Duncan Siemens Jersey Card

Duncan Siemens is a 24-year-old stay-at-home, 6'3", 210-pound defenseman who is probably on the verge of breaking out and earning a regular spot on the Colorado Avalanche, or at least it would seem so since the team extended him a qualifying offer last summer. He was their second first-round pick (11th overall) in 2011, after they chose Gabriel Landeskog with the second-overall selection.

Back in Juniors, starring with the WHL's Saskatoon Blades, Siemerns was viewed as a smooth skater with a good first pass and a punishing mean streak - which remains true. That being said, he didn't make Patrick Roy's Avs squad because his stick-handling was problematic (and the team had enough trouble coming out of its own zone, Roy didn't want to risk it further by having one guy be susceptible to turnovers if opponents put enough pressure on him), and while he looks good skating for a big guy, making big strides, he's not the fastest skater.

I do feel that he can still develop into a sort of Marc Methot-type, which is very good in and of itself, although it lacks justification for having been selected ahead of the likes of Sven Baertschi (13th), Oscar Klefbom (19th), John Gibson (39th), Brandon Saad (43rd), Markus Granlund (45th), Xavier Ouellet (48th), Nikita Kucherov (58th), Vincent Trocheck (64th), and Jean-Gabriel Pageau (96th).

Here he is wearing the WHL's All-Star uniform on card #SSM-38 from In The Game's 2012-13 Heroes And Prospects set and Game-Used Jersey sub-set:

It features a huge red game-worn jersey swatch from his uniform in the 2012 Subway Super Series. It's the "Black" version of the card.

Darnell Nurse Jersey Card

Number 25 for December 25th - good concept, no?

Here's card #SSM-14 from In The Game's 2013-14 Heroes And Prospects set (and Game-Used Jersey sub-set), featuring a huge red swatch and matching picture of Edmonton Oilers prospect Darnell Nurse suiting up for the OHL in the Subway Super Series:

Nurse, an Oilers first-round choice (7th overall in 2013), was supposed to be groomed over time and spend at least a full year in the AHL - possibly two - before being brought in with the big club to have an immediate impact; injuries and sub-par play on the main team forced the Oilers' hand, however, and he has appeared in 26 games so far, and played nearly 25:56 in his last one, a 3-1 win over the Winnipeg Jets. His impact is already being felt.

I like what I've seen from him so far, and I'm excited to see where it will lead.

Mathew Dumba Jersey Card

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Mathew Dumba did a really classy thing yesterday: he contacted Derek Boogaard's family to ask if it was ok to use their son's former #24 jersey, meaning he'll forgo the star-worthy 55 in favour of a more classic number. Boogaard may have been an enforcer, but he resonated deeply with fans and teammates.

A year ago, Dumba was about to enter his actual rookie year as a 20-year-old defenseman, and Minnesota Wild fans were expecting to see his hard hits, hard shot and offensive prowess on full display, but the team decided to work him in slowly, giving him third-pair minutes (he averaged less than 16 per game in 58 games) and asking him to develop a sound, mistake-free defensive game before trying to light up the league.

He had nearly as many points in the NHL level (16 in 58 games) as he did in the AHL (14 in 20 games), but his average with the Iowa Wild was closer to what he'd shown he could provide in the minor leagues.

Then again, it's not every year than an Aaron Ekblad comes in and dominates as a rookie on the back end, and even those who do later take a few years of constant criticism while polishing their game, like Tyler Myers. I think the Wild will play it smart with him and let him develop on his own timeline, as the Montréal Canadiens have done with P.K. Subban and now Nathan Beaulieu.

One thing's for sure, as he gathers confidence and learns to properly gauge the speed at which plays occur, he will lay some bruising hits in his own zone and scare the other team's defenders in the offensive zone with his shot.

He has the tools to dominate for a decade, it's up to him to use them properly, and to the Wild to develop them.

In the meantime, here he is from In The Game's 2011-12 Heroes And Prospects set (card #SSM-05 in the Game-Used Jersey sub-set, the Black Version variant), wearing the WHL All-Stars' white (home) uniforms as they faced off against a group of talented Russian Juniors stars in the Subway Super Series, with a matching game-worn jersey swatch:

Derrick Pouliot Jersey Card

Every time he was called up from the Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins this season, showcasing this card was an option; now that the Pittsburgh Penguins are in danger of missing the playoffs altogether, I guess I have to ''take advantage'' of his injury to talk about the impressive prospect on their blue line, Derrick Pouliot.

The Pens chose Pouliot 8th overall in 2012 knowing full well they had another player just like him in Kris Letang - smooth-skating, booming shot, good hockey vision and great passes, standing at around the 6'0''and 200-pound mark, and somewhat needs to work on his defensive game - but he was so good that they just couldn't pass him up.

He's already suited up twice for Team Canada at the Juniors level, and has made the Memorial Cup All-Star Team, and has played in the CHL's Subway Super Series, as can be attested by this card from In The Game's 2012-13 Heroes And Prospects set (card #SSM-31 in the Game-Used Jersey sub-set):

He's shown wearing the WHL All-Stars' white (home) uniforms as they faced off against a group of talented Russian Juniors stars; Pouliot participated in both the 2012 and 2013 editions of the tournament that is usually played in November as a prelude to the World Juniors.

He also played in this year's AHL All-Star Game, as he led his team in scoring (as a defenseman) despite having been called up to the NHL for a good chunk of December; all told, he's played 34 games with the Pens so far this year, though he's out for their next game.

There'll be knocks on his game for a while because of his ''defensive failings'', but like Letang or P.K. Subban, he will ultimately produce far more points than be responsible for goals going in, and the differential between one and the other will determine whether he will be a top-4 defenseman or a top-pairing left-hander like Erik Karlsson. He's just 21 and has already scored on Roberto Luongo (on his first shot, no less), so I'm fairly confident we'll be talking about him as an NHL player for the next 15 years.

William Carrier Jersey Card

William Carrier played his first professional game on Friday, one in which his team won 6-1. But folks will remember it because Trevor Gillies - the former New York Islanders goon, now playing with the AHL's Adirondack Flames - slammed his head on the ice after he refused to fight him. Gillies got 27 penalty minutes on the play, and an automatic one-game suspension.

Gillies once was suspended for 9 games in the NHL for an elbow to the head of Eric Tangradi. In his first game back, he tried to break Cal Clutterbuck in half by cross-checking him head-first into the boards, which resulted in another 10-game suspension. He obviously hasn't learned his lesson.

Ironically, the Flames are, obviously, linked to the NHL's Calgary Flames, whose President is Brian Burke. While a fan of rough, tough hockey and ''truculence'', Burke is also the man who once said: ''I think it's a marginal player going after a superstar with a headhunting hit.'' He was then referring to Steve Moore's hit on Markus Naslund, which later prompted the Todd Bertuzzi hit on Steve Moore. And Moore was less ''marginal'' than Gillies, no matter how you slice and dice it.

I'm happy Carrier seems fine at first glance, protected by his helmet and visor. He's a fine prospect, which the Buffalo Sabres acquired in the trade that sent Steve Ott and Ryan Miller to the St. Louis Blues at last year's trade deadline. At 6'1'' and 200 pounds, the point-per-game producer in Juniors could end up being a 60-point, 35-goal power forward in the NHL. He likes playing in the slot, and is good at getting the puck in the corners, not afraid to take a few bad hits in the process; this has caused him a few injuries so far, and is the main reason why the Blues picked him 57th overall when he was slated to be a first-round pick.

I wrote to him last March (with 4 custom cards I made) care of his new Juniors team Drummondville Voltigeurs, but haven't heard back. I was hoping to start collecting him more seriously, around this card, from In The Game's 2012-13 Heroes And Prospects set (card #SSM-27 of the Subway Super Series Game-Used Jersey sub-set):

It shows him wearing the CHL Stars' white uniform, with the LHJMQ logo in front, as each regional league faced a group of junior-aged Russian players.