2 Michael Cammalleri Authentic Fabrics Jersey Cards

As a guy who tries to write a post per day - and with an impressive backlog of cards I can feature - I usually let the ''news'' around the game dictate my subject matter, but with this year's Free Agent Frenzy and the fair amount of trades that came with it, I had an abundance of choice.

In the next few days, expect posts on Paul Stastny, Jason Spezza, Brian Gionta, Jarome Iginla and a few others, and when he signs his new deal, probably P.K. Subban as well. But for the moment, I thought I could show-and-tell two Michael Cammalleri jersey cards of the same brand:

Originally a draft pick of the Los Angeles Kings (49th overall, 2001), Cammalleri scored 93 goals in his first 283 games with L.A., with a high of 34 (and 80 points) in 81 games in 2006-07. After a contract dispute, he was sent to the Calgary Flames for the last year of his contract where he was soon paired with Iginla, scoring 39 goals with 43 assists for 82 points in 81 games leading up to free agency.

He then signed with the Montréal Canadiens in time for the team's Centennial and led them to the Conference Finals in his first season, scoring 13 goals in 19 playoff games. He scored 54 goals in 170 games in parts of three seasons with the Habs, on a defensively-minded team. From that time, I have this memento, from Upper Deck's 2010-11 SP Game-Used Edition, card #AF-MC of the Authentic Fabrics sub-set, showing him in the team's classic red uniform with the alternate captain's 'A' on his chest:

It ended on a bit of a sour note in Montréal for him, getting traded to the Calgary Flames mid-game by Pierre Gauthier in the weirdest move I've seen from the usually-classy organization. All told, in parts of four seasons over two stints with the Flames, Cammalleri scored 89 goals in 216 games, the final 50 of those goals on a team where he was the lone proven first-liner. In all but 28 games in Calgary, he wore his usual #13 jersey, as can be attested by this card from the 2013-14 SP Game-Used Edition set (card ##AF-MC of the Authentic Fabrics sub-set) by UD:

He's sporting the team's red (away) uniform with the black logo, a staple since 2006 after starting out as the team's third jersey in 2003. Cammy's also worn #93 at the end of the 2011-12 season, because Olli Jokinen wore #13 at the time of the Habs-Flames trade.

Both cards feature a big, red Cammalleri game-used jersey swatch from the home uniforms; the colour suits him, so although I'm a bit surprised that he signed with the New Jersey Devils earlier today (5 years, $25M), he'll look good for sure in red and white with hints of black. I'm not surprised by the money or term he got, but that he came to the East, and not with a straight-up contender like Montréal, the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Boston Bruins, or the Philadelphia Flyers.