Brian Lashoff Autograph Card

I have a fairly busy day today, so I can't do one of my usual weekend deep dives into someone's career, but I do have a few I'm eyeing for the future - including one in baseball. For now, however, let's talk about the Detroit Red Wings' ninth defenseman, Brian Lashoff.

Currently playing for the Grand Rapids Griffins - with whom he won the Calder Cup in 2013 (under head coach Jeff Blashill) and 2017 (under Todd Nelson) - for the 11th season, Lashoff only played one full year in the NHL, in 2013-14, under Mike Babcock, averaging 14:26 and posting six points (one goal, five assists), a -2 rating and 36 penalty minutes. The Wings made the playoffs that year.

Despite Detroit having replaced GM Ken Holland with Steve Yzerman, it seems they still value hard work, dedication and loyalty, as they rewarded the 29-year-old for his time in the organization with a two-year, two-way deal that pays him $700K in the NHL (they're tight against the cap) and $275K in the AHL but with a $325K minimum guaranteed salary, meaning even if he remains in Grand Rapids all year, he'll earn $50K extra as if he'd been called up for a month or so.

It's a fair deal, because, honestly, he doesn't look out of place on a third pairing, has experience winning - he has a gold medal from the 2010 World Juniors with Team USA in addition to his two Calder Cups - and can share his experience of bouncing around between first-class air travel and riding buses for entire nights at a time to young up-and-comers.

He's the type of guy who is good enough and has seen enough to be an AHL captain.

Here he is wearing the winged wheel red (now-home) uniform, on card #I-BLA from Panini's 2013-14 Contenders set and NHL Ink sub-set:

It features a blue-sharpied on-sticker autograph.

Robin Lehner Autograph Card

Earlier today, one of the ten best goalies in the NHL this year shut out the Vezina frontrunner's team, as the New York Islanders' Robin Lehner blanked John Gibson's Anaheim Ducks 3-0. Gibson's having a season for the ages, where he is solely responsible for 90% of the Ducks' cumulative points this year, but Lehner currently ranks second in both GAA (2.02, behind Laurent Brossoit's 2.01) and save percentage (.930, behind Jack Campbell's .931). Yes, only a pair of backups are ahead of Lehner, mostly because he has played more games than both of them combined.

Rounding out the "best goalie" conversation are Ben Bishop (2.37 and .921 on a Dallas Stars team that has trouble scoring two goals per game), Marc-André Fleury (2.49 and .911, to go along with a league-leading 27 wins), the two-headed Boston Bruins monster comprised of Tuukka Rask (2.43, .919) and Jaroslav Halak (2.47, .919), Andrei Vasilevskiy (2.50 and .925 playing for the league-leading and nearly flawless Tampa Bay Lightning), surprising Calgary Flames sophomore David Rittich (2.49 and .917), last year's winner Pekka Rinne (2.51 and .913) and the Toronto Maple Leafs' Frederik Andersen (2.54 and .922).

One thing that sets Lehner apart is his own admission of being ten-months sober from alcohol and sleeping pills right before the regular season started, as well as bouts fighting bipolar disease and depression.

It took major balls to look deep inside himself and tell the world that while we could all see his level of talent and competitiveness, the reason why he was let go by the Buffalo Sabres was himself, and the reasons why he lost the #1 goalie job on a team that's poised to make a huge bounce in the standing in the next few years come from within.

He's now seemingly dealt with his demons and gotten his career back on track, and now all he needs to do is keep walking that line and forging ahead. Should he not win the Vezina, he'll likely get strong Masterton Trophy consideration and a new, more lucrative deal for the future, two more reasons to keep at it.

Here he is at the beginning of his NHL career, on card #39 of the NHL Ink sub-set from Panini's 2011-12 Contenders set:

It is a beautiful, relatively thick, sleek and clean card, with lots of blank space for him to sign in blue sharpie. It shows him sporting the Ottawa Senators' very best jersey, the black "O" throwback uniform, stopping a puck behind his net.

Philippe Cornet Autograph Card

After years toiling in the ECHL and AHL, Philippe Cornet opted to take his game to Norway in 2015-16 and Finland last year, where his game evolved from a pass-first mentality in the LHJMQ in Juniors to becoming a legitimate goal-scoring threat; indeed, his 12 goals with Hämeenlinnan Pallokerho (HPK) ranked second on the team, which placed fifth in the overall standings (out of 15).

At 27, the 6'0", 200-pound winger may get an invitation to participate in the upcoming Olympics with Team Canada, since the NHL will not be represented. Speaking of which, here he is from his Edmonton Oilers days, on card #I-PCO from Panini's 2013-14 Contenders collection and NHL Ink sub-set:

It shows him wearing Reebok's ugly post-lockout blue (home) uniform and features a blue-sharpied on-sticker autograph.

T.J. Brodie Autograph Card

T.J. Brodie is fast becoming recognized as an elite NHL defenseman. Last year, he finished 18th in Norris voting despite the consensus pick before suffering a season-ending injury after Christmas being teammate and captain Mark Giordano; 49 games into this season, Brodie is 5 points away from his career high of 41 set last year, and has already surpassed his assists total, with 32 so far (including 11 in 9 games in February alone, with five games remaining on the Calgary Flames' schedule this month).

At 25 years old, he's just entering his prime, and at a $4.65M cap hit, he's signed to a team-friendly deal. I like the guy enough to pick him in nearly all my hockey pools, and those are just some of the reasons why I paid a premium for this card on Ebay last week:

It's the autographed insert version of card #123 from Panini's 2010-11 Contenders set (his Rookie card in the Season Ticket sub-set), signed on-card in this blue sharpie. Look closely: he's also not wearing his current #7 in the picture, instead sporting #66, a number he only wore for three games in the 2010-11 season, the only Flame ever to wear it in a regular game, so I needed it for my Flames Numbers Project, particularly in the same week that I made it official.

So, uh, $6.66 was my winning bid, because I'm a geek like that.

The Team Canada alumnus (from the 2013 IIHF World Championships) and fourth-round pick (114th in total) from the 2008 draft now sports the alternate captain's "A" in Calgary.

Mikael Backlund Autograph Card

With three points and a +4 showing in his last 4 games, Mikael Backlund is on a hot streak that coincides with that of the Calgary Flames as a whole, with an 8-2-0 showing in their last 10 games. He's getting some ice time with Johnny Gaudreau and is usually playing in the final minute when the other team takes their goalie out of their net, which shows coach Bob Hartley's trust in his defensive game.

Now having to contend with minutes in the middle with the likes of Sean Monahan and Sam Bennett, the play-making genius from Vasteras, Sweden has seemingly found a way to maximize his ice time and contribute on a regular basis, though perhaps not at the level that people such as myself once envisioned - I thought he would hover between 45 and 60 points per season, but his best year so far saw him post 18 goals and 21 assists for 39 points in 76 games in 2013-14.

Then again, it's a different NHL, where the Art Ross winner didn't get 90 points last year, Alex Ovechkin is the only player who is able to score 50 goals, and first-liners and elite players such as Jonathan Toews reached the 70-point mark just once, let alone the point-per-game average. These are unique times in pro hockey in general, with the KHL also being really tough to score in (and where goalies usually have a GAA below 2.00).

That being said, I still traded for this card showing him in the Flames' red uniform, though I'm now looking for one of his with the throwback jersey:

It's card #I-MBA from Panini's 2013-14 Contenders collection (and more specifically, the NHL Ink sub-set). It's signed on-card in thin blue sharpie.

Gabriel Dumont Autograph Card

Gabriel Dumont is at a crossroads of sorts, as he is currently in his third NHL contract, a one-year pact that will allow him to become an unrestricted free agent if he fails to suit up in 59 games (and a restricted one if he does).

He has yet to translate his two-way play to the NHL but has proven to be an efficient shut-down fourth-line center at the top level, playing with speed and grit - it's just that the offense hasn't made the leap from the AHL with him.

However, the Montréal Canadiens do see value in his leadership skills, as he will serve as the St. John's IceCaps' captain this year, after serving in the same capacity last season when the team's AHL affiliate was called the Hamilton Bulldogs.

Like the Habs, the IceCaps lead their division so far with a 7-3-2 record, led offensively by Bud Holloway and Daniel Carr, with help from Michael McCarron, Charles Hudon, Christian Thomas, Sven Andrighetto and Mark Barberio. Holloway (originally a Los Angeles Kings draft pick) and Barberio (a Montrealer from the Tampa Bay Lightning system) serve as alternate captains.

Here is a card from Panini's 2013-14 Contenders set (#I-GD of the NHL Ink sub-set), which he signed on-card in blue sharpie:

It's a nice action shot that shows just enough of the Habs' classic red jersey.

Erik Gudbranson 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)

The Florida Panthers almost made the playoffs this year, and have shown they will be contenders for years to come with the firepower they already have up front (Jonathan Huberdeau, Aleksander Barkov, Nick Bjugstad, and Brandon Pirri, with veteran presence Jaromir Jagr to lead the way) a solid defense anchored around Aaron Ekblad, with Dmitri Kulikov and Erik Gudbranson as a tremendous supporting cast, and goaltender Roberto Luongo still in Vezina nominee form.

And they have the 11th pick in this year's deep draft class, which might enable them to add to that core. Let that sink in. They have a decade or so of great hockey ahead of themselves, in addition to future drafts, without so much as needing to adjust their top-6 forwards, top-3 defensemen and #1 goalie - and if they do, they could potentially become young contenders like the Tampa Bay Lightning this year... as early as next season.

Gudbranson was the third-overall pick at the 2010 draft, behind Taylor Hall (first) and Tyler Seguin, and ahead of Ryan Johansen (4th), Jeff Skinner (7th), Cam Fowler (12th), Jaden Schwartz (14th), Vladimir Tarasenko (16th), Bjugstad (19th), Jarred Tinordi (22nd), Emerson Etem (29th), Justin Faulk (37th), Devante Smith-Pelly (42nd), Tyler Toffoli (47th), Teemu Pulkkinen (111th), Peter Mrazek (141st), Brendan Gallagher (147th), and Mark Stone (178th). It was also a very deep draft, and third seems like the perfect place for the 23-year-old giant (6'5'', 210 pounds).

He's coming into his own in the points-production department though Brian Campbell and Ekblad usually get the best chances to put points on the board, but his hard shot and accurate passes will eventually garner him some top-unit powerplay time. He's also sound in his own zone, capable of delivering punishing checks, and a smart, tireless worker who could eventually wear a letter on his chest.

Born and raised just outside of Ottawa, he speaks fluent French and has suited up for Team Canada twice, winning gold at the 2009 U-18 championships and silver at the 2010 World Juniors. I see him playing with the big boys in an Olympics, and eventually wearing a letter on his jersey if he plays on a World Championship team.

He can also grow a great mustache, as can be attested in this card from Panini's 2011-12 Contenders card (#222 in the set, part of the Calder Contenders sub-set, signed on-card in thin blue sharpie, numbered 585/800):

It shows him wearing the Panthers' red (home) uniform.

Greg Nemisz Autograph Card

The Calgary Flames went to the second round in these playoffs, so as an organization, they've improved a lot from previous years. They have built a sound playing structure and attitude under head coach Bob Hartley, centered around youthful enthusiasm and toughness.

The Flames have drafted well in the past couple of seasons and have developed and nurtured their talent, for the most part. They may have dropped the ball on Sven Baertschi, whom they traded away to the Vancouver Canucks at the trade deadline after stalling him in the AHL.

Another one of their formerly prized prospects is the player they selected in the first round (25th overall) in 2008, Greg Nemisz, ahead of Tyler Ennis (29th), Jacob Markstrom (31st), Derek Stepan (51st), Travis Hamonic (53rd), Marco Scandella (55th), Michael Hutchinson (77th), Adam Henrique (82nd), Braden Holtby (93rd), Dale Weise (111th), T.J. Brodie (114th), Gustav Nyquist (121st), Dustin Tokarski (122d), Greg Pateryn (128th), Mark Barberio (152nd), and Jared Spurgeon (156th).

But the 6'3'', 190-pound center had been a point-per-game player for the Windsor Spitfires in the OHL (on the same team as Henrique and Taylor Hall), and he certainly fit the mold the Flames were looking for: big and talented. He capped off his Juniors career with Memorial Cups in 2008-09 and 2009-10, as well as silver with Team Canada at the World Juniors in 2010.

Power forwards typically take a longer time to develop, so with that in mind, his lone assist in 15 games over two seasons with the offensively-challenged Flames isn't necessarily cause for concern. The fact that they opted to trade a former first-rounder for an enforcer (Kevin Westgarth) was puzzling, especially considering said enforcer now plays in Ireland.

Nemisz has already had serious injury troubles, including a hernia and shoulder injury, which may be cause for concern, but could also excuse his less-than-stellar stats (14 points in 21 games) on the Charlotte Checkers team last year.

But at 25 years old, if he is to become a power forward-type of player, now would be the time to start putting pucks in the net and bumping and grinding his way onto the Caroline Hurricanes and proving the Flames wrong for having given up on him.

Here is is sporting the Flames' red (home) jersey, from Panini's 2011-12 Contenders (card #203, the Calder Contenders sub-set, numbered ##470/800), signed on-card in thin blue sharpie with his number (48) tagged at the end:

Michael Sgarbossa Autograph Card

Not all trades are blockbusters, and yesterday's deal between the Colorado Avalanche sending Michael Sgarbossa over to the Anaheim Ducks for stay-at-home minor-league defenseman Mat Clark didn't make many of the Trade Deadline recap shows, but the undrafted center from small-town Ontario has been pretty consistent at the AHL level, producing at half a point per game on terrible Lake Erie Monsters teams where no one in the top-20 in scoring is in the plusses.

Don't get me wrong, Sgarbossa will need to round out his play without the puck if he aims to stick in the NHL, and perhaps add some grit or will into his game, because his offensive skills - while not bad - aren't nearly enough for him to have a permanent spot on an NHL second line.

He had a spectacular 44-point (in 57 games) rookie campaign in the AHL that led him to an All-Star Game in 2012-13, but was limited to 20 points in 49 games last year (though he had 5 in his first 8 games) and 23 in 40 this season, both a sign of a regression and a testament to just how bad his surroundings were.

Here he is, wearing the Avs' burgundy (home) uniform with the awful piping, from Panini's 2013-14 Contenders set (paper-thin card #206 of the Rookie Ticket and Dual Rookie Class sub-sets), signed on-card in blue sharpie:

Antoine Roussel Autograph Card

Well, the jury (and comments section lynch mob) was out on Antoine Roussel following his cross-check to the throat of Boston Bruins defenseman Adam McQuaid, and it seems the NHL's Department of Player Safety (headed by former tough guys Stéphane Quintal and Chris Pronger) believed both sides of the argument to be true: that Roussel was indeed protecting himself from what he felt was an attack from McQuaid, but that he also shouldn't have hit him that way, going as far as to suggest he should have kept his arms and stick extended in a protective manner instead of delivering a blow with it. He got two games' worth of suspension time, which took into consideration both that he was a repeat offender, but that his first offense only merited a fine. I should point out that he was also ejected from the game in question, which more or less makes this a three-game suspension of sorts.

Roussel's slowly building a reputation for questionable and borderline dirty hits, which is really too bad because he's actually becoming a very good and useful overall player at the same time. Hopefully he'll be able to Jack Bauer his way into getting opponents to fear he'll be dirty without actually crossing that line, just enough to give him extra seconds to make a play.

He had 14 goals, 15 assists, 29 points and 209 penalty minutes in 81 games last season, and already had 11 goals, 11 assists, 22 points and ''only'' 112 PIMs in 54 games this year, on a deeper Dallas Stars roster that no loner relies exclusively on Tyler Seguin, Jamie Benn and Valeri Nichushkin to produce offensively with the arrivals of Jason Spezza and Ales Hemsky (albeit going through a disappointing season) and some help from the defensemen contributing offensively, although their play in their own zone has been a struggle.

Kari Lehtonen's play has been uneven in the new year, but consistency has been pretty much the only thing keeping him away from talks of being one of the top 10 goalies in the world throughout his career - well, that and injuries in his first few seasons. Had he been as steady as the offense, the Stars would definitely be in a playoff position as we speak.

But back to the 6-foot, 200-pound power forward who plays for Team France on the international stage, and who made the All-Star Team at last year's World Championships thanks to 11 points (6 of them goals) in just 8 games on an 8th-place team. He also has 17 points in 22 games overall while representing his home country, one which traditionally had trouble scoring in these types of tournaments. He just turned 25, and may have a 30-goal season or two in him if he can keep his antics in check (he was on pace for 15-20 this year, depending on when you did the math).

And so here is my first of probably many posts on the Bruising Frenchman (trademark pending), featuring him wearing the Dallas Stars' current, beautiful green (home) uniform, from Panini's 2013-14 Contenders set, signed on-card in blue sharpie:

One small gripe about the product: in a day and age when even autograph cards are super-thick, Panini opted to go super-thin on the ones from these Rookie Ticket (also part of the Dual Rookie Class sub-set) cards, which might be a reason why the top-right corner is a little damaged on the back and was that way when I opened the pack. The cards are beautiful and all, but for the $80 price tag one expects them to come in mint condition at the very least.

Tyler Pitlick Autograph Card

After scoring a huge check of my Habs Numbers Project with this Scotty Bowman card 48 hours ago, I decided to check #68 off of my Oilers Numbers Project with a player who has a link to my Sens Numbers Project, Tyler Pitlick, with this card from Panini's 2013-14 Contenders set (#223 in the collection, part of the Rookie Ticket and Dual Rookie Class sub-sets, signed on-card in thin blue sharpie and showing him in the Edmonton Oilers' classic blue - now home - uniform):

As you've probably guessed, Tyler is Lance Pitlick's nephew, and while Tyler is a center and Lance was a defenseman, the elder Pitlick - who now runs a stick-handling-oriented hockey school and training program - says his nephew has a lot more offensive talent than he ever did. I liked Lance a lot, and I respect his opinion.

The 23-year-old's statistics at every level show that he was among the good players for the Minnesota State University, Mankato Mavericks before being a better-than-point-per-game producer in the WHL, and has progressed very well in the AHL as well, from 23 points in 62 games in 2011-12 to 22 points in 39 games last season (with 10 games in Edmonton) to 9 points in 14 games this year.

At 6'2'' and weighing over 200 pounds, the right-shooting pivot may soon become a hot commodity should he start really keep developing at the top level; centermen his size that shoot right-handed are relatively rare, even more so when it comes to those who can play on a team's top-9 or top-6.

I personally don't think the second-round pick will become a 60-point man in the NHL as a few experts had predicted when he was chosen 31st overall in 2010, but he's pretty dependable defensively, and I think he can man a third line on a deep team that only uses its fourth line to check opponents, or he could be a 40-point man on average (30-to-45 for maybe 4 or 5 years) on a weak team's second line where he'd get plenty of ice time, like the Arizona Coyotes or Carolina Hurricanes.

The last couple of years, I thought he and Mark Arcobello might switch second- and third-line duties in Edmonton for the foreseeable future (or both on the second line with one of them playing right wing), but in all honesty, Leon Draisaitl looks more like the perfect candidate for that position at this point.

But the kid has heart, and he likes to initiate contact. He's not afraid of hanging around the front of the net. He just might need to shoot more, but those types of opportunities come in due time when the effort level's there. He's got the balls to wear Jaromir Jagr's jersey number, so here's hoping he can match Grandfather Time's intensity level. He seems to know what it takes to stay in the NHL at this point. I can only wish him the best.

Jonathan Rheault Autograph Card

One thing I won't miss for the next while of Upper Deck's monopoly in NHL hockey cards is companies' endless quest for the ''best'' and ''most unique'' rookies possible, often resulting in cards of players who wouldn't have donned cardboard some 20 years ago - or at the very least who wouldn't be included in highly-collectible and expensive sub-sets, such as this 2013-14 Contenders card (#156 of the Rookie Ticket autographed sub-set) by Panini, signed on-card in blue sharpie:

Don't get me wrong: Jonathan Rheault - for having been drafted 145th overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in 2009 and never having signed with them, instead earning his way from success in the AHL with the Abbotsford Heat to an NHL contract with the Florida Panthers, and playing 5 games with them in 2012-13 - deserves all our respect, even if he was held off the score sheet at the top level. He still made it there, and didn't even register a number in the minus column.

But did that warrant inclusion in the much-hyped Dual Rookie Class category with Vladimir Tarasenko, Alex Galchenyuk and Nail Yakupov? I'm not sure.

Here's what I do know: he's shown wearing the nicest-looking jersey the Panthers have ever worn, their current red (home) uniform. Had he been three inches taller, the 5'10'', 200-pound speedster would probably still be in the NHL instead of playing in Germany with the Mannheim Adler, because he can pass, doesn't shy way from traffic, and is responsible defensively. He had been a consistent goal scorer in minor leagues, but I could see him net maybe 10 goals per year on a third line in the NHL, 7 or 8 in fourth-line duties, earning penalty-killing minutes; he'd probably get between 20 and 30 points a lot of the time, and either be a minimum-wage player for 7 or 8 years, or a millionaire for 5.

An American who played for the Providence College Friars, he scored 56 goals and totaled 105 points in 142 games spread over 4 seasons in the NCAA's best division, and he had to dominate in the ECHL to earn his way up from the start.

That's the type of resilience and inner strength that brought Alexandre Burrows to NHL stardom. I'm not saying Rheault has that kind of game in him, but if I was in the bottom-10 of the standings and possibly in salary spending as well, he's one guy I'd look at for a bottom-six role, or 13th forward.

In the meantime, he has 16 points in 18 games so far in Germany.

Cory Conacher Autograph Card

Cory Conacher is currently suiting up for his 4th NHL team in three NHL seasons, or at least he was, until the New York Islanders scratched him last night. And won. Against the Stanley Cup champion Los Angeles Kings.

There's a reason why he went undrafted, and when he started off brilliantly with the Tampa Bay Lightning, some attributed it to his diminutive stature, standing at just 5'8''; at that time, his name rang a bell, and I looked him up to find he did, indeed have the hockey genes and pedigree I expected, being a relative of three Hall Of Fame players, Charlie, Roy, and Lionel Conacher. He also tore up the AHL, playing in their 2012 All-Star Game (and has 114 points in 118 games at that level).

He's also an underdog because his diabetes is so severe that he has a permanent insulin pump attached to his hip whenever he's not playing. You're kind of supposed to root for him.

But he fell out of favor in Tampa, who traded him to the Ottawa Senators (for Ben Bishop, and because they already had Craig Anderson and Robin Lehner). Who put him on waivers, where the Buffalo Sabres - the worst team in the league last year - took a chance on him before letting him walk.

And yet there was hope on Long Island, as he started the season playing alongside John Tavares and Kyle Okposo on the first line... until gradually taking the route to the press box.

Hockey culture is big on pride and hiding your injuries, but if it's his disease that's causing him to have ''down'' moments, he should be open about it and not be uselessly criticized. It's a lot better for a player to be seen as ''useful for 60 games a year'', rather than ''a nuisance for 30''.

I'll take a guy with lot of heart on my middle-six forwards before one who produces the equal amount of points but shows up in only a third of the games. In just over two NHL seasons, I'm still not sure where I'd classify Conacher, though. I want to put him in the ''heart-and-soul'' category, what with battling health issues, and his size, and his never having been drafted, I want him to be that character guy, but I honestly don't know.

I pulled a lot of his cards last year and got this card of his in a group break a few months ago:

It's from Panini's 2013-14 Contenders collection, a Rookie Ticket autograph card (it's #269 in the set), showing him with the Sens' white (away) uniform. It's signed on-card in blue sharpie.

Two Michael Kostka Autograph Cards

I jumped on a group break for cheap recently - they desperately needed participants - which was for four boxes of Panini's 2013-14 Contenders; it turns out it wasn't worth much anyway, because what we got were two sets of identical boxes. I ended up with these two Michael Kostka Rookie Ticket autograph cards (#152 in the set), showing him with the Chicago Blackhawks:

At 28 years old, Kostka might just be coming into his own in the NHL. After having been with the Buffalo Sabres and Florida Panthers but never playing a game with them, he took advantage of the locked-out season to play 35 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs before signing with the Hawks, then getting claimed by the Tampa Bay Lightning off waivers near the end of the season.

He was Tampa's best player in the playoffs, with two assists in three games as they were swept in the first round by the Montréal Canadiens; he signed with the New York Rangers this summer, and should be their seventh defenseman.

One of these is obviously for trade.

Simon Després Autograph Card

Last week, I participated in my first two Ebay group box break... and won in both. The first one netted me this card, from Panini's 2011-12 Contenders (card #221, the Calder Contenders sub-set, numbered ##469/800):

The sub-set 'Calder' implies this also serves as Simon Després's rookie card. In Juniors, as a defenseman, he had a better than 0.5 point-per-game ratio, and won silver at the 2011 World Juniors and the Memorial Cup. He is considered the heir to Kristopher Letang for the Pittsburgh Penguins, who picked him 30th overall at the 2009 draft.

The way these breaks go is the seller usually puts for sale lots of all 30 NHL teams, and winning bidders receive the cards from the break that matches the team they picked. For this box break, I decided to not take any chances and went for my favourite team - the Montréal Canadiens, for $2.25 - as well as the other team geographically near mine filled with young talent - the Ottawa Senators, for $1.99 - and the Pens, for $3.55. Obviously, I chose Pittsburgh for the chance at a Letang, Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, James Neal or another big name, but am still very happy with this home-grown talent.