2024 ONLINE BLASTER - PART 7: HOCKEY PLAYER COLLECTIONS

BACK TO MORE CARDS I BOUGHT THIS YEAR. THESE ARE SOME RAD HOCKEY DUDES. I FINALLY GOT MY NEGLECTED HOCKEY CARDS IN ORDER LAST YEAR AND PART OF THAT ORGANIZATION IS DECIDING WHAT CARDS I ACTUALLY GAVE A CRAP ABOUT. I HAD A TON OF PLAYER COLLECTIONS FROM THE 90S BACK WHEN I ACTUALLY LIKED HOCKEY BUT I CUT ALL THAT DOWN TO SIX PLAYERS TO FOCUS ON

CATEGORY - PLAYER COLLECTION

1995 STADIUM CLUB MEMBERS ONLY CHRIS CHELIOS, PAUL COFFEY AND ED BELFOUR

THESE ARE THE BIG THREE: CHELIOS, BELFOUR AND COFFEY. I LOVED PLAYING HOCKEY GAMES ON MY SUPER NINTENDO THAT THESE DUDES WERE ALWAYS AWESOME. CHELIOS AND COFFEY WERE DEFENSEMEN THAT COULD SCORE AND ED HAD AN EAGLE ON HIS HELMET. HOW COOL IS THAT! I HAVE ABOUT A HUNDRED CARDS EACH OF THESE PLAYERS AND HAVE BEEN PICKING UP A FEW HERE AND THERE WHEN I NOTICE I DON'T HAVE THEM, ESPECIALLY IF THEY ARE FROM A HIGHER END SET OR INSERT. THIS IS THE ONLY PAUL COFFEY CARD FROM THIS BATCH WHICH MAKES SENSE SINCE I HAVE ALMOST AS MANY COFFEY CARDS AS CHELIOS AND BELFOUR COMBINED SO IT'S A LITTLE MORE DIFFICULT TO FIND ONE I NEED

1996-97 SKYBOX IMPACT CHRIS CHELIOS BLADERUNNERS INSERT

CHELIOS IS MY OFFICIAL FAVORITE PLAYER IN HOCKEY SO IF I SEES AN INSERT I GETS IT. I ALREADY HAD A FEW OF THESE BLADERUNNER INSERTS FROM MY 90S PACK RIPS BUT NO CHRIS. HOORAY! INSERT IN MY HOCKEY BOX

1997-98 POST CHRIS CHELIOS

I'M ALSO LEARNING ABOUT A TON OF ODDBALL FOOD ISSUES NOW AND HAD NO CLUE THAT POST DID HOCKEY CARDS AS WELL AS THE BASEBALL CARDS I WAS COLLECTING. THE PINNACLE BRANDING IS COOL AND THIS DESIGN IS PRETTY WILD EVEN FOR THE LATE 90S. I DARE YOU TO FIGURE OUT IF THIS CARD IS OFF CENTER OR NOW. GO AHEAD, THEY TO FIGURE IT OUT

1991 STAR PICS ED BELFOUR FLASHBACK

THE FIRST TEAM I PLAYED ON THOSE OLD NINTENDO GAMES WAS THE CHICAGO BLACKHAWKS AND I QUICKLY LEARNED HOW GOOD ED WAS AT NOT LETTING PUCKS IN THE GOAL. I LIKE GOALIE CARDS IN GENERAL AND ED'S ALWAYS LOOK GOOD. THIS STAR PICS SET WAS ANOTHER ONE I HADN'T HEARD OF BEFORE AND I THOUGHT THIS WAS AN INSERT WHEN I FIRST SAW IT

1999-00 UPPER DECK RETRO MCDONALDS ED BELFOUR, 1999-00 UPPER DECK RETRO MCDONALDS ED BELFOUR ROOKIE YEAR INSERT

MCDONALD'S CARDS ARE USUALLY PRETTY SHINY BUT 2000 WAS THE YEAR RETRO REALLY KICKED OFF SO UPPER DECK GAVE UP THE RETRO DESIGN FOR THE BURGER CARDS. THESE ARE PRETTY NEAT LOOKING AND WE GET ED IN THE TOWO UNIFORMS HE'S BEST KNOWN FOR

1999-00 UPPER DECK VICTORY ED BELFOUR SEASON LEADERS

I THOUGHT I DIDN'T HAVE ONE OF THESE BUT I FOUND TWO OF THEM LATER ON WHEN PUTTING AWAT SOME UPPER DECK BOXES. THAT'S WHY YA GOTTA GET ORGANIZED KIDS!

1994-95 PINNACLE ED BELFOUR

THIS BIZZARE OBELISK DESIGN ON 94-95 PINNACLE ALWAYS SEEMED ICONIC TO ME SIMPLY BECAUSE OF HOW WEIRD IT WAS. I COULDN'T SWORN I HAD THIS CARD BUT I COULDN'T FIND IT ANYWHERE SO I MADE SURE I HAVE ONE. BUT SERIOUSLY, WHAT IS THAT FOIL THING? A TROTHY? A  STAIRCASE? A CENTEPEDE? WHAT THE HECK IS IT??

2003-04 PACIFIC ATOMIC MCDONALDS ED BELFOUR

LAST EDDIE IS ONE OF HIM IN A TORONTO UNI. I DON'T HAVE A LOT OF CARDS OF HIM WITH THE SHARKS OR PANTHERS OR LEAFS SO THIS IS A NICE PICKUP. YOU CERTAINLY KNOW IN NO UNCERTAIN TERMS THAT ED BELFOUR PLAYED FOR THE TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS WITH THIS DESIGN

2000-01 PACIFIC PRIZM MCDONALDS STEVE YZERMAN

ALONG WITH THE THREE DEFENSIVE PLAYERS I DECIDED TO COLLECT THREE FORWARDS AS WELL TO BUILD A FULL STARTING LINEUP. STEVE YZERMAN IS MY TEAM'S CENTER AS I SCORE A TON OF GOALS WITH HIM ON THAT SNES AND THE RED WINGS HAVE BECOME MY KINDA SORTA FAVORITE TEAM SINCE THE THRASHERS FLEED THE COUNTRY. DON'T ASK ME IF THE WINGS MADE THE PLAYOFFS BECAUSE I HAVE NO FRICKIN CLUE. THIS IS ONE OF THOSE SHINY MCDONALD'S CARDS I MENTIONED BEFORE AND HOLY MOLY THIS ONE IS EXTRA SHINY. MAN, I MISS GOOD PRISM WITH AN S

1991-92 O-PEE-CHEE PREMIER STEVE YZERMAN

I DON'T KNOW HOW I DIDN'T HAVE THIS ONE SINCE I HAVE MORE JUNKWAX ERA HOCKEY THAN I COULD EVER WANT BUT I DIDN'T SO I GOT IT

2005-06 PARKHURST STEVE YZERMAN CHECKLIST

I DON'T CARE MUCH ABOUT PARKHURST, WHEN I WAS ORGANIZING MY HOCKEY I DIDN'T EVEN BOTHER SORTING THE STUFF I HAD BUT AN ODDBALL INSERT CHECKLIST CAUGHT MY EYE. IT'S NOT A GREAT LOOKING CARD BUT IT SURE IS DIFFERENT

2003-04 PACIFIC ATOMIC MCDONALDS JAROME IGINLA

JAROME IGINLA IS MY RIGHT WINGER AS I WAS WELL AWARE OF HIS ROOKIE CARDS WHEN I WAS SERIOUSLY COLLECTING HOCKEY AND HE PLAYED FOR THE FLAMES, A TEAM I HAVE A SOFT SPOT FOR. I ALSO RECENTLY LEARNED HE'S THE LEAGUE LEADER IN GOALS FOR THE 00S? THAT'S DAMN GOOD. I ALSO LOVE THIS ATOMIC DESIGN SO I'LL TAKE ANY EXCUSE TO PICK ONE UP

2003-04 PACIFIC ATOMIC MCDONALDS ILYA KOVALCHUK

ILYA KOVALCHUK IS MY LEFT WINGER BECAUSE I KINDA HAVE TO COLLECT AT LEAST ONE ATLANTA PLAYER (CHELIOS DOESN'T COUNT EVEN THOUGH HE PLAYED A FEW GAMES WITH THEM AT THE END OF HIS CAREER) AND ILYA IS PRETTY MUCH THE ONLY STAR FROM THAT FRANCHISE THAT DIDN'T END UP AN EMBARASSMENT. WELL, AT LEAST NOT WHILE I WAS WATCHING HIM AT LEAST. IVE GOT A FEW OF HIS CARDS IN A TRASHERS BOX SOMEWHERE BUT WHENEVER I LOOK THROUGH IT I GET DEPRESSED SO I HAVEN'T PULLED HIS CARDS YET. THERE'S SOME GOOD ONES IN THERE THOUGH, BUT THIS WAS THE FIRST I'VE SEEN OF THIS MCDONALD'S DESIGN SO IT'S A PRETTY GOOD BET IT'S NOT IN THERE

1994-95 CLASSIC IMAGES MANON RHEAUME

I HAVE HAD A TINY MANON RHEAUME COLLECTION FOR THIRTY YEARS NOW AND YOU CAN STILL REGULARLY FIND HERE CARDS IN DOLLAR BOXES HERE IN ATLANTA. I SAW SOME OF THESE CARDS ON THE SITE AND THOUGHT, HELL YEAH, WHY NOT BUILD UP A HUGE COLLECTION OF RHEAUME CARDS! THEN I CHECKED OUT TCDB AND SAW HOW MANY CARDS SHE HAD LOL. I WILL ALWAYS HAVE A TINY COLLECTION BUT I'VE PROBABLY DOUBLED IT SO FAR THROUGH THE SITE. THISONE'S GOT SHINY FOILBOARD BUT IS SADLY NOT AN ATLANTA KNIGHTS CARD

1992 CLASSIC DRAFT PICKS MANON RHEAUME 

MANON'S VERY FIRST CARD! I THINK. THERE'S ALWAYS EARLIER CARDS THE MORE YOU LOOK. AND ODDLY ENOUGH, MANON'S OFFICIAL ROOKIE CARD IS CONSIDERED TO BE HER 2008-09 MASTERPIECES CARD BY TCDB AND HER 2010-11 PANINI DOMINION CARD BY COMC. ROOKIE CARDS ARE FAKE, Y'ALL. JUST ENJOY THE ONES YOU GOT

1993 CLASSIC PRO HOCKEY PROSPECTS MANON RHEAUME 

THESE ARE THE LAST TWO CARDS OF MANON I NEEDED FROM THE 1993 CLASSIC PRO HOCKEY PROSPECTS SET THAT WENT NUTSO ON RHEAUME CARDS UNLESS THERE'S SOME VARIATIONS I DON'T KNOW ABOUT. I HAD ABOUT HALF OF THEM FOR FOREVER UNTIL I WAS ABLE TO PICK UP THE REST ON THE SITE. HOORAY FOR COMPLETION!

1994-95 CLASSIC HOCKEY MANON RHEAUME

AND TO FINISH UP WE HAVE MANON IN THE TEAM CANADA UNI WITH TAMPA BAY SPLASHED ON THE SIDE. ANOTHER NICE LOOKING CARD AND NOW I HAVE TWENTY THREE OF HER CARDS. OUT OF A POSSIBLE ONE THOUSAND AND ONE LOL. LIKE I SAID, ENJOY THE CARDS YOU HAVE AND ALWAYS BE LOOKING FOR MORE COOL NEW ONES

ONLINE MEGA BOX - PART 25

IT'S ODD I GOT STUCK ON THIS POST SINCE I ALWAYS GUSH ABOUT HOW I LOVE FOILY, SHINY ODDBALL CARDS AND THESE CARDS ARE ALL THREE. A PILE OF SPX HOCKEY POPPED UP  AND WHILE I INSIST THAT I DON'T CARE ABOUT HOCKEY ANYMORE I KEEP BUYING COOL HOCKEY CARDS. 1997 SPX IS ABOUT AS COOL AS YOU CAN GET,WITH TEXTURED FOIL ON THE FRONT, FOILBOARD BACKS, A HOLOGRAM WITH AN ACTION SHOT AND A PORTRAIT THAT SOMETIMES SHAKES THEIR HEAD AT YOU AND TO TOP IT OFF THEY'RE DIE CUT ON EXTRA THICK CARD STOCK. UPPER DECK SAID ENOUGH OF THIS MESS AND ABANDONED THE HOLOGRAM GIMMICK AFTER THIS SET BUT THE ONES THEY MADE WERE ALL TOP NOTCH. I DIDN'T CLEAR OUT THE SPX CARDS BUT I PICKED UP A FEW GOOD ONES TO START OFF A BINDER PAGE

CATEGORY - SHIIIIIIIINY

1997-98 SPX ED JOVANOVSKI

I WAS INITIALLY CONFUSED ON HOW ED JOVANOVSKI MADE THE CUT. HE'S A GOOD PLAYER AND HAS A COOL NAME BUT I AM NOT A FAN OF ANY OF THE TEAMS HE PLAYED FOR AND DON'T RECALL EVER USING HIM IN A VIDEO GAME. THEN I CHECKED MY LIST OF PICKUPS AND THIS CARD WAS POSTED BEFORE THE BIG PILE OF SPX WAS SO I JUST PICKED IT UP PURELY ON COOLNESS ALONE. AND IT IS A REALLY COOL CARD, I TRIED TO PHOTOGRAPH IT TO MAXIMIZE THE HOLOGRAM PORTRAIT BUT I NEGLECTED TO WIPE OFF MY GREASY FINGERPRINTS. DON'T STEAL MY BIOMETRICS, BRO

1997-98 SPX THEOREN FLEURY

THEO WAS A ROOKIE ON THE CALGARY TEAM THAT WON THE CUP IN 1989 SO HE'S ALWAYS BEEN ON MY RADAR AS A JILTED ATLANTA FLAMES FAN. I HAVE A SMALL COLLECTION OF HIS CARDS AS I LIKED TO GET ANYONE FROM THAT 88-89 TEAM I CAN FIND BUT HE'S BEEN UHHH.. "ACTIVE" ON SOCIAL MEDIA LATELY SO I PREFER CARDS OF JOEY MULLIN, AL MCINNIS AND LANNY MCDONALD AT THE MOMENT. STILL A COOL CARD FROM MY WAYWARD TEAM

1997-98 SPX OWAN NOLAN

A LOT OF THESE CHOICES WERE ME THINKING ABOUT HOW MANY 90S INSERTS I PULLED OF THESE GUYS AND NABBING THE PLAYERS I GOT A BUNCH OF. OWEN NOLAN HAD A LOT OF 90S INSERTS. PLUS I'VE ALWAYS LOVED THAT SHARKS LOGO. I BOUGHT A SHARKS T-SHIRT IN COLLEGE BUT THAT WAS WHEN I WAS AN EXTRA LARGE AND I BECAME A 2X PRETTY QUICK AFTERWARDS

1997-98 SPX ADAM OATES

THE FIRST HALL OF FAMER IN THE BUNCH. MY ROOMMATE IN COLLEGE WAS A BIG CAPS FAN SO I WAS VERY FAMILIAR WITH OATES. THE PORTRAIT LOOKS BLURRY IN THIS PHOT BUT THAT'S BECAUSE THIS IS ONE OF THE CARDS THAT HAS A 3D MOTION HOLOGRAM. ADAM IS WINKING AT YOU ON THIS CARD AND I REALLY WISH I KNOW HOW TO MAKE A GOOD GIF OF IT. IF YOU SEE THIS CARD GET IT AND SEE FOR YOURSELF

1997-98 SPX PETER BONDRA

PETER IS THE OTHER CARD WITH A 3D HOLOGRAM. PETER GIVES YOU A SMILE AS YOU WIGGLE THE CARD BACK AND FORTH. I'M NOT SURE WHY THE WASHINGTON GUYS GOT THE 3D TREATMENT BUT IT'S NEAT

1997-98 SPX BRENDAN SHANAHAN

ANOTHER HALL OF FAMER! NO HEAD SHAKING ON THIS CARD THOUGH. I KIND OF ARBITRARILY PICKED THE RED WINGS AS MY TEAM ONCE ATLANTA HOCKEY LOST THEIR THIRD TEAM TO CANADA, MAINLY BECAUSE I LIKED PLAYING THE WINGS ON THE EA SPORTS SNES GAMES. BRENDAN IS A GREAT PLAYER BUT WHEN I WAS PICKING STEVE YZERMAN CARDS OUT OF MY HOCKEY INSERT BOX EVERY TIME A RED WINGS INSERT POPPED UP I WAS LIKE YEAH!... AWWW. ANOTHER SHANAHAN

2008-09 UPPER DECK HOCKEY CARD DAY GORDIE HOWE

CATEGORY - SUPERSTAR SURPRISE

I'VE LIKED GORDIE SINCE I WAS A KID AND NOTICED CAM'S DETROIT SWEATER IN FERRIS BUELLER'S DAY OFF. I'M PRETTY SURE I TRIED TO GET THIS CARD BUT I DON'T REMEMBER WINNING IT? LIKE, I'M SURE IT WAS IN MY CART AT SOME POINT BUT IT'S NOT ON THE LIST OF CARDS I MADE AFTER I BOUGHT THE SAME CARD TWICE FOR THE THIRD TIME. MAYBE MY LIST MAKING SKILLS ARE SUSPECT OR MAYBE IT WAS A BONUS, WHO KNOWS. I KNOW I ALMOST PUT THE SAME CARD IN MY CART AGAIN LATER ON THOUGH LOL

I ESPECIALLY LIKE HOWE CARDS WITH MR. HOCKEY ON THEM. WAYNE GRETZKY ISN'T MR. HOCKEY. SIDNEY CROSBY ISN'T MR. HOCKEY. THAT DUDE ON THE BLACKHAWKS EVERYONE IS FREAKING OUT ABOUT AIN'T IT EITHER. GORDIE HOWE IS MR. HOCKEY! I DON'T KNOW IF I'M SPECIFICALLY COLLECTING GORDIE CARDS BUT LIKE WITH RICKARD PETTY, IF I SEES A GOOD ONE I'M GETTIN IT

1997-98 SPX JOHN VANBIESBROUCK

ANOTHER DUDE I DON'T TECHNICALLY COLLECT BUT MAYBE PROBABLY SHOULD CONCIDERING HOW MANY CARDS I HAVE OF THE GUY. HE PLAYED FOREVER AND HIS CAREER OVERLAPPED MY YEARS OF COLLECTING HOCKEY CARDS PRETTY CLOSELY. ONE OF MY BEST HOCKEY RELIC CARDS HAS A CHUNK OF ONE OF HIS PADS ON IT

1997-98 SPX BRETT HULL

WE END UP WITH ONE LAST HALL OF FAMER IN BRETT HULL. HE'S LIKE A TOP-5 OF THE 90S KIND OF GUY SO I WAS STOKED TO PICK THIS ONE UP. I ALWAYS ASSOCIATE HIM WITH ST. LOUIS AND WAS SURPRISED TO SEE HE WON CUPS WITH DALLAS AND DETROIT. THAT'S THE WAY IT GOES

HERE'S A PICTURE OF THE BACK THAT DOESN'T REALLY DO JUSTICE TO THE SHINY FOILBOARD. I SHOULD HAVE TIRED TO GET SOME GLARE INSTEAD OF AVOIDING IT LIKE I NORMALLY DO. I LOVE THESE WEIRD HIGH-END CARDS AND AM GLAD UPPER DECK GOT A FEW SET OF THEM OUT BEFORE PIVOTING TO RELICS AND AUTOGRAPHS

UP NEXT: BACK TO THE NONSENSE, LOL

ONLINE MEGA BOX - PART 6

IF THINGS WORK OUT RIGHT I'LL BE AT A CARD SHOW WHEN THIS POST GOES UP. IF THINGS DON'T WORK OUT RIGHT I'LL BE BLOWING THE LAST CHANCE I HAVE TO GO THIS YEAR. NO PRESSURE, ME. THANKFULLY I STILL HAVE AN ABSOLUTE PILE OF CARDS I CAN SHOW OFF FOR THE NEXT SIX MONTHS, SHOW OR NO SHOW. ON WITH THE SHOW 

1994-95 UPPER DECK MCDONALDS PATRICK ROY

CATEGORY - SUPERSTAR, SHINY

THIS CARD JUST MIGHT BE THE QUINTESSENTIAL DIME BOX GEM. AN EXTREMELY SHINY ODDBALL FOOD-ISSUE CARD OF A LEGIT SUPERSTAR THAT LOOKS GREAT BUT IS A LITTLE BANGED UP SO IT IS AVAILABLE AT A GOOD PRICE. WHEN I GOT THIS CARD IN HAND I WAS AMAZED BECAUSE IT LOOKED LIKE IT WAS ETCHED LIKE A TOPPS CHROME CARD. I HAD NO IDEA UPPER DECK WAS USING THAT TECHNOLOGY ON HOLOFOIL CARDS IN 1994! TURNS OUT THEY WEREN'T, SOMEONE OUTLINED ROY IN WHAT APPEARS TO BE BALLPOINT PEN. I ONLY NOTICED WHEN I REALIZED THE OUTLINE AROUND PATRICK'S NAME WAS A LITTLE JANKY. THIS ONLY MAKES ME LIKE THE CARD EVEN MORE, NO ONE ELSE IN THE WORLD HAS AN ETCHED MCDONALDS ALL-STAR CARD OF PATRICK ROY. AT LEAST UNTIL ONE OF YOU PICKS UP A COPY AND DOES IT YOURSELF

1995-96 SKYBOX E-MOTION KEITH PRIMEAU X-CITED

CATEGORY - INSERT

I LOVE THE 1995 SKYBOX E-MOTION SETS AND WAS HAPPY TO FIND AN INSERT FROM THE SET. I'M NOT ENTIRELY CERTAIN WHAT THE THEME OF THIS SET IS BUT IT LOOKS NICE ENOUGH. I HAVE A BUNCH OF CARDS FROM THE BASEBALL, BASKETBALL AND HOCKEY VERSIONS OF THIS SET BUT I'M NOWHERE NEAR COMPLETING ANY OF THEM. MAYBE IT'S TIME FOR A NEW FRANKENSET

2003-04 UPPER DECK HONOR ROLL ED BELFOUR

CATEGORY - PLAYER COLLECTION

I HAD NO CARDS OF EDDIE IN A TORONTO UNIFORM AND I CORRECTED THAT OVERSIGHT. HONOR ROLL IS ONE OF THE MANY EARLY-00S BRANDS THAT HAVE ALREADY BEEN FORGOTTEN

1991 TOPPS FLIPPER ANDERSON, BARRY WORD 1000 YARD CLUB

CATEGORY - WANTLIST

THESE WERE THE LAST TWO 1991 1000 YEARD CLUB INSERTS I HAD SHOWING ON MY FOOTBALL WANTLIST BUT WHEN I PUT THE CARDS AWAY THERE ARE A LOT MORE MISSING FROM THE BOX SO NO COMPLETE SET PHOTO THIS TIME UNFORTUNATELY. ONCE I GET MY ACT TOGETHER AND FIND THE REST I'LL TRY TO SHOW IT OFF SOMEHOW

1991 DONRUSS TERRY PENDLETON MVP

CATEGORY - BRAVES, INSERT

I HAVE GOT TO GET MY BRAVES COLLECTION INTO SOME SORT OF ORDER. I AM 99% CERTAIN I HAVE THIS CARD ALREADY BUT WHO KNOWS WHERE IT IS. THIS WILL LIVE IN THE DONRUSS INSERT BOX IN THE MEANTIME. I STILL DON'T KNOW HOW TERRY WON THE MVP OVER BONDS BUT BARRY HAS LIKE SEVEN OTHER MVPS SO HE WON'T MISS THIS ONE

1993 FLEER ULTRA KEVIN YOUNG ALL ROOKIE

CATEGORY - INSERT

GOODNESS GRACIOUS THESE EARLY FLEER ULTRA INSERTS WERE SO DECADENT. LOOK AT THIS DESIGN, IT'S COMPLETE INSANITY. EVERYTHING IN EXCESS, THERE'S NO REASON FOR THIS CARD TO GO SO HARD BUT IT DID

IT EVEN HAS FOIL STAMPING ON THE BACK! ABSOLUTELY UNNECESSARY. FLEER JUST WENT ALL OUT IN THE 90S AND I LOVE THEM FOR IT 

1993 PINNACLE STERLING HITCHCOCK TEAM 2001

CATEGORY - INSERT

STERLING HITCHCOCK IS A HELLUVA NAME. I HAVE A TON OF PINNACLE TEAM 2000 CARDS FROM 1992 AND YOU'LL SEE SOME OF THOSE LATER. THE FOLLOWUP TEAM 2001 CARDS, NOT SO MUCH. I'M NOT SURE IF THEY ARE MORE SCARCE THAN THE PREVIOUS YEAR'S SET OR IF I'VE JUST BEEN IGNORING THEM FOR DECADES BUT I NABBED THIS ONE TO TRY TO BEGIN CATCHING UP. THE THEME OF TEAM 2000 WAS A BUNCH OF YOUNG PLAYERS WHO WOULD STILL BE STARS IN THE YEAR 2000, SO I GUESS THEY JUST MOVED THE WINDOW THE NEXT YEAR. THERE IS NO TEAM 2002

THIS ONE HAS FOIL ON THE BACK TOO! THINGS WERE WILD BEFORE THE STRIKE BOOGERED EVERYTHING UP

2023 TOPPS MARCELL OZUNA

CATEGORY - BRAVES

BACK WHEN I PICKED UP THIS CARD MARCELL WAS HITTING LIKE .180 WITH THREE HOMERS AND EVERYONE WAS SCREAMING FOR HIM TO GET RELEASED. THEN THE GUY JUST WENT OUT AND HIT FORTY DINGERS SOMEHOW. OZUNA FROM THE BRAVES IS A BIT INFURIATING BUT I'M A LITTLE CLOSER TO THAT 2023 TEAM SET NOW

2022 CHRONICLES CRUSADE LUIS FRIAS

CATEGORY - CHRONICLES

AFTER BUYING A BUNCH OF CARDS TWICE I STARTED CATALOGUING ALL MY PICKUPS FROM THE SITE IN AN ATTEMPT TO CUT THAT OUT. WHEN LOGGING THIS ONE I ACCIDENTALLY TYPED IT OUT AS 'CHRONICLES - CRUSADE ARIAS' AND WHEN I GOT THE CARD I WAS BAFFLED TRYING TO FIGURE OUT WHO THIS FRIAS GUY WAS BEFORE I FIGURED IT OUT. DESPITE MY EFFORTS I STILL ALMOST BOUGHT A SECOND COPY OF THIS CARD LATER ON 

2022 CHRONICLES CLASSICS JOSIAH GRAY

CATEGORY - CHRONICLES

JOSIAH PITCHED PRETTY WELL FOR A CRUMMY WASHINGTON TEAM THIS YEAR. BEST OF ALL, HE DIDN'T BEAT THE BRAVES. THESE CLASSICS DESIGNS ARE VERY APPEALING AND I'M CONSTANTLY TEMPTED TO PICK UP SOME FOOTBALL PACKS BUT I'VE HELD STRONG SO FAR

2021 MOSAIC MAX FRIED

CATEGORY - BRAVES

FINISHING UP THE BATCH WITH A SHINY MAXIMILLIAN CARD. HE'S PROBABLY SIGNING A GIGANTIC CONTRACT WITH AN L.A. TEAM IN 2025 BUT I SHALL ENJOY HIS PITCHERY UNTIL THEN. I STILL HAVEN'T FIGURED OUT WHERE MOSAIC FITS IN THE PANINI PECKING ORDER. PRISM IS OBVIOUSLY THE KING, AND OPTIC IS CLOSE BEHIND BUT MOSAIC ALWAYS SEEMS TO BE IN THE JUNK PILES. IT SEEMS TO ME TO BE THE RED HEADED STEPCHILD OF CHROMIUM CARDS LIKE BOWMAN PLATINUM OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. THE SETS ARE MASSIVE TOO, WHO'S COLLECTING THESE THINGS

UP NEXT: MAYBE A LITTLE CURVEBALL? IF NOT JUST MORE HOCKEY AND CHRONICLES AND ASSORTED JUNK

1974-75 Topps Hockey Wantlist

The past week or so has been COMPLETE ASS so I haven't done much in the way of carding lately. I did manage to get my favorite hawkee set sorted and paged out and bindered and scanned tho. Here's a wantlist. If you collect old Topps hockeys, I have a healthy pile of doubles from the '70s lying around that can be traded to you.

3 Bobby Clarke Scoring Leaders
5 Dave Schultz PM Leaders
8 Bill Barber
10 Gilles Gilbert
11 John Davidson RC
14 Keith McCreary Flames Leaders
15 Dan Bouchard
18 Bob Berry
19 Gordon "Red" Berenson
20 Stan Mikita
21 Fred Shero RC
25 Gilbert Perreault
27 Bobby Schmautz
28 Johnny Bucyk Bruins Leaders
30 Lowell MacDonald
31 Fred Stanfield
34 Armand "Bep" Guidolin
39 Ron Low
40 Darryl Sittler
50 Brad Park
54 Checklist
58 Hubert "Pit" Martin
59 Chris Evans
60 Bernie Parent
62 Dave Kryskow RC
68 Tom Lysiak RC
72 Marcel Dionne
74 Robert "Butch" Goring
76 Leonard "Red" Kelly
77 Pete Stemkowski
80 Don Awrey
85 Ed Van Impe
91 Al Arbour
100 Bobby Orr
103 Keith McCreary
104 Phil Maloney RC
105 Denis Dupere
107 Bob Plager
110 Jean Pronovost
114 Richard Lemieux
116 Bill Hogaboam RC
120 Mickey Redmond
123 Bob Nystrom
124 Claude Larose Canadiens Leaders
128 Ken Hodge All-Star
129 Phil Esposito All-Star
130 Bobby Orr All-Star
131 Brad Park All-Star
132 Gilles Gilbert All-Star
135 Bobby Clarke All-Star
139 Jacques Richard
140 Yvan Cournoyer
147 Bernie "Boom-Boom" Geoffrion
151 Dave Keon
153 Michel Belhumeur
155 Ken Dryden
156 John Wright RC
160 Ed Giacomin
162 Checklist
169 Kansas City Scouts Logo
170 Tony Esposito
173 Peter McDuffe
180 Borje Salming RC
183 Syl Apps Penguins Leaders
187 Simon Nolet
195 Denis Potvin RC
198 Jim McKenny
206 Wayne Cashman208 Phil Roberto
209 SC Quarterfinals
210 SC Quarterfinals
211 SC Quarterfinals
215 1974 SC Finals
217 Joe Watson
219 Denis Dupere Maple Leafs Leaders
220 Bill Goldsworthy
222 Alex Delvecchio
223 Stan Gilbertson
231 Bill Fairbairn
232 Guy Lafleur
233 Denis Potvin RC Islanders Leaders
237 Garry Unger
238 Jack Gordon RC
242 Len Frig RC
243 Henri Richard Masterton Award
244 Phil Esposito Hart Trophy
245 Johnny Bucyk Byng Trophy
247 Boston Bruins Prince of Wales Trophy
250 Philadelphia Flyers Stanley Cup
255 Jude Drouin
261 Scotty Bowman RC
262 Craig Patrick

Thanks to: Shane D.

have: 175/264 66.3%

Obligatory Hockey post

Got to see some Hockey in Atlanta last night with a couple of buddies even though Gary doesn't feel we are worthy, unlike Arizona. Eff the NHL, I spent less on last night's ticket in Row G for a minor league game than I've spent on parking for the big boys and had just as good a time. I took some pictures, but I've spent the past half hour fighting with my crappy BlueTooth gizmo trying to get the pics off my phone and I give up. I really really need to join the 21st century and get one of these newfangled smartphones. Vintage is great in baseball cards but sucks ass with electronics. You'll have to imagine the pics of a hockey crease through the glass and of a minor league goalie picking up teddy bears off the ice. Thoughts/highlights from last night's game.

The game was between the Gwinnett Gladiators and the Greenville Road Warriors. Russell Crowe vs. Mel Gibson.

Before the game we went to get dinner at a joint in Tucker. Not going to mention the name, because foreshadowing. Got a couple of beers and shared a plate of fried pickles/jalapenos. I was told the jalapenos were ruthlessly hot because they kept the seeds in when they sliced and battered them. When I scoffed at the heat or lack thereof, I was told to try the red ones because those were really hot. After querying on how exactly to find out which ones are red when they are covered batter, it was determined that my buddies ate all the red ones. I wanted a burger (with tots! woooooo!) but their house burgers were all weird. Ham on a burger? Pulled pork on a burger?? WTF? I was told a while back by the owner of one of the local card shops (not going to mention the name, because foreshadowing) that one of the best culinary experiences ever is to have a burger with a fried egg on top. I was dubious of this claim, but the advice stuck. One of the burgers at the joint did indeed have a fried egg on top and even though that sounds odd to me, it sounded a helluva lot better than pulled pork. So, I got EggBurger. It was... ok. Barely. Honestly, the bacon probably saved it. Breakfast should probably be kept separate from burgers. We left the restaurant and I felt mostly all right because of the two beers. (FORESHADOWING)

Got to the arena, drove right in, no traffic, free parking, 2 minute walk from the box office. God I love minor league sports.

Walked right into the box office, up to a counter - no waiting in line - and bought three tickets within spitting distance of the glass for 15 bucks less than one ticket for average seat at Phillips for the Atlantipeg Threats. God I love minor league sports.

To make things less complicated, one guy bought the tickets and we paid for his grub all night. I got him a beer and a bag of peanuts. One 12 oz. Yuengling on draft - $7.50. I can get a 24 oz. can of the stuff at the Ted for $8!! Oh well, two out of three ain't bad.

I got the seat in the middle. First thing I did was put my arms around both of them and asked who gets the smooch if we get on KissCam. I have no shame.

For some reason the Canadian National Anthem was played. I guess it's just a hockey thing.

For some reason one of my friends started singing along with the Canadian National Anthem. I apologize to all Canadians, past, present and future. Even if you are a fan of maple syrup, beavers (animal or otherwise), or even just really like snow and at one point in your life felt some sort of kinship to the people of Canada for even a moment, I apologize. I am so, so sorry for what happened last night.

Before the American National Anthem, there was a stern warning not to yell out during the anthem because it is horribly disrespectful and Jesus will cry and Everyone Should Support Our Troops. At the proper time I whispered very softly and respectfully KNIGHTS!!!

No one will understand what that means, but trust me, it is essential for any Hockey game in Atlanta.

The first fight in the game came three seconds in. Seriously, the clock read 19:57 and there were already two roughing penalties. I don't even think the ref dropped the puck before the gloves were off. Great Googley Moogely I LOVE Minor League Hockey.

Somewhere in the middle of the first period I had the epiphany that I had reached the point in my life where I don't necessarily give a crap about the game, I just want to go so I can hang out and bullshit with some friends.

I am happy I have reached this point in my life.

The Road Warriors (whose logo looks like the result of Ghengis Khan knocking up a Viking) got the first goal. Boooooooo.

Right about then my colon most definitely decided it did not like the EggBurger. I had cold sweats for about 10 minutes while the teams skated out the period.

I was able to pass the time watching the end of the Saints/Niners game on one buddy's IPhone. There was about 5 touchdowns in a minute and a half or something? Seemed like it at least.

I don't particularly want to give Steve Jobs' ghost any of my money, but those things are nice.

First intermission: I announce I am going to the bathroom. Singing friend decided to go with me. We go in the bathroom, both stalls are occupied. I have to wait for buddy to finish his business before I can go find a place to do mine. Halfway around the arena I find an open stall. With no lock. Anyone who opens that door deserves what they get. My colon has no shame.

Now with a small measure of relief, I get myself a souvenir cup soda. Pepsi products! Egads! I reluctantly get a diet Pepsi simply because I need a caffeine boost of any kind. The cups are awesome this year though, full schedule and one of the players printed on decent plastic.

There's this one lady who comes to every game wearing a hockey sweater and sexy boots AND PRETTY MUCH NOTHING ELSE. She showed up at the snack bar and we gawked, as is the custom. It is my experience after attending hockey games for over 30 years that there is at least one of these ladies at every single game. This stuff doesn't happen in baseball, folks.

We go back to the seats and get stopped by the "No going down the ice while the puck is in play lady. We get back to our sets just in time to see the Gladiators score. Yay!

Apparently this was Stuffed Animal Donation night. Everyone gets to bring stuffed toys and throw them on the ice after the Glads score their first goal. BEDLAM ENSUES. The ice looks like a tornado hit a Toys 'R Us. Play stops for about 20 minutes while friggin CARS are driven on the ice so the toys can be loaded into the back of them and taken away. The Gladiator goalie helped load toys pretty much the whole time and a few other players pitched in. One car was blocking the exit off of the ice and did not have enough room to turn around and exit, so they tried to push it out backwards. It banged into the glass and got a dent on the bumper. Once everything was off the ice some workers were trying to gather up as much errant fluff as they could off the ice.

One teddy bear got stuck in the net above the glass and stayed there the whole game.

The Warriors soon took the lead. At one point The Glads had 29 shots to the Warriors' 9 and were down 2-1.

Second intermission comes and we all go up to the concourse to chill out and talk about The Good Old Days. We made the mistake of trying to leave during the "Throw the foam puck on the ice into a target and win a prize!" contest and got trapped in the aisle and pelted with foam pucks.

While we were talking my colon once again got antsy and I had to run to the loo. This one was worse because the jalapenos talked to the EggBurger, found out I was mocking their heat and decided to take their Revenge. Victory was ultimately mine as my colon was finally appeased and the Glads tied up the game while I was on the can. My ass is good luck!

We continue talking about the Good Ol' Days in college while the game plods on. Highlights of the conversation:

• The time when Football buddy's ex-girlfriend showed up at our apartment wearing only a tiny tank top and Daisy Dukes. I had forgotten all about that but I'm glad I remembered. 
• The time when Singing buddy got hammered at a party, complemented some girl for having pretty eyes, got essentially a lap dance from this girl AND MANAGED TO NOT EVEN KISS HER. facepalm.jpg
• The time when Football buddy got hammered downtown and called me for over an hour trying to get a ride home. When asked what the hell I was doing instead of picking him up, I replied "probably banging my girlfriend". We all agreed this was likely and a totally acceptable excuse.  
• One of our old roommates wrote a book!
• This reminded us of every terrible roommate we ever had. We mocked them accordingly. 
• I'M SORRY WE THREW YOUR COUCH HALFWAY DOWN THE RAVINE BEHIND OUR OLD APARTMENT AND LOST OUR SECURITY DEPOSIT. If we hadn't stepped into that fire ant nest we could have gotten the couch all the way down the ravine. 

At this point we had to choose between bailing and going to get some coffee or watching the rest of the game. Since the game was tied, we chose to stick it out. We also decided that the view is better from the top of the stairs so we hang out in the handicapped row to watch the game.

Football buddy took his turn in the can. While he was gone I went back to our seats to rescue my nice Gladiators cup. When I got to my row, the Glads took the lead on a sweet slap shot from the corner. My friends' ass is lucky too!

When I rescued my cup I went in the row on one side and exited the other so I could inconvenience everyone in the row equally. I'm thoughtful like that.

Souvenir cups get free refills. I got a free refill of Diet Pepsi even though I hate it. WHAT WAS I SUPPOSED TO DO. IT'S FREE.

We worked out that The Glads scored every time someone went to the bathroom. We hectored Singing buddy until he went to the john in hopes that the Glads would score again and get a two goal lead. Nope. The Hockey Gods were so offended by his butchery of O Canada they revoked his ass luck.

The Warriors pulled their goalie with about a minute and a half left. The Glads immediately got a penalty so they had a 6 on 4 penalty kill to win the game. I pointed out that there was an empty net and my friends looked at me like I had announced that I was a 39 year old man who loved My Little Pony or something. "Hey look, empty net. The net... it's empty. Empty! Net! They pulled their goalie! So the net is empty! AM I THE ONLY ONE HERE WHO KNOWS HOCKEY STRATEGY?!"

Of course I had announced that I was a 39 year old man who loved My Little Pony earlier at the restaurant.  Football buddy was dubious, but Singing buddy had seen Pony references on Phineas and Ferb and is now Pony-Positive.

The Glads killed the power play and gained Victory, propelling them into first place in whatever division they are in. On the way out we got free magnetic schedules! Yay!

We passed on coffee and all went our separate ways. I drove home and listened to too-loud techno with a splitting headache. I didn't mind because in one single day I got:

Pinkie Pie Pony Episode
Roger Vintage Card Show
Football at the Sports Bar
Minor League Hockey
Quality Time With the College Buds

No way a headache and EggBurger gastric distress can spoil all that! Best Day Ever!

Eddie in the Hall

I have been purposely avoiding all mention of the NHL this season for obvious reasons. There is still a small part of me that genuinely likes the sport, the sport just really, really doesn't seem to like me all that much. My Hockey Love was kindled a bit this morning when I saw on Waxaholic that Eddie Belfour was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Eddie is my favorite goalie. Basically all my favorite players (Eddie, Chelios, Coffey, Roenick, Yzerman, Bourque) are ones I enjoyed playing in EA Sports Hockey '93. It's mildly disconcerting that my favorite players are not only all retired but getting inducted to the Hall of Fame, but right now I have about a thousand reminders of my impending mortality surrounding me at all times so this one didn't faze me much. I guess this is a good time to show off my Eddie Belfour relic card!

In 2000ish, I was big into Yahoo! Auctions. There were no listing fees unlike eBay so all kinds of cheapo common stuff was on there and sellers who combined shipping made it worth buying the cheapniss. That doesn't mean I only bought cheap stuff on there, I got a crazy Jamal Anderson football relic card from some Upper Deck set that had part of the logo in the leather swatch for some dude in the Philippines. I also got a signed Hank Aaron baseball. I also got a redemption card for an Eddie Belfour stick!

Eddie's stick! I could hold Eddie Belfour's hockey stick in my hands and commit felonious assault with it if I chose! At least I thought it was a stick. Both redemption cards and relic cards were really new in 2000, so somehow I thought that the "Memorabilia" part of the memorabilia redemption was the entire bloody stick instead of a little sliver of it on the card. I ended up winning it for $35 which kinda blew my auction budget but it was worth it. I got the redemption card, read the thing carefully and realized it was for a card, not a stick. That was cool. I had paid $30 for a jersey card of Kurt Warner at the time so $35 wasn't too terrible considering the card was actually from a favorite player. I sent in the card, waited a while and got this:

A pack of Stadium Club

And TWO Chris Pronger jersey cards.

Also the dreaded "We're sorry, but we included a card on the pre-sell checklist that we decided to never make so here's some crap you don't want instead. We sincerely hope you pulled this out of a pack and just decided to send it in for the hell of it and didn't actually blow real money on a redemption card like an idiot. Here's a halfhearted apology that isn't even necessary because we know that you're hopelessly hooked and will continue to buy our shit regardless. Hugs and kisses, Topps" form letter. OOPS. So there's my Eddie Belfour relic card. For some reason I lost interested in hockey cards a couple of years after that. I also learned my lesson on redemption cards. I got a good laugh about it a decade later though!

6 in 30 - Five Dollar Binder

Every so often Atlanta Sports cards sells binders full of sheets and cards for five bucks that were likely picked up in a large collection purchase. This is just fine and dandy as I am constantly on the lookout for cheap binders and pages. The actual cards are an afterthought with me. Last time I went to ASC on my lunch break (a couple of weeks ago now, I'm really behind in everything) they had a few and I found a doozy. Normally they are filled up with random junk commons or a crummy football or basketball set from 1992, but I found one with about 8 sheets 2/3 filled with vintage commons from 1972 and 1974. They were selling similar cards in their quarter box so the '74s alone would have cost more than the rest of the binder. There was a lot of neat stuff in there actually, some football, some junk wax star cards, a bunch of hockey and even some golf and Desert Storm cards. Here's 6 in 30 to memorialize the binder before it gets cannibalized for my Obak set and Yo Momma cards.

1974 Topps Rookie Infielders

There were a bunch of neat early '70s cards including a couple of Braves and a Frank Tanana rookie, but I didn't even notice this Frank White rookie until my final flip through the binder.

1974-75 O-Pee-Chee WHA Checklist

I've never even seen a WHA hockey card, but there were two of the checklists in the binder. This one is kind of jacked up with the wax stain and the diamond cut, but the other one is GEM MINT baby. I wish I had some WHA cards so I could check it off.

1986 Topps Dave Winfield All-Star

Ever since I got that '76 Winfield from Troll, I've been mildly obsessed with Dave to the point where I've been making a point of checking for his rookie when I hit a card shop. I almost bought a '75 mini Winfield at the flea market last weekend but there was a bad ding on the left side and the guy was talking about book value the whole time I was there.

1987 Phil Niekro

This was the very last card I needed to finish my '87 Topps set. I already had about a half dozen of 'em but they were in my Braves collection (Knucksie is ALWAYS a Brave, regardless of uniform) and not in my set. Silly, no?

1990-91 Topps Doug Gilmour

One of my favorite all-time SportsCenter commercials is where Keith Olbermann and Dan Patrick are talking about tough guys in sports while applying makeup in the restroom. "Mark Messier's tough... Doug Gilmour's tough..." This card reminded me of how nice this set is. Maybe I should drag it out of mothballs and see if I can finish the thing.

Topps Desert Storm Canada Sticker

The Desert Storm cards more than anything else dates this binder to about 1991. Only then would people actually put these things in pages. Among the numerous cards of tanks and planes, I got a General Stormin' Norman and a few flags. After pondering deeply (well not too deeply, there was a time limit here) I went with the flag. Gotta love the Leaf.