Cardboard Craze: 500 Goal Scorers

Don't try to deny it, we've all done it. Whether you were an old school OPC collector, a 90s Pro Set collector or a youngin who collects Yu-Gi-Oh cards, we have all collected some sort of cardboard at some point in our life. While some of us have given up on it, there are also many who still continue to collect.

Personally, I stopped during the mid 90s when Pacific was just coming out. Seven years later, during Rick Nash's rookie season, my buddy asked me if I wanted to buy some just for kicks. Bad idea. Much like a recovering junkie, I got a little taste and got hooked back into it.

I wasn't much of a set collector. I enjoyed themes. I collected the Leafs in general but I also focused on a couple of budding Leaf prospects...well, at least they were prospects at the time (Kyle Wellwood and Jeremy Williams). I also enjoyed collecting autographed cards and would make projects out of those. One of those projects were to obtain an autograph of every 500 goal scorer. Here are the fruits of my labour in the order they reached the milestone.

1. Maurice Richard
2. Gordie Howe
3. Bobby Hull
4. Jean Beliveau
5. Frank Mahovlich
6. Phil Esposito
7. Johnny Bucyk
8. Stan Mikita
9. Marcel Dionne
10. Guy Lafleur
11. Mike Bossy
12. Gilbert Perrault
13. Wayne Gretzky
14. Lanny McDonald
15. Bryan Trottier
16. Mike Gartner
17. Michel Goulet
18. Jari Kurri
19. Dino Ciccarelli
20. Mario Lemieux
21. Mark Messier
22. Steve Yzerman
23. Dale Hawerchuk
24. Brett Hull
25. Joe Mullen
26. Dave Andreychuk
27. Luc Robitaille
28. Pat Verbeek
29. Ron Francis
30. Brendan Shanahan
31. Joe Sakic
32. Joe Nieuwendyk
33. Jaromir Jagr
34. Pierre Turgeon
35. Mats Sundin
36. Teemu Selanne
37. Peter Bondra
38. Mark Recchi
39. Mike Modano
40. Jeremy Roenick
41. Keith Tkachuk

This actually took me a while to complete. A few of the cards were rather expensive (The Rocket, Gretzky, Lemieux, Yzerman, Howe) and a few were hard to come by (Sundin, Shanahan, Nieuwendyk, Sakic, Gartner). It was a fun little thing to put together and the good part is that it's never-ending because there will eventually be more players reaching this milestone.

While I have stopped collecting a couple years ago, I do pick up a couple of packs here and there or I might pick up a card on ebay every now and then. I guess I will always be a nerd at heart. If you still collect or if you don't but want to relive the nostalgia then come on down to the Toronto Card Show this Sunday. I haven't been since I stopped collecting but I will make an attempt to get down there this weekend.

The Day I Met My Hero

As somebody who grew up in the 90's, I absolutely adored this man. He is not only my favourite goalie of all time, but my favourite Leaf of all time. When my friends and I went out for recess, we didn't have to stick the fat kid in net; everybody was fighting to be The Cat for those 15 minutes. Though his play started diminishing in the mid-90's, I was and will always be in denial about it. In true eyebleaf fashion, I still believe in Felix Potvin!!!1

Needless to say, I was quite disappointed when The Leafs signed Curtis Joseph because I knew that meant Felix was gone. Though my heart wept, I had to carry on. I will always remember his lightning quick glove hand and this save



I remember being awe-struck when I saw this save. The next day everybody talked about it at school. I even tried it during our recess ball hockey game which was played on pavement. I was not a smart child...and I don't think I made the stop either.

After Felix was traded, I've always wanted him to do well and wished to see him amongst the league leaders in goalie stats. It never did quite happen. After the lock out, he just seemed to have disappeared. I don't remember an official retirement or anything.

It wasn't for another three years that I would hear of him again. He was going to be at an autograph signing at the Toronto Sports Card Expo. As soon as I heard the news, I took the day off work and started working on making some hockey cards for him to sign.

On the day of November 9, 2007, I finally got to meet him. The line up was quite lengthy but I have stood in line for cheaper thrills (like rides at Wonderland). As I was inching closer, I got butterflies in my stomach and my palms started to sweat. Now I don't usually get star-struck. Most of the time I don't even give a shit about celebrities but this was different, this guy was my hero. When I finally got to him, we shook hands and he asked me how I was doing. My mind was scattered and the best I could come up with was "Great, how have you been?" He told me he was doing well and asked what I wanted him to sign. I took the hockey cards I made out of my pocket and he seemed genuinely excited about them. His reaction was "Cool. I don't remember ever signing these." I told him that I made them and made an extra copy for him too in case he collected those sorts of things. He told me that I did a great job on them and thanked me for the gift.

I wish I got more out of that exchange but I really didn't know what to say. It was only after, when the blood returned to my brain, that I would regret not asking him what he liked about playing here or if he sees himself doing something in hockey now that he's retired. Though the whole thing might have only lasted a minute or two, it will forever be in my memory, just like that diving stop against the Blackhawks.



What's a tribute to this great man without this video? Yes, Philly broadcasters. Hextall really got the best of that one. Go Flyers!

PWNED!