#UDRAK Upper Deck Random Act of Kindness

Surprises come in all shapes and sizes and more importantly types. Good surprises are always preferred over bad ones and I don't think I am alone in this thought. Sure there are some that don't like surprises at all but the world is full of all types of people and I am one that loves a good surprise once in a while. Just before Christmas, Upper Deck sent me a good surprise. It was a completely unexpected and entirely enjoyed. I came home from work one day and sitting on my deck was this box. It looked cold and in need of a good home so I brought it in and took this photo.

I truly felt fortunate receiving this wonderful act of kindness.

Inside was all this cool stuff! I loved the Young Guns shirt and a load of Devils and two boxes of Upper Deck Series 1 which I hadn't had a chance to break any yet. Here is a close up of some of the great things that were in my UDRAK package. 

16-17 UD Series 1 SP2 William Nylander 

A pretty awesome prospect who finished this year with a solid 22 goals and 61 points. A Calder winning performance in some years.

16-17 Upper Deck Midnight Adam Henrique and Damon Severson /25

Upper Deck sent me the whole team set and I have decided to showcase my two PC players I received from the set.

16-17 Upper Deck Victory Black Miles Wood

Once upon a time Victory Black were some of the scarcest cards on the market with a print run of 5. Lots has changed since 05-06 but they are still a pretty cool card to get via NHCD or a Card Expo. I was fortunate enough to get a Miles Wood and a Pavel Zacha.

16-17 Upper Deck Victory Pavel Zacha

Pavel learned a great deal in his first season. During times he showed some great flashes and I'm excited to see how the Devils and Pavel grow and improve next season. This card is a beauty, definitely one of the better Victory designs in the past decade.

12-13 Fleer Skybox Autographics Patrik Elias

You may remember this card from a previous post which featured my tribute to Patrik Elias. It was Upper Deck that sent me this card and given the legacy he had as a Devil it was a very nice inclusion.

2015-16 SP Game Used Patrik Elias

More Elias!!! There were a number of other Elias beauties including this card and the next one.

2015-16 Upper Deck Top Draft Pick Jaromir Jagr

What a great looking retro card. Love the 90-91 design and seeing a young Jagr sporting a deer in the headlights look and puffy mullet are key components to this card's awesomeness. While his time was brief with the Devils, it was nice to see him continue to be so successful.

14-15 Upper Deck Premier Jaromir Jagr /249

Another Jagr, this time from his days with my beloved Devils. I have said this before but I am a fan of the Upper Deck Premier product line. Perhaps even more so than The Cup.

14-15 Upper Deck 25th Anniversary David Clarkson Auto Young Gun /25

The collector I am from 5 years ago would have felt this was the best card he has ever been given. In those past 5 years, David left NJ, went to Toronto, and unceremoniously was shipped to Columbus. Chances are he will never play again. During that time I had lots of chance for reflection and healing from a move that stung me a great deal but meant even more to Clarkson as a person. I would say I am a fan once again but only of his time in NJ and that will be how I choose to remember him. This card definitely exhibits those days well and I love the photo of him during training camp which adds to the cards authentic feel. Thanks for a gem Upper Deck!

2016 Team Canada Wayne Gretzky Program of Excellence Rainbow

The Great One in his 1987 Team Canada uniform? Yes please! This series was like my personal 1972 since I was not in existence for the Summit Series.

15-16 Fleer Showcase Hot Prospects Trio O'Neill/Blandisi/Hrabarenka

A nice little trio here. I believe if we can keep Blandisi after the expansion draft, he will be a solid producer for the Devils organization. So much potential and hopefully his diving days are done.

15-16 SP Game Used Sergei Kalinin RC /51

Shame we lost Kalinin during this past season. He's a solid defensive forward who would be great for any bottom 6. Best of luck and hope to see you back in the NHL soon!

15-16 Upper Deck Ice World Junior Championship Robby Fabbri /1299

A nice little Team Canada addition here. Robby is a pretty solid forward and one reason why the Blues will continue to be a playoff team.

Upper Deck was so kind to also send along some boxes to break open. I am going to share some of the highlights that I discovered in the boxes. I was fortunate enough to complete a base set from the two boxes which is an awesome start!

16-17 Upper Deck Series 1 Steve Santini Young Guns Exclusive /100

Wow!! What a hit. While there were bigger names in the box, to get a Devils player is a fantastic outcome for me.

16-17 Upper Deck Signature Sensations Jori Lehtera

I was also lucky enough to hit a case hit on my second box! This is my second ever Signature Sensations I have ever pulled.

16-17 Upper Deck Series 1 Game Jersey Matt Duchene

I also hit a Matt Duchene jersey card. Nice sized swatch and I like the larger photo too. I'm hopeful this summer the Devils can land another scoring forward or two via trade. Eberle, Duchene or Landeskog would all be good outcomes.

16-17 Upper Deck Series 1 Young Gun Josh Morrissey

Other than my Exclusive, this is probably the most exciting Young Gun I hit. Josh had a very very impressive rookie season in Winnipeg and I believe he will be a fantastic defenseman for the Jets in future years.

16-17 Upper Deck Young Guns Canvas Connor Brown

I did also hit a Canvas Young Guns from Toronto. While it wasn't Mitch Marner, I did get both a base and canvas Young Gun of Connor Brown. Brown was a nice surprise for both myself and the Leafs this season. Brown hit 20 goals this year and added 16 assists. I am not sure what his ceiling is but I am guessing he hasn't hit it yet.

2016 Team Canada Nolan Patrick

Is this foreshadowing? I would be pretty pleased to see him in NJ.

2015-16 Upper Deck Series 1 Gretzky/McDavid SP1

A Gretzky/McDavid card? Oh my, thank you very much! Definitely one of my favourites from this amazing random act of kindness.

15-16 UD Ultimate Platinum Blue Relic Cory Schneider

The best for last? Depends on your taste of course but this is the most unique piece of the package!! Love the tag. 

Well there you have it, a sampling of my truly phenomenal UDRAK package. If you are reading this and are a sports fan, I hope you too are able to receive on someday as it's truly a cool experience and one that I don't imagine many companies do for their customers. What makes this package truly remarkable is I didn't even ask for it or sign up or enter any contests. It just showed up and the people at Upper Deck know my interests and just dropped a box of kindness on my lap. There were even other PC players in the package like Adam Henrique and Damon Severson which I didn't get a chance to share yet but will at a later date. One last time, thank you Upper Deck and thank you for stopping by. More posts to come very soon!

13-14 National Treasure Jaromir Jagr Jumbo Booklet Prime /25

Please excuse me and my behaviour for the past couple of months. You see besides my hand issues which hopefully are going to be corrected via surgery in the next month or so (fingers crossed as I am just waiting for OR time), I also got a new to me computer and I just haven't had time to hook up the scanner. Well now that it is break time I did find the time to hook things up so please expect more and more posts!

I assure you I am not growing tired of this blog or have anything better going on in my life. The hobby is still a passion and a large one at that. I have added tonnes of cards recently via trades etc. so I have plenty to share!

Here is one I have added thanks to my interactions on Hobby Insider!

13-14 National Treasure Jaromir Jagr Jumbo Booklet Prime /25

Please feel free to judge this book by its cover! This is my first booklet card and while they are annoying to store (still waiting on a one touch holder to arrive at my LCS) it is beautiful on the outside. The foil shines and the back has some pretty good information. It is numbered to just 25 copies which is pretty great too!

What is on the inside is just amazing! Devils game used jersey with a puck mark on it. The jersey is HUGE and well positioned! The Jagr photo is also pretty nice and you can just imagine him in the moment of concentration and he is about to explode up the ice. The only thing this card is missing is a beautiful Jagr signature! Of course this isn't signed and likely would have been out of my reach had it been signed too. So while it is but a mere game used card, there are so many elements I love about it, to me it is about the best it can get!

Jaromir Jagr is now a Devil!

Wow! After losing two favourites of mine, we get back a pretty awesome player in the twilight of his career.

Let me be the first to say, welcome to NJ Jaromir!

In with the old, and out with the young - Devils sign Marty and lose Parise

Well free agency is now a week old and in that time a large number of players have received new contracts. Some of those are with the same club as last season and others found new homes. My beloved Devils lost their captain Zach Parise and resigned a number of players including "senior" players Brodeur, Hedberg and Salvadore. 

Don't get me wrong, these are some good young players but I think we need to start moving in the rebuild on the fly mode and focus on some more youth. Our defense is young, but our forwards and goaltenders are among the oldest in the league and I really like the Marty signing, but I think we need to focus on getting some young goalies action in the NHL in the next two years. 

There are still some talented players available but most will require compensation through trade or rfa which sucks because it really isn't the approach I think we should be taking.

11/12 Black Diamond Martin Brodeur

I received this card in a trade with Tim from the Real DFG. This card features a nice two colour swatch and a solid black swatch of Marty Brodeur. Love that this card features all the Devils colours and don't get me wrong, I love that we resigned him. But I think we need to be using Marty to help condition one of our prospects.

The Devils also just lost Matt Taormina which is a little unfortunate. He is a talented offensive defensemen and for once we are starting to accumulate a large number of "prospects" at that position. It became a numbers game and I wish Matt all the best in Tampa, I suspect he will put up some good numbers this upcoming season if he can stay healthy!

Also as an aside, I think Parise signing with the Wild is the second worst thing that could happen to my collection of Parise cards. First off, he is no longer a Devils which sucks a fair bit, but also, no one is going to want my Parise cards anymore because he is gone into the abyss as far as collectors go. Does anyone out there actually collect Minnesota Wild cards? I don't see too many bidding wars for Mikko Koivu cards or P-M Bouchard autos. Unfortunately, he will be a great player on a small market team and the team itself I am predicting will win Zero Cups in the next 13 years. Not that I am hating on Zach, but I think that Minny is a long way away from being a Cup contender.

Devils - Kings begin tonight!

So tonight begins the 11/12 Stanley Cup finals. I have been a Devils fan since 87, so this would be the 5th Finals I have seen my team participate in. As far as the media goes and stuff, I am totally used to hearing the Devils are the weaker team etc and the fact many are picking the Kings doesn't phase me in the least. No one gave use a chance against the Flyers, no one gave us a chance in '95 against the Red Wings and in 2001 we blew it against the Avalanche. I know anything can happen and I suspect this will be one heck of a series even if most fans have already checked out. Both teams are loaded with talent and play aggressive fore-check games. 

Both teams have solid goalies. Kings might have better d-men, but strength is our deep our team is. Our 4th line I believe will be the difference and if the Devils are going to win, they will be the catalyst for our success. 

Ryan Carter, Stephen Gionta and Steve Bernier have been awesome and as a fan, what else could you ask for from a 4th line other than what they have already given: Timely goals, great energy and solid checking! Go Devils GO!

Here is an auto I picked up just before the post-season started. It was a part of yet another lot purchase so I landed this card for a song and dance.

BTW, I will not be making any predictions mainly because I haven't all post-season and I don't want to jinx a good thing. I have a ritual that I have  been doing all post-season which I plan on maintaining during these finals......

On to round two!

Well, it took 7 and a half games, but the Devils finally won a series and will be into round 2 for the first time in a while (2007). Henrique was the hero, but Marty really was the reason for us making it to round 2.

He put in a vintage performance last night seeing more than 40 shots and stopping all but two. Both goals were tough ones and he certainly can't be faulted.

As for the Flyers, I am concerned. We are hurting and there is no denying it. Kovy is going to be pounded because rumours are out that he is hurting and the Flyers aren't the kind of team that will go lightly on them. Fact is, we need our third and fourth lines to continue doing what they do and we could just have a chance!

One neat fact after the first round is Marty has more points than Jason Arnott, Jamie Langenbrunner, Peter Sykora, and Duncan Keith to name a few. Marty has the same number of points as Mike Green and Jeff Carter.

eBay pickup- Jacob Josefson

Here is an eBay pick up I got the other week. My first Dominion cards ever and I must say they aren't that bad. I don't ever see myself spending a huge chunk of my annual hockey card budget on a single pack. However, picking up singles is certainly in my budget especially when you can find a great deal like this one!

10-11 Jacob Josefson Auto Rookie #/199

For some reason, the scan came out a little blurry but you can get the idea of what the card looks like anyway. Simple design on the front with some Silver embossing which really gives the card a classy look and feel. The cards aren't as thick as the base cards from The Cup but still relatively thicker than most cards (roughly the thickness of the typical UD game used card). The auto is nice and is On Card for those of you who appreciate that added touch.

The back side of the card is the highlight in my books.

A good write up, nice stats and a great layout. This is what I expect from a trading card and the extra little photo on the back is well placed and isn't a copy of the front which certainly give the collector a little more bang for their buck. The numbering is done on the card and isn't "stickered" which is typical for Panini.

A great card in all and I landed it for 5.50 plus shipping. I like this kid a lot and he will have a chance to be a top line centre for the Devils while Zajac is on the mend and I think he could be an awesome two-way centre.

Kovy puts a fork in Canada

A few random thoughts...

With Blogger on the fritz earlier, things have just been wacky on Wax Stain today, but it looks like all the posts are back the way they should be (for now). Looking at the poll, a majority of you seem to think writing Dionne and paying a sawbuck for it is a good idea. I picked out the perfect card for the TTM and hope to share my success down the road.

Well Canada is now out of the WHC and all my hockey pools are now toast, it leaves me with not much left to cheer about, so I am forced to pick from what is left in the post season. Since I am too much of a hockey fan to pack it in, I am throwing my support behind the Lightning and the Canucks. I am cheering for TB because of Stamkos and Roloson. I think Rollie deserves a Cup and Stamkos is an amazing talent that is fun to watch. I am supporting the Canucks mainly because I can't see myself backing the Sharks. Here is hoping I get to see one or both of those teams make the Finals.

The Canada loss had one small lining in it for me and that was Kovy was the one to deliver the final blow. Despite it being his first goal of the tournament, it seems he is continuing to play a more complete game which is a sign that he is committed to being a better Devils player and I think Russia is going to benefit from a two-way Kovy.

Here is another Panini deal I picked up a little while back:

10-11 Panini Certified Top Choice Game Used

This card is numbered 04/99 and features a swatch from a Devils jersey. Please forgive the scan, I think because the swatch wasn't touching the glass on the scanner it came out a little "salmon-like". The swatch is indeed red, and for 99 cents plus shipping I think it was a great deal for a Kovy fan like myself. Just another reason why I like Panini eBay deals.

GO CANUCKS and LIGHTNING!

Brian Gionta TTM

This week's Dirty Dangle post is my Brian Gionta TTM I received last week. Mailed this one out in early Feb and received it last Monday.

Signed in Blue Sharpie and numbered.....just how I like them!

What do you do when you have no playoff hopes?

Well last night's loss the the Bruins has sealed the Devil's post-season fate. It was a nice run, the Devils Army had some hope for a while, but last night's performance including 5 straight pk's ended any serious chance we had at playing for the Cup.

So with no team in the post-season, what do I do now? What do you folks do, when your team is no longer in the playoffs? I know Leaf fans talk about how next year is going to be different and the media in Canada supports that by endlessly looking at how the Leafs can sign UFA's which are long past their prime or are often damaged goods (see Lindros, Allison or Versteeg).

What I have done in the past is just picked another team to ride while the playoffs are on. In addition to being a Devils fan, there are a few other teams that I do like to watch and wish them luck if the Devils are out of contention.

The list looks something like this:

1. Devils

2. Blackhawks (Liked since '90, Belfour was the reason and I worshiped him until he went a little crazy in Dallas)

3. Kings (Since the '08 World Hockey Championship I have huge respect for Kopitar)

4. Oilers (They are fun to watch and I remember being a kid in awe of their fire power)

After the list is exhausted I usually find some team to support but it isn't ever the same.

So I ask, what do you do when your team is out?

Diversions

Ok, so the ruling didn't go the way I hoped it would. Now the waiting game continues, so I thought I would share a box I opened a little while back of 09-10 UD Series 2. I usually don't mind this product because of a couple of reasons. First of all, you get a crack at the Victory versions of the rookies you missed from Series 1, you get a shot at a Rookie Memorabilia card and finally it completes the series. I must say, before I opened this box, I knew it could only get better! My Series one box best card was a Brodeur game used and the best rookie was Ryan O'Reilly. That was a dud box to say the least. I usually like the feeling I got what I paid for, but I was left unsatisfied and disgusted because all 6 of my pathetic young guns had roller marks all over them. SO here we go, this time around I feel I got it right, the young gun pool is much shallower, but I did alright...

The highlight of the rookies was Logan Couture who saw some action at the end of the season and looks to be a rather promising star. THN has him projected to score 36 points this season. Brad Marchand and Lars Eller were the other two notable pulls and they are projected to be full-time NHL'ers this coming season according to THN.

My Victory Gold rookie for this box was good old JT. Since I missed him in Series 1, this is the equivalence of the Ms Congeniality prize. I don't mind Victory rookies as much as others, I love rookie cards so the Gold parallel is better then the regular base one, which I pulled two of him as well.

The Exclusives are inserted 1 for every two hobby boxes and I was lucky enough to pull my buddy Gio. A former Devil, he will always have a place in my heart especially after his magical 48 goal season. He will never be able to repeat it, but I wish him luck in Montreal.

After opening most of the packs, this little surprise was found toward the bottom of the box. I have never pulled a victory black in my life and Van Riemsdyk isn't a bad one to start a collection on. I had pulled a regular Victory Rc of him earlier in the box was well and also lucked into a Ultra redemption rc of my new best friend James. He was born in NJ so maybe this is fate.

I almost fell off my chair when I opened this one. If all these Van Riemsdyk cards can't turn me into a fan then I don't know what will. A black swatch is always better than a white one, but beggars can't be choosers because the other GU from this box I pulled was a JP Dumont which if I didn't already have another GU of him might have been mildly exciting....But alas I have a SP Game Used of him already so now I will try and find a Preds fan who would be remotely interested in it and trade it to them for some commons of a set I am sure I don't collect.

The final thing I have to say about this box is why did I pull two "ice dancer" cards? Since when did hockey and ice dancing go together? Worse yet, one of them has never even won a real event like the olympics! I think they won some crappy USA junior title or some shit like that? There are probably two people in the world that wanted this card printed...Him and His MOM. So why did UD think it was a good idea? I can't wait for Panini to print some cards and give me an option to not buy UD.

The waiting game

Well as I write this, a decision from Richard I Bloch has yet to come. The 48 hours was extended over the weekend and a ruling regarding the infamous 17 year contract will come sometime today. I have read on many websites on how the Devils are "losers" in the free agent market and how the signing is absurd. Well if the signing goes through LIKE IT SHOULD, I believe Lou has once again proved that he is the best GM in the NHL. There is nothing wrong with the contract except that people are hung up on the length. There are no length rules, there are no stipulations on age in the CBA so I think it is funny that people immediately call foul when the Devils organization has following the contract to the letter and found a creative way to spread the wealth. No one can predict what Kovalchuk will do once he gets into his 40's. Igor Larionov played into his 40's and is one of the greatest Russian players of all time and someone who Kovalchuk looks up to. I believe we need to cut the kid some slack, he isn't all about the money because he walked away from more. He wants to win and really WHO DOESN'T? The Devils are perennial contenders and with Kovy we have an offense that will grow under Johnny Mac and here is hoping Marty gets to hoist another cup in the next year or two.

As Homer once said "the waiting game sucks. Let's play Hungry-Hungry-Hippos!"

SO here are a couple GU Kovys I picked up off the 'bay.

A bright spot

Alright, I refuse to let this blog die so young. Been very busy, but then again who hasn't been.....Well I guess the Devils are one answer, been almost a week and still no word on a new contract for Kovy so I will focus on the good news from earlier this summer and that was the signing of David Clarkson. Here is a story of a kid who didn't grow up with the silver spoon players like Patrick Kane had and really used good old fashioned Canadian determination to make it to the show. He was never drafted and still managed to make the NHL and a name for himself. Now that he has a new contract I look forward to more seasons of Clarkson in the line up and I hope to buy a #23 jersey in the fall!

Here is the lowest print run Clarkson card I have (#'d to 25). Contact me if you have any lower I am always looking for Clarkie and would love to have a 1/1. (forestrydave at hotmail dot com)

Brodeur's 600th Win

On Tuesday, Brodeur reached another milestone during the 3-0 win over the Thrashers. Brodeur now has 600 wins and 110 shutouts during his regular season career. Both of these totals are NHL all-time highs and at this current pace, Brodeur could easily reach 700 wins by the end of his career and that would have him at 149 wins more than the second place Roy.

What is actually more impressive is the 110 shutouts. Each season the NHL seems to try harder and harder to increase scoring in the NHL and every season Brodeur consistently racks up the shutouts. He has averaged about 7 shutouts per full season and if he plays another 3 seasons that would run his total over 130 shutout and the next nearest goalie is Roberto Luongo who at 31 years of age his only 51 shutouts. Marty's shutout record could be as unreachable as Gretzky's 2857 career regular season points.


Below I have three of my favourite Brodeur cards from my collection

This first card is from the 06-07 UD McDonalds Set. These were tough pulls and I just bought two packs and found this in one of them. Odds of pulling a Clear Cut winner that year were 1:100 and of course I was really happy to see it was a Brodeur. I think this is the most valuable Brodeur card in my collection.



This card was a relatively recent pull. It is the only Brodeur relic card I own and it is from the 09-10 UD series 1.

This card is a classic, I must own about 6 of them. This is of course the only legitimate Brodeur rookie card. That year Score pretty much covered the entire first round of the 90 draft. As a result, this is the only card that year to feature Martin Brodeur in an NHL set. Upper Deck that season focused on the top 10 picks so you can find Drake Berehowsky or Scott Scissons in their set which I am sure are still in high demand.....somewhere... but of course no Marty.

As you can see, in 1990 the Dirt 'stach was pretty popular!

Not all is well in Newark

Well after a loss that is all to reminiscent of the collapse last year, one is left wondering if the Devils really have what it takes to make it far in the playoffs. It seems the Devils have been pretty hot and cold this season with very little in between, and this past month has been pretty frigid. It pretty much began with the lights going out and continued along the lines of playing in the dark!

It is difficult to really blame one aspect of their game, but defensively the Devils really have not been pulling their weight. I feel that if we are going to take a serious run this season, we need more than the return of Paul Martin. Martin has been out since game 9 of the season with a fractured arm which had not healed correctly so he has had an extended stay on the IR. I feel we should either use this time to help groom some young talent like Corrente or Eckford and along with some of the other youngsters build up some experience and see where it takes us or make a move for a veteran d-man (and I don't mean another Havelid).

Fact of the matter is, the status quo is really not an option as the second half of the season progresses and the biggest difference that Lou can make will be on the back end. Time will tell if we will be contenders or pretenders for the 2010 Cup.

Patrice Cormier's Future

Well after the hit yesterday, I must say his future is no longer as bright. I am a Devils fan and have been since 1987. I try to keep tabs on all the prospects and I quite enjoy watching them progress and in some cases turn into full time NHL employees. Cormier (Drafted in the second round) I have been watching for the last two seasons, and this past Christmas, he was the captain of Team Canada at the World Junior Championships.

I was initially very excited he was given the honour of being captain, many previous WJC captains for Canada have gone on to accomplish great things in hockey. His performance however, was not what I expected. He played with a bigger chip on his shoulder than usual and as a result it lead to many dumb penalties. I can't speak for what he did do in the dressing room, but his on ice actions really weren't as dominating as I had hoped.

Now fast forward to this past Sunday, and the hit on Mikael Tam.

IF you have not seen it yet, here is a link, it is a little hard to watch for some....

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqBHlA9Yp3I

As you can see, Cormier definitely gets an elbow up on Tam and pretty much knocks him out cold. The hit was undeserved and Tam really did not have a target on him. Tam is a defenseman who for all intensive purposes is NOT a superstar and is currently undrafted.

My concern first and foremost is for Tam to recover and continue a normal life. My second concern is for the mental well-being of Cormier. I feel this situation could scar him both in front of the media and psychologically much like the Todd Bertuzzi incident.

I feel this situation is not much different than the Bertuzzi with really the only difference being Steve Moore had apparently had a target on himself at the time for his dirty hit on Naslund. The suspension Bertuzzi received was swift and deserved and with Cormier's situation being as equally grotesque I can't see any situation where Patrice is not suspended. The only questions left will be how long, and will he return a shell of what he once was like Bertuzzi.

When Todd returned from his suspension, he never really dominated the play again like he once did. He still continues to play, but is not the game impacting power forward he once was. Patrice plays a very similar game, and even though he never put up enormous numbers in Junior, Patrice I felt had great potential to be a solid second line power forward, but now time will tell the result of this dumb and reckless hit.