentic. 

In fact, ever since 1990, hockey collectors have anticipated a first-overall pick’s rookie card, usually buying like crazy when their RCs first hit the market. Such was the case with Connor Bedard in 2023-24, Connor McDavid in 2015-16, Sidney Crosby in 2005-06, and numerous other first-overall picks.

I recently wrote a story for Sports Collectors Digest about every first-overall pick since 1963 – the year the NHL implemented a draft – and their rookie cards.

Do you know who the first-ever first-overall pick was?

How about the first goalie taken first overall?

The first American? 

The first European?

Which first-overall pick got a rookie card two years before his NHL debut?

Or did not get a rookie card until four years after his NHL debut? 

If you want to know the answer to these questions and more, you can read my article here at the Sports Collectors Digest website. 

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Follow Sal Barry on Bluesky @PuckJunk and on X/Twitter @PuckJunk. ■

The 8th Annual Puck Junk Awards

Another NHL season has come to an end, some players won awards – and some players who should have won awards were overlooked. 

Hence, the foundation of the annual Puck Junk Awards in 2018. Now in its 8th year, the Puck Junk Awards honor the unsung heroes – such as the best scorer who can fight, the player who came out of nowhere and wowed everyone, and the least-likely goalie to tend the twine. 

So, without further delay, here are the Puck Junk Award Winners for 2025. 

Continue reading “The 8th Annual Puck Junk Awards”