Hockey cards, collectibles and culture
Puck Junk celebrated its 6th anniversary this weekend. And by “celebrated,” what I really mean is “did not get updated for over two weeks.” Yeah. That said, I’m still “all-in” when it comes to the hobby of collecting hockey cards. A few things have kept me away from this bliggity-blog, including playing in a low-level … Continue reading “Puck Junk is 6…and Love Junk is 25”
Truth be told, I did not enjoy the 2013 National as much as I enjoyed the 2011 National.This was because I had less money to spend this time around. However, there was far less hockey this time around too. So, I had less to spend — and less to spend it on. I couldn’t be … Continue reading “Cards I purchased at the 2013 National”
Saturday, July 27, 2013 The second day of the Chicago Blackhawks Convention is also the longest, starting at 9 a.m. and going all the way to 7:30 p.m. One of my “big goals” for this convention was to get as many retired players as possible to sign this book:
In 1995-96, the Playoff Corporation released a 330-card collectible card game (CCG) called One on One Hockey Challenge. The game cards featured the top NHL players at the time, and contained instructions at the top and stats at the bottom that were used for the game. Sometime before the release of the actual game, Playoff … Continue reading “1995-96 Playoff One on One Hockey Challenge prototype cards”
Just a quick heads-up about a few magazine articles I have coming out this month. First up is One and Done, published in Beckett Hockey issue #250. (June 2013, on sale now). The three-page article discusses five hockey card sets from the 1990s — both awesome and awful — that lasted only one year, never … Continue reading “Magazine Mentions for June 2013”
I’ve been busier than usual lately. Just finished writing a 10-page paper for a research methods class. Anyway, here are a few updates that you may find interesting: My ’94-95 Lockout Article in Beckett Hockey #249 I have a 2-page article in the May 2013 issue of Beckett Hockey (#249). It is entitled A Hobby-Changing … Continue reading “A Great Week for Hockey”
Normally, the 1961-92 Topps (don’t call it O-Pee-Chee) Hockey Set is not one I go after. I’m too fixated on 1963-64 Parkhurst and 1957-58 Topps when I go to card shows in search of vintage. But my local card shop recently acquired some 1961-62 Topps, and the prices were fair (around half or less of … Continue reading “Almost a Third of the 1961-62 Topps Set”
The “new year” is not so new anymore. Last year, I posted my collecting resolutions (and did pretty well, I might add). Because writing about them makes keeps me honest, here are my five collecting resolutions for 2013. 1. No more “miscellaneous stacks” Many times I’ll buy interesting looking cards from the quarter boxes at … Continue reading “Collecting Resolutions for 2013”
On November 23, the online trading card store Check Out My Cards (www.COMC.com) had a “Black Friday” sale. For you Canadians, that is what the day after American Thanksgiving is called, since it is the unofficial start of the Christmas shopping season. Retailers would “black out” the schedule for that day–meaning, NO ONE was getting … Continue reading “Review: Check Out My Cards Purchase”
In the quest to put out product quickly and cheaply, sports cards manufacturers, like drug dealers, have consistently undervalued the power of quality. Of course, it’s because they know the junkies will keep buying. This doesn’t mean that the addicts have lost all discernment, however. Personally, I fiend for powerful sports photography in my cards. … Continue reading “Review: 1997-98 Pinnacle”