Hockey Pool and Want List

This is a last call for anyone wanting to get into my little hockey pool. The entry fee is a card or a pack with "value" of 10 bucks. I plan on running it on yahoo and I want to get it sorted out by the end of this week. Right now we have 7 people interested and I am hoping for a few more so just comment below that you want in. Here are the ones I have so far, and if you changed your mind let me know that too!

1. Dave H
2. Sal
3. Paul
4. Nick
5. Michael
6. Shane
7. Mark M.
8. Kazi
9. 1967ers
10. Jake
11. Chris S.

Anyone is welcomed to join!


I am also working on my want list and for trade list. I am about 35 cards short on my 83-84 OPC set and I am also looking for a Brodeur auto and a few other odds and ends. I will keep updating it over the next couple weeks as well and taking a few off the list that I acquired recently through some trades etc!








I am also assembling a PC of every swatch from every NHL team that is currently in the NHL or ever existed. I will also get that list up soon too.

Card of the week - Brendan Shanahan

The preseason is in full motion and I am catching all the action on TV I can. Horrible news out of Detroit last night with Wayne Simmonds but I think he handled himself well and truly is an example of his character. A few suspensions have already been dished out by Brendan Shanahan which I think is to set the tone for the season. The NHL is clearly sending a message that safety of the players is top priority and I hope that player respond by playing a little less recklessly. So with that, here is my card of the week.

1988-89 Topps #122 Brendan Shanahan Rookie

First off, I love the photo. A fresh face, un-scarred and battered, he looks like a kid. Now, he looks like he survived a war with a meat grinder and won. The 88-89 Topps/OPC sets are pretty classic. I like them a lot, and the set as a whole is pretty attractive. In fact, I think compared to the 87-88 design, the 88-89 is a much more artistic endeavor and I think it ended up well.

Here is the back side

No earth shattering design on the back, just a pretty simple layout with a colour scheme that isn’t too hard on the eyes. I have the complete Topps set, and a few strays from the OPC set. I do own Shanny in both forms, but only the Topps one is mint. In the early 90’s this was one of the MUST have sets, I even bought a few packs digging for extra Hull rookies. Now, the set has lost some luster and it was pretty easy to find and it is affordable for most collectors.

How I received the card: It was part of a set I traded for in the early 90’s, can’t remember what I gave up.

Beckett Value: Topps version list for 6-15 dollars and the OPC is $15-30 but can be found for pretty cheap on eBay.

My next post will be an update on the hockey pool and we will see if anyone else wants in and determine what format we are going to use! Stay tuned in the next day or so.

Joe Sakic TTM

I was very happy to open this package. I enjoyed writing the letter almost as much as receiving the cards. Two cards, two autos and less than two months. What more could a fan hope for!



Thanks Joe








Check out the other card signed card and the rest of the story at Dirty Dangle.com!

The Swap Meet Part 2 - Rookie Goal

After overloading on autos, I found a few rookies that I couldn't leave without as well as a few bonus game-used cards which I wasn't shopping for, but nabbed anyway. So here is the rest of the haul which cost me 65 bucks in total.

10-11 Donruss Rated Rookie Toronto Expo Robin Lehner

This kid is pretty decent and I don't have many of his rookies so this was a must. Not many would consider expo cards rookies, but I do.
10-11 Donruss Rated Rookie Toronto Expo Linus Omark

I have NO rookies of this kid. Glad to get this one.
10-11 Donruss Rated Rookie Toronto Expo Cam Fowler

Awesome d-man and the price was right!
10-11 Donruss Rated Rookie Toronto Expo Kevin Shattenkirk

Another player I didn't manage to score any rookies of. This one was another proud pick up.

I have decided to start a new PC and that is to collect a swatch from every team in the NHL and maybe that ever played in the NHL.....

10-11 UD Game Used David Booth

Love this kid and I think it might be my first Panthers swatch....can't remember.

10-11 UD Game Used Ilya Kovalchuk
Just am impulse buy. I have a red NJ swatch of Kovy but no black. Now I do.

10-11 Certified Fabric of the Game Kyle OkposoDon't have any of the Fabric of the Game cards so I bought this one to say I have one. Also counts as an Islander swatch incase I didn't already have one.

10-11 UD Game Used Rob Niedermayer

I bought this one to count as a Devils swatch and not having any Rob Niedermayer memorabilia I thought this was a good deal.

So there is the rest of the swap meet. I had fun shopping and these cards in total averaged less than 2 bucks a card so I feel I couldn't go wrong. My favourite cards were the early Parkies, the Elias rookie auto and the Orr Reprint. Thanks for reading, and hopefully I can get caught up on other posts!

The Swap Meet Part 2 - Auto Goal

In addition to the vintage, I was able to buy 20 autos and some of them where auto rookies which is a nice bonus in my books. I don't know why, but something about an autographed rookie card that makes them extra special. So here they are:

Chris Philips 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto

Former 1st overall deserves to be the first one listed. I think he is hoping to finish his career with the Sens who are currently rebuilding.

Steve Shields 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto

Don't know why this scanned so blue, but the auto is sweet. The look on his face, isn't so.

Cory Stillman 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto
Another one still kicking around the league. Always dependable and a pretty decent auto too.

Marco Sturm 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto Rookie
Did you know Marco has had 7 - 20+ goal seasons in his career? Another nice auto.

Ron Tugnutt 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto

Who doesn't love this guy? Before there was Dwayne Roloson stopping rubber galore, there was Ron Tugnutt. I will never forget his game in 2000 against the Flyers when he stopped 70/72 shots only to lose 2-1.

Keith Tkachuk 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto

I was STOKED to see this one in the $2 box. This two time 50 goal scorer has always been on of my favourite players from the 90's.

Nick Kyperos 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto
Kypper isn't a bad TV analyst and was a pretty good enforcer in his day too. Love the photo on this one.

David Legwand 99-00 BAP Millenium Signature Series
Second overall pick from '97 has never really matched expectations but he still has worked himself into a pretty decent career.

Peter Mueller 05-06 Heroes and Prospects Series 2
This card is a neat one as it is his first major release card and it is autographed. Books for 25 bucks and is the most "valuable" of my auto finds. I like it a lot, but it isn't my fav.

Lyle Odelein 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto

Lyle was tough as nails and a great enforcer. Another auto I was really happy to pick up.

Jacob DeSerres 09-10 BTP Goalie graphs
Bought this because I don't own any BTP cards. This kid was one great junior goalie who just couldn't get signed by the Flyers. He is now going to play CIS hockey this fall for the Calgary Dinos. Here is hoping he can get back in the an NHL organization.

Kris Draper 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto

This kid is a WINNER. I still remember him captaining Canada at the WJHC. A great NHL player who can do just about anything. Spent his entire career with the Red Wings.

Patrik Elias 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto Rookie

I couldn't believe this one was in the box too! I have his auto, I have his rookie, but not both on the same card. This was one of my favourite autos for sure.

Adam Graves 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto

Great player, nice auto of another former 50 goal guy.

05-06 ITG Heroes and Prospects Eric Fehr

Neat auto, couldn't leave this one behind. I am not in love with the card, but it lists for 20 bucks.

Peter Bondra 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto

503 career goals, averaging 0.465 goals per game! Bondra was amazing in his day and I think he was every bit as good as Pavel Bure without the flash....Just my opinion.

Curtis McElhinney 09-10 BTP goalie graphs
Another one I couldn't leave behind even if I end up trading this one.

Daymond Langkow 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto

Just did a post on this guy and here is his auto. A must have if I say so.

Pavol Demitra 97-98 Pinnacle BAP Auto

Wow. I don't need to say why I got this one.

Pavol Demitra 99-00 BAP Millennium Signature Series

Ditto. I do like he numbered this one. The auto looks nicer too.

There you have it. These are the autos I got with my purchase at the swap meet. I still have my 4 game-used and 4 rookies to come.

Peter Stastny TTM

I hope to get around to finishing up my Swap meet posts. In the meantime, here is another TTM return. Super stoked to get this one, he is super under-rated in my books and one of the best centres in NHL history. Imagine what he could have done with the Oilers! I mailed two cards out and received one signed and one unsigned. I am sure glad he signed this one!

Check out the rest at Dirty Dangle!

The Swap Meet Part 1 - Vintage Goal

Well before I begin this post, I want to give everyone a little background info. For starters, I was tied to a budget for this adventure. I only had 65 bucks to spend and in hindsight I could have shown up with 600 and probably still left stuff behind. With that being said, 65 isn't much money when it comes to buying vintage so I did my best to try and balance all aspects of my original goal.

So here are the vintage cards I hauled in(please excuse the camera glare....had not time to properly can these):

1966-67 Topps #35 Bobby Orr Rookie reprint

One of my most favourite pick ups for sure. This card is MINT!!! Extremely well done, too bad it is a reprint. The backside shows a little reprint stamp on the card. Not sure what this card is worth, but I paid 2 bucks and would do so again in a heartbeat!

Here is the back and between the goals and assists is the reprint stamp so that I may not use this beautiful card for evil purposes! (Sorry for the Orr tease, but I couldn't resist it!)

1952-53 Parkhurst #99 James Bones Raleigh (He goes by Don though)
This is my first and only 52-53 Parkhurst card. The card isn't in amazing shape but isn't too bad either. A crease across the front and back and a second lighter crease is also on the back. Corners are rounded but apart from that, the card still has some gloss and was certainly worth the 5 bucks I paid.

Here is the backside of the card. Nice and clean with a neat little mail-in offer!

1953-54 Parkhurst #45 Benny Woit

When I saw Benny, I just had to leave with him. Like the Raleigh card there is a crease, but again the surface is otherwise nice and I love the first full-size Parkhurst cards. This too is my first 53-54 and about 5 min before seeing this card, I just saw my first Beliveau RC in person. He wanted 60 bucks for it. It would have blown my budget right away but the card was in poor shape and I thought I would try for lots of smaller cards rather than the one biggie. I am still having seconds thoughts about my choices but maybe when all the posts on this are done you can tell me if I made the right choice.
Here is the backside of the card. Like the previous year, Parkhurst had stuff to give away and the write ups include both French and English for the first time.

1967-68 Topps #51 Alex Delvecchio

This card is pretty nice. The nicest of the three real vintage cards with no creases. IT does have a couple dinged corners but other than that it is a beaut. Totally worth the 5 bucks I spent.

Here is the back, you can see the reflection of the camera as well as the few dings. The backs of this year were very similar to Topps' 66-67 offering.

In addition to these three vintage cards and one reprint, I also picked up a 79-80 Topps Doug Risebrough and an 83-84 OPC Dale Hawerchuk. I paid a buck for both of them but didn't think they were worth showing. The Hawerchuk was for my 83-84 set and the Risebrough was because it was in great shape and I don't own any Topps from that year. So I spent 18 bucks on those cards and 47 bucks on 20 autos, 4 game used cards and 5 non-auto rookies which I will be sharing in the next two posts.

One neat side effect of these purchases is I now think I need to try and collect all of Bones Raleigh and Benny Woit's cards. I own both 51 Parkies of them so each have about 3 more cards I am missing (more or less). If you have any you want to see or trade, contact me!

In addition, both are still around and I am going to try and fire some TTM requests their way too....here is hoping I get lucky!

The Latest Swap Meet

Things have been super crazy lately and I want to share my swap meet success but since I don't have much time to do so tonight, I thought I would share the size of the stack I picked up. I already have one regret of something I left behind, but I will get to that in due time as well.

I went with a plan: Vintage, autos and rookies and I think I accomplished it.

Anyway, I will break the post into a couple pieces starting tomorrow and share my finds.

Jean Beliveau TTM Success

Another great return recently. Mr. Jean Beliveau!

I send this out early July and received it at the end of August. Signed in blue sharpie and numbered. Check out the rest of the story at Dirty Dangle.

Card of the week - Brad McCrimmon

Wow, it seems like when the hockey world has been rocked, things just get worse. This week's recent tragedy truly is one of the biggest in my memory and certainly is heart-wrenching. I do send out my condolences to all those affected by this horrible event.

This week's card is Brad McCrimmon's 80-81 OPC Rookie Card.

Front Side

Back Side

This is the ONLY rookie card for Brad McCrimmon and the 80-81 OPC set certainly has its fair share of star rookies. I have always liked the back side of these cards more than the front, and really I can't explain why. The front design is nice and simple, but for some reason I have always like the combination of Packers colours on the back and have felt these cards have some of the best back of all the 80's sets.

How I received the card: Bought from card shop in early 90's for a couple bucks

Beckett Value: 0.75 - $2.00

In more positive news, there is another swap meet happening tomorrow and I hope to find a few more gems. Now that I know cards occasionally make there way to these things, I am going with the focus of landing some autos and maybe a few rookies. I will share what I find either way!

Hey I was at that game - When the card photo is familiar

With there being a bit of a lull between productions that are in my price range, I have taken to making a few trades. In the next few weeks I should be seeing a few packages coming my way which will be fun and exciting and I will share some of them with you as they come in. One that arrived last week ended up having a neat meaning to me that I am curious if others have had the same experience.

Sal at Puckjunk.com sent me over a few cards in exchange for a few he needed and one of them was this Martin Brodeur card. In all it is a nice card and is numbered xx/25…..literally. I can only presume there are 25 out there which is pretty cool for a Devils fan and I have only seen about 3 or 4 on eBay so this might be true.


Anyway, I was looking at the card with some detail and on the back are stats from 10/11 season which is pretty cool especially when you consider the photo on the front could only have come from 2 possible games in the last 15 years as Brodeur is wearing his retro helmet and jersey. One of those games was last year on Mar 17th and the other was this year on Mar 18th. What makes this card special was I saw my first ever Devils home game on Mar 18th and having only ever seen two Devils games live my whole life, there is a very good chance this card is from the game I saw. Furthermore, since the stats indicate this is an 11/12 product my chances increase even more.

In my life, I have seen countless NHL games live on TV, but only a handful of games in person and only 2 games involving the NJ Devils. So, I think it is pretty neat to be almost positive that I have a card, from a game I saw of a team and player I cheer for. Have you ever found a card from a game you attended? Of course, living in an NHL city and having season tickets really increases those odds to 100%…but I am curious if you have ever found a card from a game you watched.

#3 - Value Vintage Sets - 81-82 Topps

I LOVE the 81-82 design. Topps and OPC versions look down-right cool. From 1980-present day I don't think there is a set design I like as much as this one. With that being said, there is some substance to what I think is the 3rd best value vintage set.

Redeeming Qualities:

Did I mention the design?

17 rookies, 5 of them in the HOF

Gretzky 3rd year card

Unique East/West distribution

Set is 30 years old

2nd year card of players like Bourque and Gartner

Neat Super Action cards

Lists for 17.5% of the price of the OPC set (now that is value)

Card design:

The front side

The cards have an "industrial" look to me with the stamped team name on the front of the card. A good sized action shot on also on the front with name, position and emblem. Gotta love the old Rockies uniforms!

The back side
They cram LOTS on the back but it all flows nicely. Top side gives the card number (east or west if applicable), then vitals, stats and a season summary in text. Then at the bottom, a little additional blurb about the player which pertains to some other point in their hockey career.

Key Card:

Due to the large production numbers, there isn't really any really expensive cards in this set, but in my opinion the key card from the set is the Wayne 3rd year card.

Wayne is so baby-faced in this photo and looks like he is ready for the face-off. I used to have that Titan hockey stick as a kid. Couldn't do what Wayne did with it though!

The rookies:

Like I mentioned, there are only 17 rookies in the Topps version compared to nearly 60 in the OPC version. In addition, Topps missed some good rookies like Coffey, Anderson, Lowe, Moog, and Hunter but many were included worth mentioning. In the Topps version you can find: Savard, Stastny, Ciccarelli, Murphy and Kurri who are all HOF'ers.

Denis Savard Rookie

Dino Ciccarelli Rookie

Some other notable cards:

Like I mentioned above, there are lots of other cool cards and significant cards in the set. Unfortunately there is only one other Gretzky card which is the team leader card.

Ray Bourque Super Action
Here is a cool action shot of little Ray against Dennis Maruk.

Mike Liut Super Action

Here is another example of the cool Super Action cards. I love this one, cool mask and Northland goalie stick!

This 198 card set lists in the Beckett for 35-70 dollars but like most things can be had for pretty cheap on eBay. I bought this set last month for 25 bucks on eBay (for the 66 national cards, the 66 East and 66 West cards). A steal if you ask me considering all the cards are NrMT, and even if you include the outrageous 16 bucks I had to pay for shipping, I still got the set for 41 bucks total. Sure you can buy lots of different things for 41 bucks, but owning this set was a must for me and at 41 bucks including shipping this SCREAMS value to me. I am not sure what a set like this might cost at your local card shop or card show but I imagine you can't go wrong with any price around 50 bucks. Thanks to the countless venting sets out there, there is no reason why you can't get one in mint shape too!