Brayden McNabb Autographed Card

Despite the shot discrepancy, the two most obvious stars of Game 7 between the Vegas Golden Knights and Vancouver Canucks tonight were goalies Robin Lehner (second) and Thatcher Demko (first), who appears like the "real deal", the true next elite goaltender. But if I had to pick a third star, it wouldn't necessarily be Shea Theodore despite the game-winning goal and his title of "only man who can beat Demko"; no, I would probably go with Brayden McNabb instead, for his defensive play and display of courage by stopping two shots with his face and another one with his leg. He's a reason why the Canucks' shot count was so low.

When the Buffalo Sabres selected him in the 2009 draft (third round, 66th overall), he had just completed an impressive season with the Kootenay Ice that saw him provide upwards of half a point per game from the blue line but also accumulate 140 penalty minutes as a bruising presence in his own zone. He was expected to be an eventual solid second-pair defenseman who can replace on the top-two once in a while, and that's what they sold the Los Angeles Kings on in a 2014 deadline trade.

After all, he had been named the Ice's captain for his final year in the WHL and twice made the AHL All-Star Team while with the Sabres' farm team Rochester Americans. At the time of the trade, McNabb had 7 goals, 22 assists, 29 points and 45 penalty minutes with a +9 rating in just 38 AHL games, but he had suffered his first concussion while with Buffalo.

He spent three full seasons with the Kings, but health was a bit of an issue in 2016-17, as he only suited up in 49 games, although it was enough of a look for the Golden Knights, who selected him in that summer's expansion draft. He's been a steady presence ever since, perhaps a little less offensively-inclined than the Sabres had first hoped he would become, but an essential player nonetheless.

And he's still just 29 years old right now, so he does have the room to grow into two or three 25-to-30-point seasons, particularly if the team wants to continue playing a strong offensive game with three scoring lines.

Here he is wearing Kootenay's black (away) uniform, on card #122 from In The Game's 2009-10 Heroes And Prospects set:

He signed it in black sharpie during his time in the AHL (2011-2014). My hope is to get him to sign his Vegas Inaugural Set card for me in the future.

Boyd Gordon Autograph Card

Boyd Gordon was a serviceable defensive forward who at one point in the 2014-15 season "owned the defensive zone" under Dallas Eakins' "everyone-has-just-one-job system with the Edmonton Oilers.

It was the year Jordan Eberle and Ryan Nugent-Hopkins tied for the team lead in goals with 24 goals apiece and the Oilers failed to make the playoffs despite playing in the worst division in the league, finishing with the third-worst overall record and second-worst in the Pacific on the "strength" of a 24-44-7-7 record, with no fewer than three head coaches (Eakins, Craig MacTavish and Todd Nelson) failing to crack the .500 mark with Ben Scrivens spending 57 games in front of the blue team's net.

It was the worst of times.

It must have been particularly nightmarish for Gordon, who had come to Edmonton to share what he had learned under head coach Bruce Boudreau with the Washington Capitals, finishing with division titles year in and year out yet still being criticized for not winning the Stanley Cup every year. The veteran wanted to show he could teach other youngsters to win.

Even the best laid plans can backfire, so those put forth by the likes of Eakins and Nelson were doomed from the start. This was before Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl (and during Nail Yakupov).

These days, the Oilers are on the rise, heavy favourites to defeat the Chicago Blackhawks in the play-in to enter the official playoff picture, while the Caps are still contenders, participating in the round robin to determine the top four seeds in the Eastern Conference. The smart money favours them earning one of the top two spots.

Here is Gordon wearing the Caps' red uniform (2007-present) on card #S-BG from Upper Deck's 2009-10 Be A Player set and Signatures sub-set:

It features a black-sharpied on-sticker autograph with his jersey number (15) tagged at the end.

All told, Gordon played for 13 season sin the NHL. He won championships at nearly every level, with a Memorial Cup (Red Deer Rebels, 2000-01), World Juniors silver medal (Team Canada, 2003), and Calder Cup (Hershey Bears, 2005-06).

Travis Hamonic Autographed Card

Travis Hamonic is a very good defensive defenseman who has been among the best second-pair defenders in the NHL for the better part of the past decade while suiting up for the New York Islanders and Calgary Flames.

He will not be accompanying his team to Edmonton to take part in the play-in and playoffs, however, due to a family matter: his daughter suffered a severe respiratory illness earlier this winter and her life would again be at risk if he were to bring Covid-19 home. He is the first NHLer to publicly announce his decision not to go.

He was a huge part of helping the Flames to third-place in the Pacific Division with 79 points in 70 games; he himself had accumulated 3 goals, 9 assists, 12 points, 27 penalty minutes and a -3 rating in 50 games, battling injuries earlier on. He was a +21 (with 7 goals, 12 assists, 19 points and 33 penalty minutes) in 69 games in 2018-19.

Because he has a valid reason to skip the summer tournament, if I were the Flames' GM, I would find a way to keep him in contact with the team, be it via pre-game videoconferencing in the dressing room as motivation or another way, and I would petition to have his name included on the Stanley Cup if the team were to win it.

Here he is from his days in Juniors, wearing the Moose Jaw Warriors' terrible Buffaslug-inspired black jersey (and the assistant-captain's "A") on card #131 from In The Game's 2009-10 Heroes And Prospects set:

He signed it in blue sharpie back when he was playing on Long Island, between 2012 and 2015.

The 53rd-overall draft pick from the class of 2008 was named to the Memorial Cup All-Star Team in 2007 and has won silver with Team Canada at the 2010 World Juniors (the United States won gold thanks to a 6-5 overtime win).

Kris Chucko Jersey Card

Not every first-rounder from the 2004 draft class played in the NHL; A.J. Thelen (12th overall, Minnesota Wild) and Andy Rogers (30th overall, Tampa Bay Lightning), for instance, haven't. Kris Chucko, chosen 24th overall with the Calgary Flames, played 2 games with the team in 2008-09, as he was being groomed for a bottom-six grinding winger role with middle-six upside due to his speed, hockey sense and 6'2", 198-pound physique.

His defensive play kept him from being relegated to the ECHL during his five-season AHL career, but his lack of consistent offensive production save for the '08-09 season didn't warrant any call-ups, either.

He also may have lacked discipline on the ice, as his penalty minute count usually surpassed his number of games played.

It wasn't any of that that put an end to his career, however: he suffered a serious concussion in December 2009 limiting him to 41 games that year and another one in October 2010 that ended his season after just two contests.

He didn't have a contract for the following season and had to consider his future quality of life.

Here he is wearing the Flames' red (home) uniform, on card #FT-KC from Upper Deck's 2009-10 Ice set and Fresh Threads sub-set:

It features a black jersey swatch from a rookie photo shoot.

After retiring, the Burnaby, BC native moved to Minnesota - where he had played NCAA hockey with the Golden Gophers at university - and turned to banking; he is currently a manager and VP for at U.S. Bank.

Nicolas Deslauriers Autographed Card

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In the past two months, 6'3", 219-pound Nicolas Deslauriers has fought other NHL heavyweights, such as:

Radko Gudas of the Washington Capitals on December 6th:

Kurtis MacDermid of the Los Angeles Kings on December 13th:

Chris Stewart of the Philadelphia Flyers on December 17th:

Michael Haley of the New York Rangers on December 22nd:

Austin Watson of the Nashville Predators, January 5th:

Jamie Oleksiak of the Dallas Stars on January 9th:

MacDermid of the Kings again on February 1st:

Zac Rinaldo of the Calgary Flames on February 13th:

In a league that averages less than half a fight per game, Deslauriers has seemingly fought every other day to become the league leader with 12, five more than Watson, in second place. And the Anaheim Ducks seem to love it, because he was extended for two more seasons with an annual cap hit of $1M.

Sure, the Ducks need to have players signed who will be available for the Seattle Expansion Draft, but chances are the new team will try to imitate the Vegas Golden Knights and focus on speed and possession stats more than pugilism skills.

Still, kudos to the 29-year-old former third-round pick who was considered a long shot to be a power forward with the Kings then reinvented himself as a tough checker and teammate protector with the Buffalo Sabres when it didn't pan out in grey and purple.

Here he is from his days terrorizing LHJMQ teams as a member of the Rouyn-Noranda Huskies, on card #117 from In The Game's 2009-10 Heroes And Prospects set:

It shows him wearing the team's clack (away) uniform; he signed it in blue sharpie last season, before he was traded by the Montréal Canadiens.

Marco Scandella: Two Autographed Cards

All season long so far, Montréal Canadiens head coach Claude Julien has been telling GM Marc Bergevin through the media that he doesn't like his options for the bottom-two roles on defense; while Shea Weber, Victor Mete, Jeff Petry and Ben Chiarot have been playing a bunch of minutes, Brett Kulak, rookie Cale Fleury and Mike Reilly have been alternating with call-ups Christian Folin, Otto Leskinen, Gustav Olofsson for some playing time, with veterans Xavier Ouellet and Karl Alzner also available with the AHL's Laval Rocket. And the NHL season hasn't even reached the halfway mark yet!

Kulak, Reilly, Olofsson, and Folin were all acquired via trade by Bergevin and re-signed afterwards; Ouellet, Leskinen and Alzner were free agent signings. All of them were chosen to be on the roster by the GM. And the coach cannot find a way to use any of them properly.

A few hours ago, Bergevin moved Reilly - a good skater with a decent pass and some offensive vision who at times makes bizarre decisions in his own zone, not unlike two-time Stanley Cup champion Justin Schultz or now-appreciated veteran Ron Hainsey - to the Ottawa Senators for a late-round draft pick and a career minor-leaguer and followed that up by acquiring Marco Scandella from the Buffalo Sabres for a fourth-rounder.

Scandella, a Montréal native whose uncle Sergio Momesso played with the Habs in the late 1980s and won a Stanley Cup here in 1986, is understandably ecstatic about coming home. His $4M cap probably no longer represents the kind of player he's become, but in his mid-20s, he was capable of playing upwards of 21 minutes per game (with a high of 23:19 in his first season with the Sabres in 2017-18), was good for some 20 points per season despite limited powerplay time and was a cornerstone of the Minnesota Wild's defense, playing in a shut-down role while Ryan Suter took care of the offensive-zone starts and easy minutes.

The wild's second-round pick in 2008 (55th overall) played his Juniors career with the LHJMQ's Foreurs de Val d'Or, where he had such an impact that he was their captain for two-thirds of his time there. He's a born leader and will make for a calming presence to help Fleury develop more effectively... provided Julien plays him that way. We're talking about the same coach who plays Chiarot upwards of 30 minutes per game and has a history of benching his most talented young players (Phil Kessel, Tyler Seguin, Charles Hudon, Jonathan Drouin).

Here is Scandella wearing the Foreurs' "classic" dark (away) uniform in his rookie Juniors season - notice the awful socks - on card #94 from In The Game's 2008-09 Heroes And Prospects set:

And here he is wearing the Reebok Edge uniform, with asymmetric lines and terrible piping (albeit with better socks), on card #103 from In The Game's 2009-10 Heroes And Prospects set, sporting the captain's "C":

Both were signed in blue sharpie back when he played for Minnesota. I look forward to having him sign a card showing him with the Canadiens. I also wish him the best of luck in this circus, where the team is in danger of missing the playoffs the third straight season and the fourth time in the past five years.

Jason Demers Autographed Card

Jason Demers is set to return tonight for the Arizona Coyotes after missing six games out on injured reserve.

So far this year, he only has 5 assists in 30 games, but the team is still atop the Pacific Division and he averages over 21 minutes per night; he also has 42 hits and 41 blocked shots, making him an important cog in the defensive zone.

A seventh-round draft pick of the San Jose Sharks (186th in total, 2008), he ranks 14th in his draft class in terms of games played, ahead of established players like Colin Wilson (7th), Adam Henrique (82nd), Jared Spurgeon (156th), Travis Hamonic (53rd), T.J. Brodie (114th), Roman Josi (38th), Jake Gardiner (17th), Cam Atkinson (157th), and Gustav Nyquist (121st). He's already on his fourth team, having also suited up with the Dallas Stars and Florida Panthers.

He had 64 points in 67 games for the LHJMQ's Victoriaville Tigres, so there were some scouts who thought he had an upside similar to that of Kris Letang, but his most productive season was worth 34 points in 2013-14 with the Sharks.

He is an analytics darling, however, with a PDO that's usually above 100% despite own-zone starts over 50% (51.9% this season).

Here he is wearing San Jose's best-looking white (then-away) uniform from the 2007-13 era (if only they'd removed those front numbers sooner) on card #284 from Upper Deck's 2009-10 Collector's Choice set and Choice Rookie sub-set:

He signed it in blue sharpie while with the Stars (2014-16).

Internationally, he has suited up for Team Canada (lost in semi-finals) at the 2013 Spengler Cup and 2017 World Championships (silver medal).

Derick Brassard Quad Jersey Card

With the New York Islanders currently in the midst of a ten-win streak, a few things have become apparent for any would-be doubters:

- Barry Trotz is the best coach in the NHL, by far
- Mitch Korn might be the best goaltending coach/guru of this post-Allaire generation
- Hockey is a team sport, and losing a superstar sometimes is best for the group
- Depth behind a strong-but-not-elite top line, under the right coach, can produce better results than relying on some of the best players in the world

Lost in that whirlwind is the comeback performance of Derick Brassard after a sub-par performance for three separate teams last season, posting just 9 goals and 15 points in 40 games with the Pittsburgh Penguins, 1 goal and 4 points in 10 games with the Florida Panthers, and 4 goals and 0 assists in 20 games with the Colorado Avalanche. He was destined for a one-year deal, but falling on Long Island may have been the best thing for him.

He's had 5 goals in the Isles' win streak, putting him at 8 points in 60 games, a production that projects to decent 41 points over a full season, particularly considering the fact that he's technically the fifth centre on the team, behind Mathew Barzal, Josh Bailey, Brock Nelson and Anders Lee; in reality, Bailey and Lee play wing on the first line, meaning Brassard has played around 15 minutes per game, which is decent. Still, he ranks sixth in team scoring, something that many people didn't see coming for the 32-year-old.

I, for one, still trusted the seven-time 40-point producer to bounce back, but I did have doubts that the Islanders - a team no one has posted a point-per-game average on since the defensively-minded Trotz took on the coaching job - were the team where his statistics would pop enough for the hockey world to take notice.

I couldn't be happier to be wrong.

Here he is from his days with the Columbus Blue Jackets on card #QJ-BR from Upper Deck's 2009-10 Black Diamond set and Quad Jerseys sub-set:

He's shown wearing the team's dark blue (home) uniform, with four matching game-worn jersey swatches.

Peter Regin Autograph Card

There are five "known" Danish centres currently playing hockey. One put his professional career on hold and plays at the University of Guelph while furthering his education, Mikkel Aagaard; Lars Eller and Frans Nielsen are in the NHL; the other two are captains of their teams: Julian Jakobsen with the Aalborg Pirates in Denmark, and Peter Regin with the KHL's Helsingin Jokerit.

And Regin's started the season off on the right foot, with 10 points in 17 games so far in the ultra-defensive league.

He left North America after failing to earn a full-time roster spot with the Chicago Blackhawks prior to the 2015-16 season and proceeded to post consecutive 48-point seasons, but the last two had been sub-par, with only 8 goals and 31 points in 56 games in 2017-18 and 2 goals and 10 points in 29 games in 2018-19.

The Ottawa Senators' third-round pick at the 2004 draft (87th overall) is a fine skater, first-tier passer and smart player, but he never seemed to utilize his 6'2" frame and 190 pounds to create any space for himself in the NHL, although he was a decent point producer in the AHL, surpassing the 40-point mark both times he was sent there. In Europe, he can find a similar accent on strategy that best complements his abilities, I think.

Here he is sporting the Sens' red (home) uniform, on card #S-RE from Upper Deck's 2009-10 Be A Player set and Be A Player Signatures sub-set:

It features a black-sharpied on-sticker autograph that incorporates his jersey number (43).

Fun fact: the two goalies on Jokerit aren't playing at the same level so far this year, which may warrant a post or two on my part sooner rather than later:

courtesy of HockeyDB

Regin is six games away with Team Denmark from the century mark (100).

Alex Stalock: Three Autographed Cards

Alex Stalock's biggest issue at the NHL level has been consistency; he's had full 24-game seasons as a backup where he's posted a .932 save percentage, but followed them with consecutive seasons well below that at .902 (22 games) and .884 (13 games), with the San Jose Sharks finally losing patience with him and sending him packing to the Toronto Maple Leafs before he signed on with the Minnesota Wild, where he's been since 2016-17.

And it's not like he's an AHL-level goalie, because he can dominate at times when he's down there, too.

He's just one of maybe 45 NHL goalies that you have to roll the dice on and hope the team in front of him gives him a fighting chance and the opposition isn't in a state of grace, and you let it play out.

He's been on the ball in two outings this year, surrendering a single goal on 11 shots in just under 25 minutes in relief of Devan Dubnyk in a 7-4 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins, and shutting out the Ottawa Senators for the Wild's first win of the season last night.

My high school teammate Ben Guité - now an associate coach at the University of Maine - played with him on the 2011-12 Worcester Sharks.

Stalock signed these three cards for me in black sharpie in 2012-13 when I went to see the Hamilton Bulldogs play a lot. First, here are two Future Stars cards from In The Game:

The one on the left is #2 from the 2009-10 Between The Pipes set, while the one on the right is #47 from the 2010-11 Between The Pipes collection.

The is also card #119 from In The Game's 2010-11 Heroes And Prospects set:

All three show him wearing the (Worcester) Sharks' black (away) uniform, with a different patch chest patch (none, Hyundai, and Be A Leader); they also have his uniform number (32) tagged at the end of the signature.

Edward Pasquale Autographed 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)

Edward Pasquale has posted very good statistics at every level, yet at best remained an NHL third-stringer, which is likely why he signed on with the KHL's Barys Nur-Sultan this summer, a move I hinted at back in 2014.

We're talking about an OHL All-Star, a Calder Cup (2017) and Hap Holmes Award (2019) winner in the AHL, and now a goalie who's won 67% of his NHL starts - all against Original Six teams, as he's won against the Detroit Red Wings, lost to the Montréal Canadiens and won the Tampa Bay Lightning's final game of this past season against the Boston Bruins, the win that tied the NHL record for most regular-season wins in a single season with 63. Thus, even in the NHL, he's played important games.

But there was no more room left with the Bolts, after the team re-signed starter Andrei Vasilevskiy to an eight-year, $76M deal, signed excellent backup Curtis McElhinney, and traded for AHLer Mike Condon... all while still having 2018-19 backup Louis Domingue on the books. Something had to give.

In my opinion, a team like the Toronto Maple Leafs could have used his services to relieve Frederik Andersen once a week.

Here he is sporting the OHL's Saginaw Spirit's beautiful white (home) uniform, on card #93 from In The Game's 2009-10 Heroes And Prospects set:

He signed it in blue sharpie after the game he lost to the Habs last April, nearly five years to the day after I received my first signed cards of his by mail. I wish him the best in Kazakhstan.

Jason Pominville Jersey Card

He was a second-round draft pick in 2001, selected 55th overall following a 113-point season (in 71 games) with the LHJMQ's Shawinigan Cataractes; he followed that with 121 points in just 66 games with the Cataractes. Because he holds a dual citizenship (Canadian and American), he was often passed over for the Canadian teams, including during his three years of eligibility at the World Juniors (Team USA usually favors players from the College ranks to fill their rosters).

Still, he spent three full seasons in the AHL with the Rochester Americans before earning a full-time gig in the NHL, including the franchise's best season ever, a 112-point performance in 2004-05 on a team that also featured Chris Taylor (79 points in 79 games), Thomas Vanek (42 goals in 74 games), Derek Roy (61 points in 67), Paul Gaustad (43 points in 192 penalty minutes), Daniel Paillé, Chris Thorburn, Jeff Jillson, Jason Botterill, and Ryan Miller in nets.

He was also with the Buffalo Sabres during that magical 2006-07 season (113 points and a second straight Conference Final), alongside Daniel Brière (95 points in 81 games), Vanek (43 goals and 84 points in 82 games), Chris Drury (37 goals in 77), Roy (63 points in 75), Maxim Afinegenov (61 points in 56), and Jochen Hecht (56 points) up front, Brian Campbell (48 points), Dmitri Kalinin, Teppo Numminen and Jaroslav Spacek out back, and Miller and Martin Biron between the pipes.

He also captained the Sabres in 2008 and 2011-13, and is so far ranked 10th in team history in goal scoring.

I am, of course, talking about Jason Pominville, at age 36 who just played out a five-year deal that was paying him on average $5.6M per and may once again be forced to leave the city he calls home as it tries to get out of a funk that has seen its hockey team miss the playoffs for eight straight seasons.

None of which is Pominville's fault, mind you, as he finished fourth on the team with 16 goals and seventh with his 30 points despite averaging just 12:30 ice time per game; he was fourth (16 goals) and fifth (34 points) last year, and scored a goal in what may be his final home game on Thursday, and had another assist in the last game of the season in Detroit a few hours ago.

He's a good veteran to have around, a true leader, a player who has always put the team ahead of himself, who was never jealous of other players getting more ice time and never complained about who he was playing with.

The type of guy you keep at a hometown discount, but that you respect enough not to undersell; I'd sign him on a series of one-year deals at $3M apiece until he decides to retire with a no-trade clause so he can decide if and where the team sends him if they're in danger of missing the playoffs at the trade deadline, so he can have a shot at a championship.

Here he is wearing the Sabres' white "Buffaslug" jersey from last decade:

It's card #AF-JP from Upper Deck's 2009-10 SP Game-Used Edition set and Authentic Fabrics sub-set; it features a beautiful dark blue jersey swatch.

Anze Kopitar Jersey Card

As I wrote in February 2016, "(as) Anze Kopitar goes, so do, pretty much, the Los Angeles Kings."

The Kings' captain now has 6 goals, 5 assists and 11 points in 9 games so far this season, tied for the team lead in points with his predecessor Dustin Brown. Uh huh, yep. Furthermore, with a 7-1-1 record, L.A. is one point ahead of the Vegas Golden Knights for the Pacific Division lead.

That's two things I hadn't predicted (although I was hoping for Vegas to have a good season).

I did, however, think Kopitar would bounce back from his awful season last year, one which was a perfect storm of wrongs for him, seeing as he'd just signed a huge 8-year, $80M extension, was named captain after management revoked the title from Brown, the team failed to make the playoffs leading to the ousting of both GM Dean Lombardi and head coach Darryl Sutter, all in a year where most of the best two-way forwards in the league struggled - Patrice Bergeron, Jonathan Toews, and Tomas Plekanec being the closest comparables to Kopitar.

Hopefully L.A. doesn't suffer as many serious injuries this season as last year, although Jeff Carter has now been announced as "out indefinitely" after surgery to repair a cut to the leg...

That being said, here's Kopitar wearing the Kings' black uniform, on card #GJ2-AK from Upper Deck's 2009-10 Series 2 set and UD Game Jersey sub-set:

It features a (small) matching game-worn jersey swatch.

Darryl Sittler Jersey Card

After taking a moment earlier today to predicting they'd finish third in the Atlantic this coming season, I thought I could honor the Toronto Maple Leafs by featuring Darryl Sittler, one of the five greatest players in team history, in a conversation with Dave Keon, Syd Apps, Charlie Conacher, Johnny Bower and Tim Horton, ahead of the likes of his best friend Lanny McDonald, Frank Mahovlich, Turk Broda, Doug Gilmour, King Clancy, Red Kelly, and hundreds more.

Ironically, Keon, Sittler and McDonald all had issues with then-owner Harold Ballard and were essentially run out of town, thrown under the bus, and/or made to suffer by the organization at one point or another.

Sittler, who replaced Keon as captain after Ballard not only decided not to re-sign him but also pretty much forbade any other NHL team to offer him a contract as a free agent (setting up a "compensation fee" so high for the then-35-year-old that it would essentially strip that team of any of its talent), set his sights on a few NHL records, starting by becoming the first Leaf to ever accumulate 100 points in a single season, then scoring the most goals in a single playoff game (5), scoring the game-winner for Team Canada in the first Canada Cup (now known as the "World Cup"), and, of course, the record for most points in a single game (10 points, from 6 goals and 4 assists).

As captain and player representative to management, Sittler was responsible for having coach Roger Neilsen re-hired after a Ballard outburst left him without a job; GM Punch Imlach had issues with the amount of power Sittler had built up in the locker room and inquired with other teams about his trade value, but Sittler had a no-trade clause, which his agent Alan Eagleson said he would waive for half a million dollars. Imlach instead traded his best friend and linemate McDonald to the Colorado Rockies, resulting in Sittler taking scissors and cutting the "C" off of the front of his jersey. Which just furthered his influence among his peers, while Ballard compared the move to "burning the Canadian flag". Canadians consider him a folk hero, as proven by this country song.

Here he is the way he should always be remembered, wearing Leaf blue, with the "C" very visible for all to see, on card #GJ-SI from Upper Deck's 2009-10 Series 1 set and Game Jersey sub-set:

Keon may have won the Stanley Cup, Mahovlich may be the team's highest-scoring winger; Gilmour and Mats Sundin may have instilled hope and inspired a generation of Leaf fans during their respective reigns as captains, but only Sittler combined both talent and leadership to that high a level at the same time. He's the Top Leaf in my book.

Andrei Markov Autographed Card

Remember a month ago when I lambasted the Arizona Coyotes for their handling of the Shane Doan situation?

Well, huh. It turns out the organization usually considered to be the classiest in the NHL, the Montréal Canadiens, are not beyond reproach in that regard, GM Marc Bergevin going out of his way to make Andrei Markov look bad in what now looks like a one-way breakup between the 16-year veteran and a team that seems to renege on not only its core "family-like" values but also any logical plan.

Indeed, Bergevin keeps repeating he wants defensive depth, yet this summer alone he's let Russian rearguards Markov, Alexei Emelin, future Norris candidate Mikhail Sergachev and Nikita Nesterov, as well as former future Markov replacement Nathan Beaulieu, go. In return, he got emerging star forward Jonathan Drouin and a third-round pick in a weak 2017 amateur draft.

That's after last year's widely panned one-for-one trade of P.K. Subban (an actual Norris winner who still has a decade of play left in him) for Shea Weber. For two years in a row, Bergevin went and got the exact player his team needed, but overpaid both times. Weber has three, maybe four decent years left and is signed until five years after the Apocalypse, whereas Subban just added a new dimension to the Nashville Predators. Weber - a slowing veteran who had just cost the Preds a Game 7 by being -5 in a 5-0 loss to the San Jose Sharks - was not worth a current Norris contender on the market, regardless of how you slice it. A star forward, perhaps, considering the very same day, Taylor Hall was traded for Adam Larsson, but not a better, younger, faster defenseman signed long-term but for fewer years, let alone one as charismatic as Subban.

For his part, Drouin is exactly the forward the team needs to spark the offense the way Alex Kovalev used to - and he's a local boy to boot. But the Tampa Bay Lightning were about to leave him exposed in the expansion draft, and would have had to offer a lot for the Vegas Golden Knights not to select him. And Drouin, a quick setup man who can stickhandle well and has a decent shot, is not fit to play center, just like Alex Galchenyuk, except "Chucky" already has a 30-goal season under his belt. Drouin for the "struggling" Galchenyuk? Fair to both teams. Sergachev, a young stud defenseman who didn't have to be protected at the expansion draft? That's called a fleecing.

Adding the fact that the Habs also lost Alexander Radulov this summer to free agency this summer and overpaid to keep Carey Price for three more years than necessary, which will hurt the team's cap for half a dozen years, the outlook for deep playoff runs in Montréal looks pretty bleak. Especially with the team's lack of a #1 center.

Taking all of that into consideration, as well as the $8.5M cap space available this coming season (Price's deal will only be effective starting in 2018-19), the Habs could have met most of Markov's salary demands.

To recap, last winter, his ex-wife died of cancer, forcing The General to take his bye week off in Russia to bring his pre-school twins back to Montréal. He calculated he'd need to play two more seasons to raise his three children - he has another with his new wife - without worrying too much about money, perhaps taking a job as an assistant coach when his playing days would be over. His ask was of $6M per, a slight increase from the $5.75M cap hit he carried in his previous contract.

We're talking about a 16-year veteran, an alternate captain and Team Russia's captain in many international events including a World Championship and an Olympic, a guy who played above his salary for just about every year he's been in the NHL, whose subdued and subtle play has earned the likes of Mark Streit, Mike Komisarek, Sheldon Souray and Subban massive contracts - the first three on other teams, at wages they couldn't match production-wise without #79 at their side, two of whom (Komisarek and Souray) retired in shame - and even drew praise for Norris-winner Subban as the "best defenseman on the team" for all the years he's followed hockey, not just as a teammate.

We're talking about the guy who took every single Russian player who came to the team under his wing for over a decade, and non-Russian defenders such as Beaulieu, Subban, Greg Pateryn, Mark Tinordi, Jean-Philippe Côté, Yannick Weber, Mathieu Carle and many others as well.

We're talking about the guy who was the best defenseman on the team in every month last year save for October (Weber had an amazing start that had fans salivating early on), at age 37-38.

It would have been easy for Bergevin to say "we're tight against the cap, how about 6.5 or 7 this year for a one-year deal, and a verbal agreement that on your 39-year-old contract next summer, when you may be falling into a third-pairing role, something along the lines of 3.5?", but instead he offered a one-year deal at $4.25M, in a "take it or leave it" tone.

Markov came back accepting a one-year deal, only to be told it was no longer on the table after the low-cost signature of Streit, who was the Pittsburgh Penguins' #8 or 9 defenseman on their Stanley Cup drive. If - and that's a pretty big if - the Pens have a better defense than the Habs, it isn't by much; Streit won't go from a #8 to a #2, he'll be a #6 at best, ideally a healthy scratch at times, considering he's actually a year older than Markov and never had his skill-set to begin with.

This move/decision is both a PR nightmare and a horrible hockey decision. A few weeks ago, Bergevin said "if you want loyalty, buy a dog"; good luck signing free agents with that kind of thinking made public.

Last year, I compared the Subban/Weber trade to the one that sent Patrick Roy to the Colorado Avalanche in 1995, an event that made me stop watching regular-season NHL hockey for seven years, and follow only the Avs and Edmonton Oilers in the playoffs. I boycotted the Habs for the entire season last year, and went to see the Ottawa Senators three times instead, buying my Mom a Craig Anderson jersey while I was at it.

The Markov situation just adds sadness to my frustration. It's not just that they sell you these guys that you learn to love watching, it's that they throw them out like they're nothing afterwards and are already selling you the next one before you've even got your head around it, yet the team just keeps circling the same drain, one year adding five defensemen during the season because "you can never have enough depth", the next adding "weight and toughness" in the guise of (Shea) Weber, Steve Ott, Andreas Martinsen and Dwight King, yet not retaining half of them when the team gets ousted in the first round by the Wild Card New York Rangers.

So I'm done with the Habs. At least until Bergevin's fired, but perhaps even longer.

I was keeping this card for Markov's 1000th game, which may never come now that he'll be suiting up in the KHL until Bergevin's gone, remaining stuck at 990, with 572 points (119 goals and 453 assists) to show for it, good for second on the Canadiens' all-time list, behind Larry Robinson and tied with Guy Lapointe; it's card #125 from Upper Deck's 2009-10 O-Pee-Chee set, showing him wearing the team's best alternate uniform, the "reverse-red into white" one from 1944-47 that the team brought back during its centennial celebrations:

As a matter of fact, one can notice the Centennial patch on Markov's right shoulder in the picture.

He signed the card in blue sharpie during the 2015-16 season.

Mathieu Garon Autographed Card

The Pittsburgh Penguins are on a bit of a roll, one that has them fighting the Washington Capitals not just for top spot in the Metropolitan Division but also the entire NHL, which would give the defending Stanley Cup champions home ice advantage for the entire playoffs.

GM Jim Rutherford also decided to keep Marc-André Fleury as a backup to Matt Murray at the trade deadline, which gives the Pens one of just two tandems league-wide consisting of a pair of #1 goalies, joining the Los Angeles Kings (with Ben Bishop and Jonathan Quick) in that regard.

One goalie who has played with both of these contenders is Mathieu Garon, who has also played with other teams currently atop the league standings, such as the Montréal Canadiens, Edmonton Oilers and Columbus Blue Jackets. He did win the Cup with Pittsburgh, however.

He retired after a bizarre season with the Omsk Avangard of the KHL, one during which he played for a full week with a stick made for the wrong hand, because Reebok (his sponsor brand) doesn't deliver to Russia and a trip to Latvia was already in the books for the team.

Nowadays, he lives in Tampa, works for the Bolts and gives kids goaltending lessons on the side. Although he was only a #1 for two seasons, he is quite possibly the best goalie from the 1996 NHL draft, slightly ahead of Robert Esche.

He signed this card for me in blue sharpie when he was with the Bolts, so I would say around 2011-12:

It's the foil insert version of card #185 from Upper Deck's 2009-10 O-Pee-Chee set, showing him wearing the Pens' alternate light blue "retro" jersey.

Charline Labonté: Two Autographed Cards

As mentioned yesterday, Les Canadiennes de Montréal won the Clarkson Cup last night in Ottawa against the previous season's champion Calgary Inferno. The game was meaningful for many reasons, chief among which asserting Marie-Philip Poulin's clutchness once more, giving returning legend Caroline Ouellette one more title and proving Les Canadiennes are still the dominating team of the league's first era.

Oh, and it enabled long-time goalie Charline Labonté to finally get her hands on the Cup to complete her Triple Gold Club hat trick (Olympic gold, World Championship gold, league championship), becoming just the third (female) goalie to accomplish the feat.

Her medal count is actually pretty amazing: three-time Olympic gold medalist (2006, 2010 and 2014), two-time gold medalist at the Worlds (2007 and 2012) and six-time World Championship silver medalist (2005, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2013 and 2016), winning the Top Goaltender Award in 2005, a feat she accomplished in the CWHL as well (2015). She didn't get it at the 2006 Torino Games despite a 0.33 GAA in three games because she shared the net with Kim St-Pierre.

She also came out as gay right after the Sochi Olympics.

Here she is wearing a special Team Canada Breast Cancer Awareness uniform on card #24 from In The Game's 2007-08 O Canada set and National Women's Team sub-set:

And here she is wearing the country's classic red jersey on card #CB-CL from Upper Deck's 2009-10 O-Pee-Chee set and Canadian Heroes sub-set:

She signed both in blue sharpie after a Les Canadiennes game last season.

Here's a look at her career stats before this year's playoffs:

from EliteProspects.com

 And here she is holding that elusive Clarkson Cup up high:

Charline Labonté with the cup pic.twitter.com/7RAdkypQ1N

— Women's Hockey Gifs (@CWHLHighlights) March 6, 2017

Doug Weight: 2 Autographed Cards

 

I'd been hinting at it since 2013, but the New York Islanders have finally fired head coach Jack Capuano and replaced him with former captain Doug Weight.

Weight was a successful player, both in the NHL and internationally as a member of Team USA, the leading scorer of the 1991 World Juniors (ahead of one Eric Lindros), a 1996 World Cup champion and Olympic silver medalist (2002).

In Gary Bettman's league, he surpassed the 100-point mark with the Edmonton Oilers - whom he also captained - in 1995-96, and was a huge part of a contending veteran core with the turn-of-the-millennium St. Louis Blues with fellow American legend Keith Tkachuk.

He's also a four-time All-Star, a Stanley Cup champion (Carolina Hurricanes, 2005-06), and one of only 84 players with 1000 career points.

Will he actually get to right the ship, or are the Isles just waiting for Gerard Gallant to agree to contract terms? Or perhaps GM Garth Snow is waiting on the Boston Bruins to fire Claude Julien, who knows?

In the meantime, here's Weight as an Islander, first wearing their white (away) uniform on card #256 from Upper Deck's autograph-friendly 2009-10 O-Pee-Chee set:

And here he is wearing the team's blue proto-retro/current home uniform, on card #378 from Upper Deck's 2010-11 Series 2 set:

He signed both in blue sharpie during his tenure as Isles assistant coach and assistant-GM.

Jared Cowen: 2 Autographed Cards

2016 hasn't been kind to Jared Cowen...

First he dealt with some injury troubles, then the Ottawa Senators sent him to the Toronto Maple Leafs as part of the Dion Phaneuf trade, and now he's lost his arbitration hearing against the Leafs, meaning he is now a free agent after having been bought out, despite said buyout happening while he was injured.

Though he has yet to hit his prime - some defensemen only hit it around the age of 26, and the bigger ones tend to take longer as they grow into their bodies, and Cowen's 6'5" and 230 pounds - and still young at 25 years old, he's already been bitten by the injury bug and has now also been bought out and traded, meaning two teams have given up on him, none of them Stanley Cup contenders.

It may prove difficult for him to score another contract that pays in the $3.5M range for the next couple of years, despite being a former first round draft pick (9th overall, 2009).

Maybe the Montréal Canadiens should give him a try; he certainly looks good in their colour pattern, as can be attested by card #71 from In The Game's 2009-10 Heroes And Prospects set, showing him wearing the Spokane Chiefs' red (away) uniform, and sporting the captain's "C" to boot:

But I prefer the Sens' alternate uniform, the "Black O" throwback, as seen on card #80 from Upper Deck's 2014-15 O-Pee-Chee set:

He signed both cards in blue sharpie with his jersey number (2) tagged at the end.

Anze Kopitar Jersey Card

I hinted last year at the sheer amount of Anze Kopitar jersey cards I own, and that I had to use pretty much any occasion to feature one so I can store it away in my Kopitar binder, but any news concerning the Los Angeles Kings has been pretty bad this year, and the team's new captain is no exception, missing his second straight game tonight due to what seems like an arm injury.

The Kings are currently down to their third goalie, Peter Budaj, after both Jonathan Quick and Jeff Zatkoff have fallen in the crease, pulling their groins. Marian Gaborik is also sidelined, although that is a more natural occurrence, as the star sniper and former Minnesota Wild captain hasn't played a full season since 2011-12.

Here is last year's Selke and Lady Byng winner wearing L.A.'s black uniform, on card #FR-AK from Upper Deck's 2009-10 Ice set and Frozen Fabrics sub-set:

It features a white game-worn jersey swatch.