Hockey cards, collectibles and culture
By Sean Sullivan
Connor Bedard mania has run wild throughout the hockey-collecting community this season, and on April 18, the game-worn jersey collecting segment joined in on the fun – but not without some controversy. Continue reading “Despite Issues, Connor Bedard Game-Used Jersey Fetches $37K”
Back in February, you may recall that a full 16-box case of 1979-80 O-Pee-Chee Hockey cards sold for $3.72 million at Heritage Auctions. The case may potentially have as many as 25 Wayne Gretzky rookie cards inside that presumably would get high grades.
Well, the winning bidder still has not paid in full for the case – and he no longer wants it.
Considering how hard it has been to buy almost any recent hockey card products, the idea of actually getting some 2024 hockey cards in 2024 – for free, no less! – is exciting!
This Saturday – April 13 – is National Hockey Card Day in the U.S., in Canada, and in even some other countries around the world. Fans who visit a participating card shop can get a free, exclusive pack of National Hockey Card Day 2024 cards, made by Upper Deck. Continue reading “2024 National Hockey Card Day is This Saturday”
Last week, the 2023-24 SP Game Used Hockey set hit hobby shops and shipped from online retailers.
While several Connor Bedard autographed cards were issued in Upper Deck Series Two, this year’s SP Game Used set has his first truly high-end rookie cards, such as rookie patch autographs (RPAs), and autographed letter mark cards.
Continue reading “High-End Connor Bedard Cards Are Finally Here”
When You Start at the Top, There’s Only One Way to Go.This past weekend, I set up at the Chicago Sports Spectacular to sell hockey cards and t-shirts. The Spectacular is a twice-annual, three-day show with around 400 vendors and dozens of autograph guests. The show draws a large crowd, and many in the crowd were wearing Blackhawks jerseys with Connor Bedard’s name and number 98 on the back.
The March Chicago Sports Spectacular was the first major Chicago-area show since Bedard’s Young Guns card was released in 2023-24 Upper Deck Series 2 on March 6 – and as you probably have guessed, everyone was talking about him.
At least half of the people who stopped by my booth asked if I had any Bedard cards, though many of them were looking specifically for his Young Guns card. And some even offered to sell me a Bedard Young Guns card, usually asking around $500 to $600. I could have bought that card ten times over.
But I didn’t. Continue reading “The Decline in Value of the Connor Bedard Young Guns Card”
I’ve never seen anything like this.
In my 35+ years of collecting hockey cards, I have never seen so much hype over one brand-new hockey card.
I was collecting cards in 1990 when Eric Lindros was being called “The Next One,” and everyone was hoarding his 1990-91 Score rookie cards.
I remember the hype over Sidney Crosby and how tough it was to find 2005-06 hockey cards that were not marked up to (then) ridiculous prices – because there might be a Crosby rookie card inside.
More recently, I recall the anticipation for Connor McDavid’s Young Guns card, which was fetching $275 right out of the gate when 2015-16 Upper Deck Series 1 launched in November 2015.
But none of that matches the anticipation, the hype, the fervor, caused by Connor Bedard’s Young Guns rookie card – a card that technically comes out today with the launch of 2023-24 Upper Deck Series 2 Hockey, but has already found its way on eBay a few days ago.
We as collectors spend a lot of time seeking out the trading cards that we want. But do we spend any time enjoying the cards once we have them? It seems like once I got a card that I liked, it would be tucked away in a nine-pocket page or filed into a box, seldom to be seen again.
That is understandable, since exposure to light over a long period of time can cause cards to fade. But recently, I got into the wonderful practice of putting my favorite cards on display. Here’s how you can safely display your favorite sports or gaming cards to show off to your friends and family – or just to enjoy having in your collection. Read the rest of the story at the BCW Supplies Blog.
Here’s a story about a Connor Bedard trading card I tried – unsuccessfully – to purchase recently.
Continue reading “Connor Bedard Game Dated Moments Card Sells Out in 8 Minutes – Twice!”
With 2023 now fully behind us, I wanted to take a look back at the Puck Junk Podcast and how it did last year. During 2023, we released 36 episodes of the Puck Junk Podcast. That was five more episodes than we released in 2022 (31 episodes), and 10 more episodes than we released 2021 (26 episodes).
In 2023, our podcast had more listeners than ever, experiencing about a 25% growth over 2022.
As for our listeners, 55% of our listeners are from the United States and 38% are from Canada. No surprises there. But rounding out the top five countries that listened to the Puck Junk Podcast are Germany, Finland, and…Singapore?
Yep. We also have listeners from Australia, Norway, Sweden, the United Kingdom, and the Czech Republic.
If you are a recent subscriber to the Puck Junk Podcast, you may have missed out on some of our best episodes from 2023. Or maybe you are a longtime listener and one of these episodes flew under your radar. Either way, here are the five most-listened to episodes of the Puck Junk Podcast from 2023.
Happy 2024, Puck Junk readers! With the New Year only a day old, I figured now would be a good time to give a quick recap of the site’s most-read articles that were published during 2023. Even though they are from last year, if you haven’t read them, then they are new to you.