Mustafa Johnson Jersey Card

(team and product links go to sponsored Amazon products, player links go to related pages on my blog, news links go to source pages)

The Montréal Alouettes are once again headed to the Grey Cup after beating the Winnipeg Blue Bombers 33-23 yesterday. It wasn't always pretty, the Als let a 17-point lead at 20-3 reduce to 6 (26-20), but a Tyrice Beverette sack that turned into a recovered fumble put the final coffin in the Bombers' hopes of a comeback. The issue of trash talk was also front and center, as Montréal's star quarterback Davis Alexander was taunted about his late father, which Winnipeg players thought was fair game.

The Alouettes had the best record in the CFL this season at 14-4 (9-0 at home), on the strength of seasons for the ages for Alexander and wide receiver Tyson Philpot: Alexander led the league in completion percentage (72.1), touchdowns (35) and 30-plus yard completions (37) while finishing second in passing (5,257 yards) on his way to being named the CFL’s outstanding player, while Philpot set Canadian single-season records for catches (124, third-most all-time) and receiving yards (1,809) to go with 13 touchdown passes (up from his previous career-high of 5).

Defensively, the Als were also a powerhouse, with 11 different players registering at least one sack; Beverette led with 6, and two players tied for second-best with 5, Mustafa Johnson and Québecer Geoffrey Cantin-Arku. Johnson is a 27-year-old Colorado native who stands at 6'1" and 301 pounds, blending pure strength with good speed and above-average play reads, qualities that got him named as a 2023 and 2026 Eastern Division All-Star. The defensive lineman posted 36 defensive tackles, his third-best career mark (37 in 2024, 43 in 2023). Here is one of his sacks:
And here he is on the Game Jersey version of card #33 from Upper Deck's 2024 CFL series, showing him wearing the Als' dark blue (home) uniform, with a matching game-worn swatch:

He slots in perfectly as #94 in My Alouettes Numbers Project.

My Alouettes Numbers Project

(team and product links go to sponsored Amazon products, player links go to related pages on my blog, news links go to source pages)

It's been a while since I started another Numbers Project after my Habs Numbers Project, my Oilers Numbers Project, my Sens Numbers Project, my Canucks Numbers Project, my Nordiques Numbers Project, my Flames Numbers Project, my Expos Numbers Project, my Jets Numbers Project, my Whalers Numbers Project, and my Team Canada Numbers Project, so I thought I might start one for my local Canadian Football League (CFL) team, the Montréal Alouettes.

The goal is simple: to gather a special piece (jersey cards could work, but ideally an autographed card) from a player from every number worn by a member of the Als, regadless of era (I had to give myself a chance).

As you may know, the first iteration of the Alouettes lasted from 1946 until 1981, with its peak during the 1970s, winning three Grey Cups in six appearances in the Grey Cup Final during that decade. The team's owner would hit hard financial times in 1982 and would hand the team back to the league in May - roughly a month before the start of the regular season; Montréal Expos (and Seagram) owner Charles Bronfman would retain most of the team's sports staff, players and employees as the Montréal Concordes, but the team stank and was unable to draw a decent attendance; Bronfman briefly went back to the Alouettes name, but the team folded before the 1987 regular season got underway.

In the early 1990s, the CFL tried expanding in the U.S., and the most successful franchise in that endeavour was the Baltimore Stallions, who made the Grey Cup Final in their first season in 1994 and won it the following year. Unfortunately, Art Modell, owner of the NFL's Cleveland Browns, announced that he planned to move his team to Baltimore, which would have relegated the Stallions to a second-tier team (due to playing in a second-tier league) in their city; after negociations and legal procedures, Modell was awarded a "new" NFL franchise - the Baltimore Ravens - and was allowed to retain most of the Browns' staff and players, as long as he forfeited the Browns' history and trademarks; the Browns were revived in 1999. This, however, rendered the Grey Cup champion Stallions homeless; after attempts at moving them to Houston (after the loss of the Houston Oilers and before the arrival of the Houston Texans), the CFL (and its commissioner Larry Smith, a former Als 1970s legend) was able to convince the team to move to Montréal to become the third iteration of the Alouettes.

So far, I have featured the following players:

19: S.J. Green: check!
26: Tyrice Beverette: jersey card check!
37: Wesley Sutton: jersey card check!
94: Mustafa Johnson: jersey card check!

I understand I still have a ways to go, but one reason why I started is that I believe I have enough to at least make it fun!

Marc-André Gragnani Autograph Card

(team and product links go to sponsored Amazon products, player links go to related pages on my blog, news links go to source pages)

Let's talk NHL draft picks and their worth.

More and more analytical models have tried to determine what a draft position can represent - either as average NHL talent per rank, or as trade value, or weighing the value of one team's possible pick versus another's; in any case, not only are they subjective, with each team having their own value algorithms and models, but also each team having different priorities and needs (some teams do not value goaltending as highly as others, for example, others preferring size over speed), but also each year not having the same level of talent - either at the top or depth-wise. For instance, many "haters" point to the Edmonton Oilers having won the lottery to choose first four times in a six-year span, but even they need to admit that Nail Yakupov, Taylor Hall, Ryan Nugent-Hopkins and Connor McDavid are not on the same level. If anything, a team who won the 2012 lottery probably deserves to also win the 2015 one. Essentially, though, a top-five pick should get you a first-liner or top-three defenseman, a top-ten pick should be a second-liner or top-four D, the middle to two-thirds into the first round could be a second-liner, and anything past that is probably a depth player. Of course, there will always be exceptions, such as second-rounders Hall Of Fame centre Patrice Bergeron (45th overall in 2003, Boston Bruins), current Hart laureate Nikita Kucherov (58th overall in 2011, Tampa Bay Lightning) and the Montréal Canadiens' current best defenseman Lane Hutson (62nd overall in 2022), and late picks such as the best goalie of all time Patrick Roy (third round, 51st, 1984, Canadiens), Lightning star Brayden Point (79th overall in 2014), the best active goalie Connor Hellebuyck (5th round, 130th overall in 2012, Winnipeg Jets), a defensive member of Mount Rushmore in Nicklas Lidstrom (53rd overall, 1989, Detroit Red Wings), active HoF candidate Roman Josi (38th overall, Nashville Predators, 2008), and Hall Of Fame netminder Henrik Lundqvist (7th round, 205th overall in 2000, New York Rangers).

That being said, a hockey team isn't just a bunch of skilled Hall of Famers doing their thing and magically winning Stanley Cups; there needs to be a team identity, a strategy, a leadership group following a direction, and worker bees winning their matchups when the stars aren't on the ice - and those guys can be found in any round, from the first to the last (currently seventh, but I remember 11th- and 12th-round picks when I was a kid). So each round, each team needs to ask itself if they're picking the top available current talent, the player with the most "upside" (possible peak, with the understanding that he may not ever reach it), or a player with "character"; each team has a group of scouts who each have their preference, and they must find the closest thing to consensus in the moment.

And that's why very talented players "fall" to the second or third round, and sometimes that best player available lands on a team where their skill set might be redundant and have to find another avenue to express their talent. Case in point: Marc-André Gragnani, selected in the third round (87th overall, 2005) by the Buffalo Sabres. We're talking about a 6'1", 200-pound offensive defenseman who skates well, has a decent shot and makes firm and accurate passes, and who was an alternate captain and a point-per-game player for the Prince Edward Island Rocket of the LHJMQ in Juniors. But the Sabres had veteran Jaroslav Spacek ahead of him, then 6'8", 230-pound Rookie Of The Year Tyler Myers and then prized free agent signing Christian Ehrhoff, so he never really had a shot at earning regular NHL minutes, let alone run a powerplay. Instead, he made himself indispensable at the AHL level, winning the Eddie Shore Award for best defenseman in 2010-11 on the strength of a 60-point (12 goals, 48 assists) season in 63 games. Eventually, there may not have been room for him in North America, but European teams came knocking and he was able to play professionally and accumulate over 35 goals and 150 points in the process, mostly in the KHL (Prague Lev, Minsk Dynamo, Kunlun Red Star) where he also played in the 2018 All-Star Game, but also in Switzerland (SC Bern) and Sweden (Djurgardens IF).

All of this brought him to wear the red, white and black of Team Canada at the 2018 Olympics, where he won a bronze medal when NHL players were denied a chance to participate. With the KHL (and all European leagues, plus AHL players not on two-way contracts with the NHL) allowing its players to go, Team Russia dominated the tournament with stars like Pavel Datsyuk, Ilya Kovalchuk, Igor Shesterkin, Kirill Kaprizov, and Ilya Sorokin, but the rest of the teams were pretty evenly matched; Team Germany won silver.

All told, Gragnani has carved out an interesting career for himself. He also spent the 2025-26 season as an assistant coach with the Straubing Tigers in the DEL (Germany). Here he is wearing the PEI Rocket's red (away) uniform on card #A-MAG from In The Game's 2005-06 Heroes And Prospects set:

It features a sticker on which he signed with a thin black sharpie.

Mikko Koivu: Two Autographed Cards

(team and product links go to sponsored Amazon products, player links go to related pages on my blog, news links go to source pages)

Last night, the Minnesota Wild became the fastest-ever team to reach 1000 wins, in their 1,995th game; for those who are wondering if every other NHL team played for less than .500 in their first 20 or so seasons, that is not the case, it's just that before the 2005-06 season, games could still end up tied in the NHL. That is why it took the Montréal Canadiens, for example, 2,156 games to win their 1000th, with a 1000-679-385 record, obtaining points in over 64% of games, with a .596 winning percentage record.

The Wild are probably icing their best team ever at the moment, led by superstar winger Kirill Kaprizov (16 goals, 14 assists and 30 points in 18 games), the second-best defenseman in the game Quinn Hughes (6-19-25 in 18 games) and three more top-tier players in left winger Matt Boldy (7-10-17 in 18), defenseman Brock Faber (injured to start the year) and young goalie Jesper Wallstedt (11-2-3 in 16 games, 1.99 goals-against average and .922 save percentage).

Kaprizov's 475 points in 397 career games is already second-most in team history, behind Mikko Koivu's 709 (in 1028 games, 2005-20); barring serious injury, Kaprizov should surpass Koivu by 2030 and eventually reach the 1000-point milestone. He's already first in career goals (230), ahead of Marian Gaborik's 219 (2000-09). Koivu holds the career assists mark (504), but three current Wild players are on pace to be within range: defenseman Jared Spurgeon (315, second), Kaprizov (245, fifth) and defenseman Jonas Brodin (216, ninth).

In terms of goaltending, Niklas Bäckström leads the way with 409 games played and 194 wins, he has shared the Jennings Trophy with Manny Fernandez and joins Dwayne Roloson as recipient of the Roger Crozier Saving Grace Award (Roloson in 2003-04, Bäckström in 2006-07); he is probably the top dog for now, although Devan Dubnyk is the one with a Second All-Star Team nod (2014–15). Two Wild goalies have won the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy for perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication to ice hockey: Josh Harding (2012-13) and Dubnyk (2014-15).

Which brings us back to Koivu, the team's longest-serving captain and current holder of most games played. Here he is wearing the Wild's white (away) uniform from 2000-13, on card #SW7 from Upper Deck's 2009-10 Series 1 set and All World Team (Finland) sub-set:

And here he is wearing the green wordmark jersey from 2009-17, on card #221 from Panini's 2010-11 collection:

He signed them in blue sharpie when in Montréal for a commemoration for his brother Saku. Internationally, they played for Team Finland and won tons of medals, with Mikko winning gold (2000 U-18 World Championships and 2011 World Championships), silver (2001 World Juniors, 2006 Olympics and 2007 and 2016 Worlds) and bronze (2001 U-18s, 2002 World Juniors, 2006 and 2008 Worlds, and 2010 Olympics) multiple times each.

Theo Fleury: Two Autographed Cards

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This weekend is the Hockey Hall Of Fame's annual induction celebration, which as usual sparks a bit of controversy as to who gets in and when, and also who doesn't. This year, for example, Carey Price gets in on his second attempt, while fellow Vezina winner Pekka Rinne gets in on his first ballot. Who deserved it first/most, if at all? And whose place are they taking? Didn't Jose Theodore also win the Vezina and Hart trophies in the same season? Aren't Jaroslav Halak's statistics pretty much exactly the same as Price's? Price, regular season and playoffs (from HockeyDB):

Halak, regular season and playoffs (from HockeyDB):

And what about Keith Tkachuk? Two 50-goal seasons at the beginning of the Dead Puck Era, a 40-goal season prior, and another 40-goal season right in the midst of it. But no 100-point seasons, not a point-per-game average, no individual hardware, no Stanley Cups; he was, however, the first American to lead the NHL in goals (with 52, in 1996-97). So... U.S. Hall Of Fame? Certainly. Hockey HOF? Where do you set the bar?

Tkachuk was a physical force who scored goals at a time where there were a handful of others like him: Eric Lindros, John LeClair, Todd Bertuzzi; he posted 1065 points (538 goals, 527 assists) with 2219 penalty minutes in 1201 regular-season games, as well as 56 points (28 goals, 28 assists) in 89 playoff games. He was also part of the Team USA squad that won the 1996 World Cup. Lindros was inducted in the Hall with just 865 points (372 goals, 493 assists, with 1398 penalty minutes) in 760 regular-season games, but also 57 points (24 goals, 33 assists) in 53 playoff games, with a Cup Final; LeClair has three 50-goal seasons and a Stanley Cup (not in), and Bertuzzi topped at 46 goals (not in either).

Theoren Fleury was a feisty 5'6" winger who scored 51 goals in 1990-91, and hit the 40-goal mark three other times, the 100-point mark twice and 90 points twice as well; he has 1088 total points (455 goals, 633 assists) in 1084 games (with 1840 penalty minutes) as well as 79 points (34 goals, 45 assists, with 116 penalty minutes) in 77 playoff games, winning the Cup in 1988-89. He also won gold with Team Canada at the 1988 World Juniors and 2002 Olympics, the Canada Cup in 1991, and a silver medal at the 1991 World Championships. All of this while battling depression and alcoholism due to having been sexually assaulted by coach Graham James in Juniors, as had fellow NHLer Sheldon Kennedy.

But regardless of the obstacles he overcame to perform (and win) at such a high level, shouldn't Fleury's numbers by themselves be appreciated and wouldn't they stand alone as comparables to at least Lindros and Tkachuk? Star goaltender Marc-André Fleury (Vezina winner, three-time Cup winner and two more Cup Finals, no relation to Theo) will be eligible to enter the Hall in November 2028; wouldn't it be a great time to also induct his homonym, who finished top-five in Hart voting twice and top-five for the Selke as well? Consider this my resounding "yes".

While he represented both the Colorado Avalanche and New York Rangers in the All-Star Game, he did it five times with the Calgary Flames, which is why this is the way I remember him most, in their red (away) uniform, as seen on card #386 from O-Pee-Chee's flagship 1990-91 O-Pee-Chee set:

And a close-up, from card #282 of OPC's 1991-92 O-Pee-Chee set:

He signed both in black sharpie at a 2010 book signing for his autobiography, Playing With Fire, a must-read.

I couldn't be prouder to have him represent #14 in My Flames Numbers Project.