ONE SHEET, ONE SET - 1992/93 Parkhurst Dynasty

I'm going with a subset this time around. It's one that might have missed a lot of people as it comes from those overproduced mid-90's products that most collectors pass right by these days.

1992/93 Parkhurst
Dynasty Subset (13 cards)

This small subset has some power to it. A tribute to the Broad Street Bullies of the 70's, these cards represent just how talented and focused those Philadelphia Flyers teams were when they won back-to-back Stanley Cup championships in 1974 and 1975.

The cards feature players like Bobby Clarke, Bernie Parent, Reggie Leach, Bill Barber and Dave "The Hammer' Schultz....all led by legendary coach - Fred Shero.

These cards are a simple design utilizing the same background for each and capturing the player action via artist rendering as opposed to photos.

Buried deep in the series II release of a mid-90's overproduced set, these cards don't get near the appreciation they deserve.

Until now.


What really draws me in to the cards are....well....the drawings. To flip through photo after photo, card after card, it's hard not to stop and do a double take when you initially see these. That and the flowing locks of the helmet-less players.

Let's take a look at the background of the cards first. The old Philadelphia Spectrum. While I never set foot in the building, I know through reputation that it had a strong history and unique charm attached to it. And while the building and the city are synonymous with the Flyers, it was all bound together by the players who wore the orange, black and white jerseys.

The players depicted on the front are the who's who of those dynasty teams (and yes I call them a dynasty - heck, they have their own moniker - Broad Street Bullies). The drawings are lifelike enough that they are recognizable yet show an artist's flare giving these cards a unique presentation.

The ice surface at the bottom of the card gives a great sense of depth separating the player from the background building. The colors are not too bold which give a bit of an old-school feel. There are however a couple flaws to the front of the card which drop it a slight notch or two.

While I like the borderless simplicity of the design, it's a little too simple. The player's name or some sort of text other than 'Dynasty' would have been nice. And on the subject of the 'Dynasty' text, it has a 'slapped on' feel to it. Lost on some cards and competing with the photos in others, I think that could have been better executed.


The back of the card has a real 'Plain Jane' feel to it. Not overly impressive. While I appreciate the ice surface background which really ties in with the front of the card, and I also enjoy the player photo giving me a different look than the front, it's the complete lack of creativity that leaves me on a down note. The border for the photo is boring. The text font is boring. The information on the back is boring (could have used some stats) and the player name and position at the top are boring.

Boring.

I will give slight points for the english and french text. You don't see that much anymore. Takes me back to the good ol' days. But overall it's a miss for me when it comes to the card back.

In the end, it's a decent subset that makes people stop and appreciate one of the most memorable teams in the history of the NHL. Almost 40 years after the fact and these players still bring about instant recognition. C'mon....'The Hammer' - awesome.

The other thing I like about this subset is that it is by far the cheapest I've featured in my One Sheet, One Set posts. I have no doubt you could find all 13 cards for a dime. Yup, the book value of the most expensive card is .02 cents. That's kind of nice.

With 'retro' themes all the rage these days, it should be a no-brainer to pick this set up.

3 out of 5

One last note. For those who have not caught it, HBO did a great doc on said Flyers team that uses footage I've never seen before and has recent interviews of a lot of the players from that time period. Well worth the watch. Sadly, it's not yet on dvd.