08-09 OPC Premier Cory Schneider Auto Rookie /299

As we all know, life goes on. Still its tough to see a fixture of an organization leave and in the past couple years the Devils have had two mainstays step aside for the next generation with both Marty and Lou moving on to some degree. The amazing thing, is I just need to say their first name and chances are you know who I am talking about. Well the future is now, or so they say and lets start collecting in that direction



08-09 OPC Premier Cory Schneider Auto Rookie /299

Cory is not new to the organization and I have added a couple of his cards to my collection over the years. I had two autographs to this point, one numbered to 99 and another to 25. But as far as rookie went, I only had one lowly rookie and it was from 08-09 OPC which I pulled from a pack. So I wanted to rectify the situation a while back and I was able to do so by acquiring the above card. 

Nice on card auto with actual game-used event used swatches. What a shame they say game on the front and event on the back. I'm sure many have already gripped about this so I will move on to the nice on card auto and decently low print run of 299. I've said this before and I'll say it again for value, it's hard to beat OPC Premier and Sweet Shot when their Young Gun counterparts are far more plentiful and far less cool in my opinion. 

08-09 OPC Premier Steve Mason Rookie

I have always like the look of the OPC Premier stuff Upper Deck has put out but just couldn't afford the price point to open a box/pack. Here is a single from 08/09 that has fallen a fair bit in price over the years but I expect a good bounce back season for this kid. 

After the trade to the Flyers he played very well going 4-2 with a 1.90 gaa and a sparkling .944 save percentage and this season he is working off a 1 year deal so I would really like to see him perform well and get himself a good long-term contract and show everyone his rookie year wasn't a fluke!

08-09 OPC Premier Steven Mason Rookie /299

Love the card, it is a nice 4 piece on card auto numbered to 299. That is pretty much what you get with OPC Premier rookies and they both book and sell for very affordable prices and I recommend that if you have a player you like try and track down their Premier rookie, you may be surprised at how cheap you can get it. I have a nice quartet of OPC Premiers to share next!

Card of the Week - Peter Mueller

Rather than focus on the negative news in Devils camp, lets focus on the positive news around the NHL. It appears a number of players who have missed the last bit or all of last season are on the mend including Peter Mueller.

Mueller is an exciting one as he was on a serious hot streak after Phoenix traded him to Colorado. In the 15 games after the trade in 2010 Mueller scored 20 points for the Avs including 9 goals. Life was good and it appeared he was going to return to his Rookie year form when he suffered a huge concussion. Mueller sat out ALL of last year which either means the concussion was very severe or they are treating is very seriously and giving him a fresh start.

I became a Mueller fan (along with Kopitar and Booth) as a result of watching the 2008 WHC in Halifax. Here are a couple photos I took of Mueller:

I actually took the photos from my seat with a pretty cheap camera so I considered myself lucky to see some great hockey from a nice seat.

08-09 OPC Premier Premier Remnants PR-PM
I like this card a lot. Nice design, triple swatch and game-used. The card is numbered 95/100 and the front is really sharp looking. OPC Premier has tended to be in the shadow of The Cup and I find you can pick up some great deals on rookies from this set which are every bit as nice as The Cup ones. The rookies are generally made with a couple swatches and an autograph!

The back side

On the back, like most UD products, there is a nice reminder that Richard McWilliam selflessly is getting us as close to the game as he can and a little wasted space. I like the OPC foil on the corner and the lines give the card a nice look on the back.

How I received the card: I paid $2.99 for this at the my local hobby shop

Beckett Value: 6 - 15 dollars