Two Maxim Lapierre Autographed Cards

From one #40 to another... Maxim Lapierre, promising third-line center for the Montréal Canadiens, my choice for the team's next captain, with two cards from the 2007-08 season.

On the left, an In The Game 2007-08 Heroes And Prospects card (#CC-05), from the Calder Cup Champions sub-set describing how valuable he was in the Hamiltom Bulldogs' championship run, participating on both his team's goals in the decisive game after having been reassigned to the AHL for the playoffs.

On the right, a 2007-08 MVP (#60) card from Upper Deck showing Maxim's stats in his rookie season in the NHL, mentioning that he scored in his first three games.

Both were signed at the team's jamboree prior to the 2007-08 season, both are similar, and both sport ''40'' after Lapierre's name, despite the fact that he clearly wears #26 on his Bulldogs card (the beautiful red jersey), showing he did not want to have to go back there, which of course he did just weeks later. But he came back with a vengeance, never to go back down again, a few weeks after being demoted.

I also like that he looks noticeably older in the AHL card than the NHL one, probably because of the beard, but considering players usually go to the AHL before the NHL and both cards being from the same year, it adds a nice touch.

Both cards also have him in just about the same position, with an open mouth, although he seems in possession of the puck on the MVP card and demanding it on the Heroes And Prospects card. Another noteworthy difference is not between the cards themselves but on the Upper Deck card, as the MVP series sported facsimile autographs on the front... and apart from the exact same 'M', the rest of the signature is completely different from the live one to the printed one. And since both live ones are so strikingly similar, you can wonder if UD didn't feel his actual signature was legible enough and asked him to re-do it more clearly...