TTM Success: Mike Richter

What better way to start a new month than with another TTM success. This is the second one I've received in the last two weeks, the other being Gilles Meloche. 

Mike Richter is one of the greatest American-born goaltenders of all time. He has one Stanley Cup ring, a silver medal from the 2002 Olympics, and was inducted into the US Hockey Hall of Fame in 2008. I remember seeing him on TV a lot in the 90's and he was fun to watch. He also had a really cool mask for a lot of those years.

Richter began his NHL career in 1989 by appearing in 23 games with the Rangers, finishing with a 12-5-5 record as John Vanbiesbrouck's backup. After 13 seasons more with the Rangers, his career was cut short due to injury and he retired after the 2002-03 season. Richter finished with a record of 301-258-73.

The first card I sent is from 1993-94 Upper Deck, featuring a nice action shot with his awesome statue of liberty mask. The second card is from 1990-91 Pro Set, featuring the good ol' Osgood style mask he wore early in his career. 

Sent: 6/17/10

Received: 11/30/10

This TTM success came with an added bonus. In my letter to Richter I mentioned I was working on collecting autographs for goalies and the different masks they wear. When I opened up the return envelope, I was surprised to see my letter in there, then I realized why as Mike added a few words of encouragement along with signing the cards. 

There was one other thing about this success that was different from the rest. Richter put one of those pre-printed return address labels in the upper left corner of the envelope. That's not something I've seen on any of my other TTM returns.