Mike Ribeiro Jersey Card

As I briefly touched upon when first dealing with a Mike Ribeiro card, this one was issued as he was entering his final year playing for his hometown Montréal Canadiens, as part of Upper Deck's 2005-06 Trilogy series (card is #HS-RI, part of the Honorary Swatches sub-set). What sets this card apart from others is the fact that it contains 2 different colours - red and blue - and, thus, was taken on the jersey's waistline.

Ribeiro entered the 2005-06 season as the team's reigning scoring leader, as well as having spent (part of) the lock-out season with the Espoo Blues of the SM-Liga, where he collected 17 points in 17 games.

There are knocks on 'Mickey Ribs', such as his frequent soccer-inspired dives and pretend injuries and his lack of speed, but his savant passing and deft playmaking abilities are enough to counter such negatives; he has become quite the shootout specialist, often deking goalies out of their underwear with nifty moves that spell poetry on ice.

Ironically, the Habs made him a 45th-overall draft pick - the same spot as another slow-footed former local-boy Canadiens, Guillaume Latendresse, now of the Minnesota Wild. Ribeiro now plays for the Dallas Stars, who used to be based... in Minnesota. Let's hope that's where the comparisons end, because if Latendresse ever becomes an All Star the way Ribeiro has, heads are going to roll, starting with General Manager Bob Gainey's, who traded away Ribeiro, essentially, for washed-up defenseman Janne Niinimaa, who only played 41 games with the Canadiens, registering 3 points (all assists) and clocking in at minus-13 before spending the last 3 seasons in Europe, while Ribeiro led his new team in scoring - twice.

Another thing to note on this card is the spectator watching Ribeiro play - her face has white spots instead of eyes. Scary!