Jordan Eberle Autograph Redemption Card

Year in and year out, regardless of their position in the standings, the Edmonton Oilers offer their fans exciting, speedy, creative teams that rarely take the night off. This season's crop is no different, apart from the fact that it could very well finish in last place overall.

One of the kids leading this brigade is Jordan Eberle, who scored the first beautiful goal of the 2010-11 season, on one of the league's 5 best goalies, no less:

Despite his status as a rookie, he already sports the alternate captain's A on some occasions; and while many will make a case for Taylor Hall, his young teammate on the Oilers who was the last draft's first-overall pick, it is Eberle who holds the record as Canada's all-time highest scorer at the World Juniors, despite only appearing in two championships, winning gold in 2009 and silver in 2010.

As a junior player, he was named the CHL's Player Of The Year in 2010, to go with his 2008 scolastic player of the year award and two first-team all star nominations. That's pretty much the definition of ''blue chip prospect'' right there.

This card's history dates back to October, when I purchased two boxes' worth of Panini's 2010-11 Score hockey cards. I was happy with what I pulled, except for this blank card that said it was for 'redemption'; while I'd heard of these cards, it was the first time I ever got one myself. The process was simple enough: go on Panini's website, claim the serial number of the card, get told it's of Eberle and... wait.

Well, I got it today. Eberle in the Oilers' white pajama-like jersey, Hot Rookies sub-set (card #556), with a sticker on top of it with Eberle's autograph in blue sharpie. Note that he's wearing #78 on the picture but signed as #14, the number he's currently wearing with the Oilers now that he's made the team for good.