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.

Review: 2002-03 Fleer Throwbacks

91-card set “punches it” old school

2002-03 Fleer Throwbacks #62 - Ken Linseman

There are hockey card sets dedicated to goaltenders. There are hockey card sets dedicated to leading scorers. And then, there’s Fleer Throwbacks.

At a glance:
– 2002-03 Fleer Throwbacks
– 91 cards
– 1 “bonus” Bob Probert card
– Size: 2 1/2″ x 3 1/2″
– Download Checklist

The term “throwback” implies something that hearkens back to an earlier time period or age. The 2002-03 Fleer Throwbacks hockey set features 91 former players who aptly fit that description – men who were tough enough to play in any era. Most of the players in this set were known for their rough-and-tumble style of play, while others were just gritty. No, this isn’t merely an homage to “goons” or “enforcers” – though Fleer Throwbacks has plenty of those, too.

Continue reading “Review: 2002-03 Fleer Throwbacks”

ITG Kicks It Way Old School

The 2010-11 season marks the 100th Anniversary of hockey cards. A century ago, the first set of hockey cards–now known as the C56 set–was released by Imperial Tobacco. One hockey card was placed in each pack of cigarettes to keep the cigs from breaking.

To commemorate this, In The Game is kicking it old school–way old school. Their Ultimate Memorabilia 10 hockey set will feature a base card design that looks like the century old portraits of the C56 set. But there’s a twist–apparently, the set will feature relatively newer players like Mario Lemieux (above) and Ted Lindsay (left). Redemption cards for graded copies of 1910-11 C56 cards will be randomly inserted.

The look of this set excites me. I love painted cards, such as the old Hockey Hall of Fame Postcards, Donruss Ice Kings/Ice Masters–even those Upper Deck checklists from the early 1990s. The thought of collecting a set that looks pre-World War One is enticing.

However, I have never bought Ultimate Memorabilia before. It seems like a very expensive product (several hundred dollars for a 5-pack box). And since I’m more interested in the base cards then memorabilia cards, I don’t know how re-sell-able (if that’s even a word) the memorabilia inserts are.

Has anyone collected Ultimate Memorabilia in the past? How was the set? How much did a box cost? Are the memorabilia insert cards easy to re-sell, or hard to because they don’t have the team logos? 

I am so not a jersey card kind of guy, so shelling out hundreds of dollars to go after “base” cards doesn’t seem like the greatest idea. Then again, I’ve never bought any of ITG’s memorabilia products. Maybe I’ll like them if I try them.

The Beckett / Craig Ferguson Conspiracy

I must be a sucker. Yesterday, a telemarketer from Beckett Publications, named “Sid“–but probably really named Samir–called me and asked if I wanted to renew my subscription to Beckett Hockey Magazine. And I said “yes.”

Now, I was about to tell Sid (Samir) that I do not wish to subscribe to Beckett Hockey, because the magazine is really just inflated card values and regurgitated press releases from Upper Deck.

But the problem was, I kept thinking of Sid, the cursing rabbit puppet from “The Late Show with Craig Ferguson.” Ferguson voices the foul-mouthed, Scottish-accented puppet.

With my defenses down, Sid (Samir) dropped the bomb on me: TWO years of Beckett Hockey for $36. That’s $3 per issue, plus I would get two free card gradings.

Hmmmm….maybe $3 an issue isn’t too much to satisfy my morbid curiosity. So, I caved in and bought a two-year subscription. Perhaps if enough of us buy in, Beckett will print thoughtful articles again instead of the usual “They Say / We Say” nonsense.

Now, most normal people don’t think of a cursing rabbit puppet from late night television when they hear the name “Sid”. But most normal people don’t blog about trading cards based on the 5th most popular sport in the U.S., either.

But here’s where things got freaky. While doing a Google Image Search to find a few pictures of Sid the Rabbit, I came across a video of an interview with Craig Ferguson, regarding his voice acting work in the film How to Train Your Dragon.

Sure, nothing weird there–until I clicked play to watch the video and an ad for Beckett appeared!

Beckett has found a way to use my enjoyment of Craig Ferguson’s comedy against me. Am I crazy, or is this the beginning of a conspiracy theory?

In other news not related to Beckett, Craig Ferguson or conspiracy theories…you might want to check out this contest over on Fuji’s blog.

2010 ‘Hawks Con – Day Three

NOTE: You might want to read Day One and Day Two first:
2010 ‘Hawks Con – Day One
2010 ‘Hawks Con – Day Two

Chicago, IL – Aug. 1, 2010

On the third day of the convention, I pretty much spent the whole time waiting in lines to get autographs. 

In retrospect, I regret not going to more panel discussions.

But at the time, I was excited because I had those VIP signing session passes, which entitled me to get autographs from the best ‘Hawks players.

So, that’s how Sunday went. I waited in line, again and again and again.

I also made a few purchases, and my girlfriend interviewed several artists at the convention. Continue reading “2010 ‘Hawks Con – Day Three”

2010 ‘Hawks Con – Day Two

NOTE: You might want to read the Day One recap first:
2010 ‘Hawks Con – Day One


Chicago, IL – July 31, 2010

We arrived at the convention around 9:30 AM, and headed over to the autograph room to try and get wristbands. Scheduled to sign at 11 AM were Stan Mikita and Eric Daze.

It turns out that Mikita was sick, and did not attend the show over the weekend. My girlfriend and I each got a wristband for Eric Daze. Continue reading “2010 ‘Hawks Con – Day Two”

2010 ‘Hawks Con – Day One

After some computer problems, then a road trip to Memphis, I am finally getting around to posting my recap of the 2010 Blackhawks Convention (“Hawks Con”).

Chicago, IL – July 30, 2010

Opening Ceremony
We arrive at ‘Hawks Con around 4:30 PM. Every year, the convention officially starts with an “Opening Ceremony” at 5:00 PM. In 2008, this was very cool, as the team announced that Jonathan Toews was appointed captain, and that  number 3 was being retired to honor both Keith Magnusson and Pierre Pilote. Huge news that the die-hards like myself got to hear first. Continue reading “2010 ‘Hawks Con – Day One”

2010 ‘Hawks Con recap soon…

A plethora of computer problems have have kept me from posting my recap about the 2010 Chicago Blackhawks Convention (aka “Hawks Con”).

Problem 1: My video editing software keeps crashing. Coincidentally, my girlfriend had the same problem with her video editing software too.

Problem 2: The flatbed scanner I ordered from NewEgg.com hasn’t arrived yet. My old scanner still works, but the scan quality sucks.

Problem 3: I’ve tried running MalwareBytes (a free malware-removal software) and my computer crashed.

Problem 4: I tried burning things to DVD–so as to free up some space on the hard drive–and that crashed my computer too.

Anyway, once I get to the bottom of these problems, expect a full day-by-day recap that will include video, scans of items I got autographed, a few cool stories and some neat purchases.

In other news, the Blackhawks signed Marty Turco, which means they won’t be re-signing Antti Niemi. They can’t afford him, since the Cup-winning goalie is set to make $2.75 million per year, thanks to his arbitration hearing.

What I don’t understand is, why did the ‘Hawks tie up $3.5 million per year re-signing defenseman Nicklas Hjalmarsson? Hjalmarsson was the 4th or 5th defender on the team, and had he gone to San Jose the Blackhawks would have had the money to re-sign Niemi AND get some compensation from the Sharks. I’d rather have a number one goalie for $2.75 mil than a 4th defender for $750,000 more. Plus, the ‘Hawks have a top defensive prospect in Nick Leddy, who left college after his freshman year to join the ‘Hawks this fall.