LINDEN CARD OF THE WEEK - White. Whale.

There have been just a handful of really....REALLY exciting moments for me in this hobby I love over the past couple of years.  But in that time I have picked up some nice cards, new project starters, tough finds and rare parallels.

But none of those compare to the two words....

WHITE WHALE!!

The term 'white whale' gets used a lot in this hobby (and often misused IMO).  Tracking down that elusive card that has been on your wantlist for far too long.  I've seen guys bark that phrase out when the card has only been on the list for a couple years - not a white whale.  I've seen guys refer to 1/1's as their cosmic find - not a white whale.  I've heard many talk about cards that are fairly available but have just been a little too pricey - again...not a white whale.

To me, a white whale is a card that has been on your wishlist longer than most others.  It's a card that has been constantly on the radar throughout the grueling search.  It's an elusive card, not for its rarity...but for it's lack of availability (and I feel there is a difference).

It's a card that makes you double take triple take when it finally rears its ugly head, produce an unconscious smile that just can't be wiped from your face and prompt you to go immediately into "card acquisition mode".

All this buildup.....you can guess that I had such a card arrive in the mailbox recently.  So let's take a look at it and I will break it down for you.

2005/06 Upper Deck MVP

#P-TL Prosign

While this card might just look like a simple signature offering, I can assure you that there is more to this than meets the eye.

This card has been the top want on my list for a number of years now.  On hobby chat boards, when the topic of "What is your white whale?" comes up.....I post a photo of this card.  It's not serial numbered, it's not uber-rare, heck....it's a sticker autograph.  It's a 10-year-old piece of cardboard and I haven't seen a single copy of it for over 8 years.

So what gives?

Well, it comes from the 2005/06 MVP product which, unlike pretty much every other year of MVP, has a bit of desirability.  It is after all the Sidney Crosby/Alex Ovechkin rookie year.  So while a good wave of this stuff was opened when the product was originally released (to get the highly desirable rc's), the product dried up because everyone got their copy.  Tons of this product just sat on the shelves.  Why?  It wouldn't go on sale for rock bottom prices.  Why?  It had the Crosby and Ovechkin rookie cards.

A vicious circle.

A circle that left a lot of cards like this Linden Prosign sitting in boxes likely never to be opened.

When the product first came out there was a good buzz following the Linden auto.  Like many Linden cards at that time, many of us wanted to pick it up for our collections.  The prices on the first few were high (as they normally are....anxious buyers).  I decided to wait it out and let the prices come down.

Well, the prices never came down because copies of the card never showed up.

I waited and waited......and waited.

After a few years I realized that I may have missed the bus on this one.  In fact, it got to the point where I truly felt I'd never obtain a copy of this card - ever.  I even considered contacting a fellow Linden collector to see if he'd be interested in selling me his copy.  It never came to that, but I thought about it real hard.

When this copy hit the open market I knew I'd have to bid big on it.

A few e-mails to fellow Linden collectors to gauge the interest level (and seeing the initial bids on it) gave me the indication that this would be a hot ticket.  I came up with my "maximum number" and waited for the auction to near its end.

A full day before the timer was to end a bid came across that was a whopper - bigger than the number I had as my maximum.  I was not only surprised that someone would play his hand so early, but worried that this card might not be destined for my collection.

The nice thing was that I had a full day to contemplate.  I decided to up my maximum bid and crossed my fingers.  As the auction neared its end I pulled the trigger.  Sure enough it was just a little higher than the big bid from the day earlier - enough to make me the winning bidder.

I haven't been so happy to win a card in a really long time.

It arrived today and I am absolutely pumped.  I must have stared at it for a good number of minutes.

And while I paid overpaid quite a bit for it, I have absolutely zero buyer's remorse.  It's one I am more than happy to cross off the list and put this chapter of my Linden collection to rest.

And THAT......is what a 'white whale' is all about.

WALLET CARD - Second Best Afro Card

It's been a while since I've posted anything #WalletCard related.  But that doesn't mean Oscar isn't on my radar.

I've managed to pick up a few cards via COMC as well as the generosity of trade.  I enjoy the fact that there are people out there keeping an eye out for the great afro'd one.

The card I'm going to share today comes from a trade a few months back where Captain Canuck (aka: Gamble Supplier) fanned this beauty in my face.

1976 SSPC #526

This just has a whole lotta spectacular in it.

Afro aside, the ballcap is a beaut.  I love that it's neatly off kilter.  And I can picture the lobster-red jersey in full form.

For a card that's 40 years old, it was in fantastic condition.

Thanks very much for thinking of me one more than one occasion Captain! 

Ive slowly built a pretty solid player collection (in just a little over a year).  I've picked up 35 cards out of a checklist of 142 total.  Not bad.  Keep in mind that I'm not aggressive at all when it comes to chasing.  I could pop on any number of sites and snag a good 40-50 cards - cheap - without even blinking.  But that's not really any fun.

What I'd love to see happen is to go to a show where there's a bunch of baseball singles and just dig.  Maybe a trip to a show in the States is in order one of these days.

To end things off for this post, I'd like to share a great sketch done by John Hartwell of Oscar and his iconic 1976 Topps 74T #WalletCard.

Tremendous.

Check out some of his other work too via his Twitter feed.  I especially love the  Don Mossi.  Captures it perfectly.

MY COLLECTION - Great Card Show Find

One of the things I like to do at the card shows is dig.  Dig through boxes upon boxes looking for that hidden gem.  Safe to say...I'm a sucker for a good deal.

And it's paid off handsomely in the past.  Cards in a dollar box that I've been able to parlay into $2 each (yeah....I call that handsome).

But seriously, I'm not that good at sniffing out the killer deals and making a fortune on flipping.  In fact, I think I'm pretty bad at it.  I don't think I have the killer instinct and I definitely don't have the pocketbook to really build a robust inventory of tradebait.

But every once in a while I come home from a show thinking "I got one heck of a deal here".  And with this card - I think I done did good.

1999/00 Upper Deck Century Legends

Contemporaries

#57 Ray Bourque  /100

Years ago I put together this set.  It mainly consisted of the top 50 players of the past century in the NHL - ranked.  I really liked the looks of the set and it's one of the few completed sets I regret parting with.

These parallels were, and still are, a hot commodity and are really tough to find.  And while this Ray Bourque card doesn't come from the top 50 list (he ranked 16th at the time the list was released) but rather the Contemporaries subset, it doesn't make this find any less special.

A quick perusal of ebay completed sales shows these parallels go for anywhere between $12-25us for the more "common" guys all the way up to $75us for the Gretzky.

I picked this Bourque up for five bucks....Canadian.

There is one benefit to collecting in Canada these days....the ability to "buy low" in Canadian funds and possibly "sell higher" in US dollars.

And while I'll just likely shove this in my trade box, I do feel like I'll be able to at very least break even with this pickup.

Like I said....killer instinct.

LINDEN CARD OF THE WEEK - In The Game Used Gold

To say that it's been a slow go in terms of my Trevor Linden collecting so far in 2016 would be an understatement.  A quick check on ebay shows that I have only pulled the trigger on four cards since January 1.  In previous years I've been known to pick up at least that many cards (if not more) each and every month.

Part of it is the economy, part of it is the price that people are asking on these cards but mainly it's just the lack of excitement that a lot of new releases generate.

Case in point....the most recent In The Game Used product put out by Leaf.

Close to 40 Trevor Linden cards were inserted into the money grab of a release with many of them being simple color parallels that are numbered ridiculously low.

Out of the 40 cards, two are numbered higher than 25.  TWO CARDS.  One is /45 and the other /55.  The rest are /25, /20, /15, /5, /3 and a whole crapload of 1/1s.

I truly don't understand why a company would put this many cards of a particular player in a product....and then pump out another product soon after with just as many cards of that player in it.

Do they think I've got endless pockets?

Anyways, this is why I don't chase like I used to.  Instead, I wait....and wait....and wait.  I wait for the price to come down so low that I feel it's about as low as it will ever go.  Only then will I consider buying it.

Yup....there are a lot of new Linden cards that will never see the light of day in my collection.  And I'm perfectly fine with that.

2014/15 Leaf In The Game Used

#GUA-TL2 Game-Used Auto/Mem. Gold  /15

This card looks just like its silver counterpart except this one is gold in foil and is numbered to 15 instead of 40.  It really isn't that exciting of a card and the price I paid reflects that.

Even at $13us I still feel like I overpaid.  But I think the lull in Linden pickups made me cave slightly and "splurge" on myself.

I'm really not that excited to add this (kinda sad to say) but I do know one thing....there are much more exciting finds that I'm looking forward to show off in the near future.

I guarantee it.  :)

SIGNATURE CHAMPIONS - Off To A Quick Start

Maybe it's the excitement of starting a new project or maybe the lack of Linden pickups locally of late, but the newest challenge I've set for myself started with a bang at the monthly card show today.

The Signature Champions set inserted into the 2014/15 UD Premier product caught my eye immediately and earlier in the week I decided to pull the trigger and walk around with an official wantlist.

While it's not a huge list in terms of numbers (24 cards) it is a giant in the sense that there are a few big names I'm going to have to try and track down.

But I'll worry about that later.....much later.

In the meantime, let's take a look at the newest cards to be added to the set.

2014/15 Upper Deck Premier

Signature Champions

#SC-PD Pavel Datsyuk  /50

I had sifted through a number of boxes on one particular table and had already seen a couple cards from this set (Dustin Brown and Grant Fuhr) but decided to pass on them as I thought maybe the price wasn't quite right.  When I came upon this Datsyuk.....I didn't hesitate.

Priced at just $20.........Canadian.......I knew that this was a great find.

While Pavel's strength in the hobby market isn't too huge, a nice hard signed offering - on a card with him hoisting the Stanley Cup - and numbered to just 50 copies makes this a definite keeper.

2014/15 Upper Deck Premier

Signature Champions

#SC-GF Grant Fuhr  /50

I mentioned that I passed on a Grant Fuhr earlier in the day.  Well, a quick pek at completed sales on ebay made me hustle back to grab this copy as well.

At just $15.....Canadian....I thought it was a very fair price.

I could never decide if Fuhr was the beneficiary of playing on spectacular Oiler teams or if he was just that good.  The debate continues to this day.

Personally, I think he's a little overrated.

2014/15 Upper Deck Premier

Signature Champions

#SC-MK Mike Krushelnyski  /99

You've already seen this one, but I thought I'd do an official write-up of it.

It's Mike Krushelnyski.

2014/15 Upper Deck Premier

Signature Champions

#SC-ES Eric Staal  /99

This was the first card I picked for this set.  I grabbed it months ago at the local show.  It was five bucks and I figured why not.  Now, it looks like a great find since I'm building the set.

I think this might go down as my favourite photo of a guy raising the Cup.  Awesome pic.

I need a few more pickups like this one so it can offset the beasts that will come knocking down the road (Gretzky).

I still really like the looks of this set.  Let's see how long it takes me (and no...that's not me telling you I will be quickly trying to finish).  Should be fun.


Current Collection - 4 of 24 

RAISE THE CUP - Mike Pushed Me Over The Edge

It's been a busy month for me in the world of sports cards.  In addition to some great Linden (and Parkhurst) additions, I picked up some cool oddball items (which I will show off this weekend), I won a round of pack wars at the monthly trade night (nothing too spectacular....but better than a kick in the hoo-ha) and I traded for a card that might be the straw that breaks the back and launches me into another side project.

2014/15 Upper Deck Premier

Signature Champions

#SC-MK Mike Krushelnyski  /99

By no means is this a "killer pickup", but the fact that I've been eyeballing this set for a while says something.

Those of you who follow my blog know that I like to pick up cards that have players hoisting the Stanley Cup over their head.  I've got a good 150 or so cards now and I think they look pretty cool as a set.

Over the past few years there have been numerous insert sets and subsets that utilize these great moments and form a Stanley Cup memory-type subject.  The problem is that most of the time the cards are just missing a little something.  Not diverse enough of a checklist, one or two photos that don't quite fit the theme or just not an interesting design.

This Signature Champions set from UD Premier is really quite stunning.  Some solid player selections (Krushelnyski aside), hard-signed autographs and good photos.

So the question is - Why haven't I been building this set?

Here's the checklist...

Anze Kopitar  /50
Chris Chelios  /99
Dustin Brown  /50
Evgeni Malkin  /25
Eric Staal  /99
Grant Fuhr  /50
Guy Lafleur  /99
Brett Hull  /25
Jaromir Jagr  /25
Joe Sakic  /25
Jonathan Toews  /50
Martin Brodeur  /99
Marc-Andre Fleury  /99
Mike Krushelnyski  /99
Mario Lemieux  /10
Mark Messier  /25
Martin St. Louis  /99
Pavel Datsyuk  /50
Patrick Roy  /10
Rob Blake  /99
Steve Yzerman  /10
Tom Barrasso  /99
Teemu Selanne  /10
Wayne Gretzky  /10

As you can see it's a pretty solid list.  Sure, there are some "meh" cards (Krushelnyski) but the big guys more than make up for it.

There are some names in there that would be cool to chase as I've never tried to track down autos of these guys (Gretzky, Lemieux, Roy).  But....

$$$$$  CHA-CHING

That's the only thing that has me hesitating.

I feel pretty comfortable with about 18-20 of them.  And as I typed that out.....it makes me feel pretty good about the whole thing.

In fact, I really like the idea of building this set now.  I think it would be a fantastic project - which falls right into the pocket of what I like to chase - and I don't feel like I would be breaking the bank.  After all....as I always say...

It's not a race.

So with that, I am officially starting it up.  Look for more "Signature Champions" posts in the future.

LINDEN CARD(s) OF THE WEEK - Quite A Gift...Redux

For the second day in a row I came home to find a bubble mailer in my mailbox.  It's been literally months since that's happened.  I gotta say...I haven't been this excited in hockey cards in a while.

I knew who the envelope was from (as well as the contents inside), but that doesn't make the opening of the seal any less exciting.  Especially when you consider what was inside.

Not one...not two...but three Trevor Linden cards that I didn't know existed - and the cards are all over 15 years old.

Like a kid on Christmas morning.  Let's check out the goods.

1999/00 Be A Player Memorabilia

#194 Toronto Fall Expo Silver  /10

Show cards from the late 90's are near impossible to track.  Companies never really came out with "lists" of what cards were actually distributed and so it's a lot of "hey...did you see this" or "I've got one of those" or "wow...never seen that before".

This card falls into the latter category.

No clue that this card had a Toronto Expo parallel.

The card(s) came from a longtime Linden collector who I've kept in touch with over the years.  Once or twice, here and there we'd chat via e-mail.  Recently, we've gotten to chatting a bit more often and have exchanged some scans of Linden "stuff".  I like stuff.

I recently sent him my master Linden checklist so he was able to cross-reference some stuff and realized I had omitted some items.  Not by accident - I just didn't know the cards were out there.

When I saw the scan of this card my jaw dropped a bit.  It just reinforced to me how much I love collecting Linden cards.  Even finding new information on a card gets me going.  I love it.

So I was even more gobsmacked when I found out the piece of cardboard was coming my way.

Along with a couple other goodies.

1998/99 Pacific Omega

#147 Toronto Spring Expo (show stamped)

You probably can't see it in the scan, but there's an embossed stamp right smack in the middle of this card.  This was a popular thing for the Pacific company to do back at the big expos of years past.

I've got a few from different years and different releases, but not this one.

Love the haircut Trev.  Very sharp for your new team.

1998/99 Pacific Revolution

#88 Montreal Spring Expo (show stamped)

Second verse, same as the first.

Another embossed card that I had no clue existed.  It's just been sitting patiently in someone else's collection until the right time to surface and reveal itself.  Gotta love it.

In addition to these three great cards, there was an oddball item.

Oddball items are fun.

But first, a little backstory.

I have two Trevor Linden slides from the mid-90's.  They come from the NHL and were released to media outlets for their news stories.  Say there was an article about Linden and they wanted a headshot...well, here's one you can use.

Each year, the NHL would send out new sets of photos.

Prior to using slides, they were done up on 8x10 photos (6-10 small headshots per page).  Nowadays everything is digital.  Far less fun.

I had to buy the entire year's worth - big ass binders emblazoned with the NHL logo - in order to secure the Linden slides.  I've sold some of the other slides to recoup some of my money.  I've still got a ton, including Gretzky, Lemieux, Bure, you name it.

So you can probably guess what the additional item was.

Ha ha.  This is awesome.

Not quite from the same releases as the others (typing is different and the physical slide isn't the same) but I'm happy to add to my bustling Linden slide project.

It looks like Trev has black eyes, but that's just the photo.  It's tough to really get a sense of what these are.

There...that's better.

Upon closer look, it appears that the 94/95 photo is the same as the 95/96 offering.  That's not uncommon.

Such a great add to the collection.

So a huge thank you to Ian for his generosity, sharing of information and for just being an enjoyable person to talk to.  I really like being able to discuss the hobby and my interests as well as hear other people's similar passions.  It really motivates me to enjoy this great collecting world for all it's worth.

LINDEN CARD OF THE WEEK - Quite A Gift

It's been an exciting past few hours for me.  I bought a card....on ebay.  It's a rare thing - unlike years past where I binged on new Linden offerings.  These days I take a cool, collected and precise approach when it comes to what I chase and pass up on the interwebs.

I paid a stupid amount for the card, but it was my white whale so I was ready for it.  I can't wait to show it off in the near future.

But that was only part of the excitement.  I got mail.

Haven't received too many bubble envelopes so far in 2016.  I'm good with that.  It means that I'm being very particular with what I'm picking up.  Economy, economy, blah, blah, blah.

This card however didn't come with a price tag.  Instead, it came with some kind words from the sender.  Warm fuzzies for everyone.

2013/14 In The Game Lord Stanley's Mug

Cup Rivals

#CRI-08 w/ Messier  Gold (limited to 10 copies)

Even Mark Messier can't ruin this for me.

I've been a player collector for nearly 20 years now.  And over that time I feel as though I've amassed a pretty solid collection - one that I'm proud of.  I still like "the hunt" for the elusive cards that I need and when I can snag one, I rarely have any buyer's remorse.  It's a good thing.

But during those two decades I've found other hobbyists who have similar passions and dedication to their collections.  Some of them are fellow Linden collectors, some of them chase journeymen players and others go after big name stars.

I learned of a "hardcore" Sedin collector a number of years ago.  Actually, I don't like using the word hardcore because it just has a harshness to it.  He's a person who enjoys the chase as much (if not more) as I do and he's been very forthcoming with sharing his stories and successes.  He's also been very selfless with giving to other hobbyists.

When I've seen these acts of kindness it inspires me to reinforce the enjoyment-side of hockey card collecting.  It motivates me to keep a positive mindset and makes me want to share in good fortunes.

This dual jersey card comes from a multi-box break in which he was looking for cards to fill in some slots in his master Lord Stanley's Mug project.  As soon as I saw the Linden/Messier card I knew that it was the gold version....which was still on my wantlist.  I quickly asked what the pricetag was on the card and if we could work out a trade or sale.

Without hesitation, he let me know that the card would be coming my way with no need for a return item.  I just shook my head and smiled.  It'd do no good trying to talk him out of it.

Instead, I'll continue keeping an eye out for anything he might need, and I'll be sure to "pay it forward".  There are a lot of good people in this hobby world and that's always at the forefront of my mind.

So a very hearty thank you to Dave for the great card.  I'm not cringing nearly as much over the Linden sharing this piece of cardboard with Messier.....for today at least.

Thanks again!

STASHED IN THE CLOSET - My "Go To"

So I was doing some closet organizing this afternoon.  Linden cards specifically.  Made me feel productive today while I was watching the Flames surprise the Pittsburgh Penguins.

I was in the mood to tidy up the card closet because it was a pretty good last week or so hobby-wise.

I picked up four nice Parkies for my slow-build "bucket list" set.  I discovered my white whale (almost 10 years going) and am hoping to spear it soon.......not going to jinx it by saying anything more.  I talked with a fellow Linden collector for over an hour, reminiscing about old cards, rare oddball stuff and just the love of the hobby (and he's sending me a special package....stay tuned).  And I feel a sense of accomplishment for successfully transferring my Master Trevor Linden checklist over to excel (it had been a word document for years) complete with print runs and a list of who has what 1/1's.  I've got over 1900 cards documented on the list so it was a huge accomplishment.  Not to brag, but I feel like it could be the most complete Linden checklist in existence.

So I cleaned for a while, put cards where they should go, sifted through some cards I haven't looked at in a while and then saw my trusty "go to" for card shows.  I had just fancied it up after the last show...so I decided to take some photos.

Hey, if I can take pics of my trashcan, I can snap a few shots of my card box.

Say hello to my little friend.

This is the sidekick I take with me when I go to the local card shows.  I prefer it to the bigger shoebox size holders and to be honest - I don't see anyone else carting one of these around.  I think it has character.

I picked this up about 15 years ago when I bought a bunch of early 70's vintage from the monthly show.  The guy who ran it at the time (the guy I bought the cards from) put them in this box, since I didn't have anything to carry them in.  Little did I know at the time that it would be the only thing left of that transaction.

The Card Saver II is indeed the "Hobby's most popular semi-rigid card holder".  You remember those flimsy plastic holders?  Thin, kind of in between a penny sleeve and a top loader?  While I don't hardly use the actual card savers, this box is always on standby before a show.

When I first obtained it, it wasn't quite as beat up as it is now, but it had been well used.  I liked that it opened more like a box as opposed to the flaps that fold inside of other small cardboard carriers.

I slapped the Vancouver sticker on soon after to announce that this was indeed my card box.

Last month at the local show, there was a guy selling some sweet oddball items.  I'll have to share the posters I picked up with you soon.  They were a steal.

But this skate logo sticker was a total find.  It has that thicker, plastic feel to it and fits perfectly on the side of my card box.  It was meant to be.

Second verse...same as the first.

He had multiple Vancouver stickers for sale that day.  This one was the coolest.

Character in a card box is rare, so I really like that this beat up piece of cardboard is mine.

As I mentioned, I don't like taking a huge trade box with me to the monthly show.  I really don't need to be lugging around that much stuff.  I rarely pick up more than a dozen or so cards.  This is more than enough space for me.

Did I mention that this thing is beat to heck.  Sweet.

The lid has almost fallen off twice - and is flimsy as crap and used to fold in on itself.  I used a decoy card to reinforce the lid and a little packing tape should hold the hinge for a while.

My initials make it clear that this box does not belong to you.

Another Canucks sticker completes the look....for now.

This box comfortably fits 50-60 traders and I can keep a small clear case for any singles that are unprotected.  I can fit toploaders and one-touches just fine.  And when it was all the rage....a folded up wantlist was housed in back.

It's a piece of my collecting that I've had for so long...it's become a part of my collection itself.


So what do you lug your cards in at the monthly show?  Do you even take a trade box or carry case?  And most importanly...have I stretched things too far with regards to content on my blog?

I really need to fix my scanner.

PARKIE PROJECT - Vintage!!??...At Trade Night???

It was trade night tonight at one of the local card shops and that means a nice relaxing night of hockey on the television, a couple rounds of pack wars, the possibility of me caving (not tonight though) and a little bit of vintage.

What???  Vintage???  At trade night???

Yes, it is a very rare sight but it does happen on occasion.  And tonight I was lucky enough to add four new cards to the slowly growing 51/52 Parkhurst project.

I was staring down the boxes of cards on the shelf, trying to figure out what I wanted to try my hand at.  There was a good deal on last year's Black Diamond, but decided against it.  New baseball???  No, not really feeling it.  Then, out of the blue, fellow blogger Captain Canuck spots some singles in the hand of one of the shop staff and instantly knew where they needed to go.  He grabbed them and sent them my way.

Upon first glance I knew that they were exactly the right cards I was looking for.  Something for one of my projects and the condition was bang on (or close enough as it seems).

I'm not going for a high-grade quality set when it comes to this iconic card release.  Rounded corners and the odd crease or stain will do just fine.  At the end of the day it's the gut feeling to say "yes" or "no" and in this instance I said yes to all four.

So let's take a look at the goods....

1951/52 Parkhurst

#20 Victor Ivan Lynn

Out of the four cards I picked up, this would be the worst of them in terms of condition.  A couple creases and some fluffy edges.  And although the price was just a little more than I was thinking of going for, I thought "why not".  The odds of finding four Parkies at trade night is rare enough, being able to see the cards first hand and not have to pay for shipping or anything - you bet, and paying in Canadian funds...not a bad deal at the end of the day.

Now, for the longtime, uber-fans of my blog, you may remember that I have mentioned Vic Lynn in a past post.  And if you can remember why...well you have some pretty spectacular memory recall.

For those of you who don't know....you can check it out here.

Pretty cool eh?

1951/52 Parkhurst

#24 Robert "Dunc" Fisher

Dunc has the best corners out of the four cards I picked up and just a small crease on the back.  There's a little scratch/score in the bottom left corner - you can't even see it in the scan....so I'm not really concerned about it myself.

Not much more to say about Fisher...this is his rookie card (as is the Lynn and most of the cards in the set - in fact, I think the Turk Broda is the only non-rc in the 105 card set).

It was one of the two cards in this lot that I really had my eye on and the price was more than fair.

Dunc seemed to have a more prolific career in the minors with the Hershey Bears than he did with the three NHL teams he suited up for in his 275 games with three Original Six teams.

1951/52 Parkhurst

#26 Bill Quackenbush

This would be considered the top card in the lot.  It's the only one listed in the monthly Beckett guide and commands more than the other three cards I picked up.  It's no surprise that this piece of cardboard ended up being the most expensive of the lot....but (and I sound like a broken record) the price was fair.

A very nice condition card (in comparison to most of the others in my small, but growing, set) and it's even fairly centered - bonus.

Bill was the first defenceman ever to win the Lady Byng trophy, played in eight straight All-Star games beginning in 1947 and was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1976 (no, I do not have his autograph yet).

A great pickup if I do say so myself.

1951/52 Parkhurst

#88 Bob Solinger

Last but not least (well, maybe least) is the only non-Bruins card in my pickup.

Bob was on the fence coming home with me.  He's got a bit of a stain on both the front and back and a little creasing, but if I'm gonna grab three of the four, I might as well bring the whole gang home.

Solinger played just 99 games in the NHL but nearly 1000 in the AHL and WHL with teams like the Pittsburgh Hornets, Edmonton Flyers, San Francisco Seals and the ever popular Los Angeles Blades.  He won the Calder Cup a record five times and was the first person to win the Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award as Rookie of the Year in the American Hockey League.

So while some of these names (or all of them) might not be familiar in the history of hockey, they all have their own unique story.

And the fact that I was able to snag all of their rookie cards tonight at the monthly trade night was indeed rare.

Parkie Progress - 15 out of 105  (14.3%)