Goaltending Gallimaufry: Card Show Pickups

Gallimaufry [gal-uh-maw-free] - A hodgepodge; jumble; confused medley.

Finally, I can get back to sharing some new cards for my favorite side project. I've been searching for cards featuring mismatched goalie gear for over eight years now and I'm closing in on 200 total. This was supposed to just be a fun little side project when it started, but has actually become one of the bigger chunks of my active collection.

I love the fact that there is really no limit to the number of different sets and designs that can be included. Initially I thought these were not all that common, but the more I looked the more I could find. Goalies being traded and signing with new teams will never go away, so in theory neither will cards featuring these type of photos.

The first one we have today comes from 1995-96 Upper Deck and features former Islanders goaltender Tommy Salo. He is shown here in an Islanders road jersey, however pads and most notably his mask appear to be from a different team. That would be from his time with the Denver Grizzlies of the IHL. He actually led them to a championship in 1995.

Plus, how can you go wrong with a card that has a beach ball on it as the first one to show? That is something that fits in perfectly with this project.

Up next is another card from the same set, this time featuring Jocelyn Thibault. He is shown here with the Canadiens and your typical 'I just got traded' plain white mask. On top of that, the rest of his gear is still in Colorado colors as he was part of the Patrick Roy trade.

Here's a mismatch that's been shown here before on several cards. This base card from 1996-97 Fleer shows Damian Rhodes with the Ottawa Senators. While his mask and blocker had been updated to the Sens colors, the rest of his gear was still Maple Leaf blue. It's not as obvious here as on other cards because of the team logo and the snow spray.

Up next is one of the more interesting action shots I've found for this project. This 1994-95 Upper Deck base card shows Rick Tabaracci several feet off the ice likely leaping over his fallen teammate. The obvious mismatch here is the black pads and gloves against the red, white and blue of the Capitals old jerseys.

I'm not sure why he was wearing black equipment at this point in time. Tabaracci was traded to the Caps from Winnipeg back in March of 1993. A quick web search shows he was wearing all black pads with the Jets too. Their colors were the same as the Caps, so none of this adds up. I guess he just wanted to keep it simple and stick with all black, which worked out once he was subsequently traded to the Calgary Flames later in 1995.

Last but not least we have Chris Terreri shown playing for the San Jose Sharks. There is some red on his gear that makes for a stark contrast to the teal. This was because Terreri was traded from the Devils in November of 1995. The funny part is that the back of the card shows a picture of him with new gear in Sharks colors. 

 

Technically this did not come from the show. I happened to find it when sorting through my old binders the other day. I must have just missed it when I went searching through them years ago for these things. This is one of my favorite Collector's Choice sets from the 90's.

Unfortunately, that's it for now. Finding these really makes me want to get out and look for more. The cards shows are hit and miss. I spent a good hour sorting through 5000 ct boxes of old singles only to find four. I might have better luck getting some from COMC.

Goaltending Gallimaufry Count: 196

Golden Knights: September Card Show Pickups

Even though we're in the middle of October now, I've been backed up on scans that need to be posted so I still have some stuff to show from my trip to the Troy show in September.

We'll start things off with my favorite of the lot, this Violet Pixels parallel of Max Pacioretty from 2018-19 OPC Platinum. This will go great with the James Neal that I picked up from the show back in August. Now I just need to work on completing the team sets of these.

Up next is a rainbow parallel from the same set. This one shows Jonathan Marchessault during Vegas' inaugural season as evident by the patch. If you ask me these jerseys tend to look better on cards as they don't blend in as much with the white ice and boards.

This one featuring Marc-Andre Fleury is from the 2018-19 SP Authentic Moments set. It is dated Oct 20, 2018 and describes how Flower moved into 10th place on the all time NHL career wins list. Unsurprisingly, the photo shown is from that very game. Click here for a nice recap of the game by SI. This goes nicely with the other two I posted in September.

Sticking with Flower, here is a profiles card from SP, although it is nearly impossible to tell from the scan. The blue foil appears almost completely black and becomes invisible on the black background. Funny thing is I didn't even realize SP was a separate set in 2018-19.

Last but not least is a red parallel of William Karlsson from 2018-19 SP Authentic. These are identical to the base cards except for the red foil on the SPA logo and the player name on the bottom. This one gives me a full team set of Golden Knights for the red parallels.

These five add a couple new sets and bring my Golden Knights total to 39.I've got a little ways to go before catching my Predators collection, but that's ok as these are more of side projects for me. They give me something cheap and easy to look for at local card shows. 

Now that the 2019-20 card season is in full swing, I'm looking forward to hitting up a few more shows to see how many I can find like this. Since neither of these teams are the Red Wings, they are usually in the $0.10 or $0.25 boxes so it is definitely easy on the wallet.

Golden Knights Collection Total: 39

Predators: September Card Show Pickups

A couple of weeks ago I made it out to the Troy sports card and collectible show. This was the fourth time I've been to that show this year, which is actually quite a lot for me. Each time I've been able to find some cool stuff for various collection projects. This time was no different and I brought home some cool new Preds cards. 

Up first is my favorite of the bunch, this Filip Forsberg Violet Pixels parallel from 2018-19 O-Pee-Chee Platinum. I love these things, even if they are just simple base card parallels.

Both that and this next one featuring Pekka Rinne came from one seller for $1 each. This one is from 2018-19 Black Diamond and is the first card I've owned from the set. Honestly, I didn't even know there was a Black Diamond set last year, this was the first I'd seen of it. Its kind of a neat design, although it is hard to tell from the scan.

After that it was onto the quarter bin where I was able to get my first Eeli Tolvanen card. This Marquee Rookie is from 2018-19 O-Pee-Chee Platinum.

Sticking with Platinum, I was able to get this rainbow parallel of Kyle Turris. I didn't notice until I went to scan the card that there was some kind of black smudges all over the front of the card. Oh well, it still looks cool so I won't complain about it.

The last one is a UD Canvas card from 2017-18 Upper Deck featuring Calle Jarnkrok. Interestingly, Jarnkrok was originally drafted by the Red Wings back in 2010. He played a couple seasons for Grand Rapids, but never suited up for the Wings. He was part of the trade that sent David Legwand to Detroit. Looks like a pretty bad deal now, doesn't it.

That's it for now. Nothing too fancy, but at least it adds some variety to my Predators collection. Now I just really want to get myself some more of the O-Pee-Chee Platinum parallels, especially the Violet Pixels. There are at least a few more Preds in that set.

Predators Collection Total: 84

Golden Knights: August Card Show Pickups

In addition to the stack of Predators I got from last month's card show, I was able to find some cool stuff for my Golden Knights collection. If I had to choose between the two, I would say I'm slightly more into the Knights at this point. I feel like I have a slightly better connection with them being a fan from the very beginning. 

As I mentioned in my last post, I am really starting to get into all these different O-Pee-Chee Platinum parallels. This time I was able to get my first Violet Pixels parallel, a James Neal from 2017-18. These things look amazing in person. The scan does not do it justice.

Up next is another one of the same former Golden Knight. This is a red base parallel from 2017-18 SP Authentic. At least that's what they are calling it. I would say it looks more pink than red. Regardless, it is a nice looking card and I'm glad to have it now.

Moving onto something new for this collection: an Authentic Moments card from 2018-19 SP Authentic. These cards are an excellent idea from Upper Deck. Each one chronicles a specific moment. In this case it would be the first hat trick in Golden Knights history. They used a great shot of Karlsson being congratulated by his teammates.

Here's another Authentic Moments base card. This one was a bit more significant as it focuses on how Vegas was able to knock off the Jets to reach the Stanley Cup Final in their first season. I still can't believe they made it that far. Sometimes its fun to watch highlights from that run even if it did end with a loss to Ovechkin and the Capitals.

Sticking with SPA, I was also able to grab some red parallels from the 2018-19 set. I still think they look more pink than red. Must be my scanner doing some funny things to it. Anyway, the first of the three features Alex Tuch.

 

In addition to the Tuch, I was able to get this Marchessault from the same parallel set. I like this one a bit more since they are showing Vegas' home jersey. You can tell it was from their inaugural season by the patch above the crest.

I think if I had to choose a single player on the Golden Knights to collect, it would have to be Marc-Andre Fleury. I love goalie cards and he's been the man there since the beginning, except of course for all that time he missed due to injury in year one.

Moving on from SPA, I was able to get my first Knights cards from the 2019-20 season thanks to the recent release of MVP. These all came from a dime box and up first is Mark Stone. Hopefully Stone can tear it up in his first full season with the team here soon.

The more that I see this latest version of MVP, the more I like it. Even though there are quite a few lines going every which way, the overall design works really well for this type of set. Up next is Jonathan Marchessault.

The last of the MVP pickups was this Paul Stastny. Upper Deck really likes to show off the Knights' white jerseys it seems. I would love to see more of the home grey jerseys. They would probably look great with the colors of this design.

Time for some 2018-19 UD Series 1 now. I was able to find a nice trio of cards in one of the dime boxes and made sure to grab them. Up first is this one featuring former Kinghts defenseman Colin Miller, who was traded to the Sabres this summer.

Here's a really cool shot of Jonathan Marchessault on the second card.

To finish things off, here is my new favorite Golden Knights base card. This Marc-Andre Fleury has been on my radar for a while now after seeing it on COMC months ago. It's got an amazing shot of Fleury leading the team out of the tunnel at T-Mobile Arena. This was during the 2018 Stanley Cup Final as evident by the patch on his jersey. 

 

The only way this shot could be any better was if they captured Fleury emerging from the giant knight helmet they lower onto the ice at T-Mobile Arena.

That's it for this round of Knights pickups. I like how this project is progressing so far. I've got a nice variety of base cards, which makes flipping through the pages of these things quite enjoyable. I've even got some fun parallels and inserts mixed in.

Golden Knights Collection Total: 32

Predators: August Card Show Pickups

This year has been a bit of a resurgence for me when it comes to card collecting. Now that I've found the monthly card show in Troy, MI, it's been relatively easy to find new singles for my Golden Knights and Predators collections among other things. I also feel like I'm enjoying collecting more now than any other time in the last few years.

Last month I was able to make it out to the Troy show again and came away with another nice stack of cards for my growing Predators collection. 

This was also the first time I've ever left a card show having made money. On a whim I decided to take my collection of excess McFarlane figures to see if any of the dealers would buy them off me. I had a box of about 20 of them from a variety of sets. They've just been taking up valuable space in my basement and it was time for them to go. 

Luckily there was one dealer with a table full of other McFarlane figures and he was open to acquiring a few more. We made a quick deal that meant cash in my pocket and extra space in my basement. Definitely a win win. I even ended up spending less on cards than I made on the sale, hence the making money part. Now onto my Predators haul.

Up first we have this gorgeous rainbow parallel from 2018-19 OPC Platinum featuring Pekka Rinne. Now that I've seen some more of the parallels from these sets, I am really starting to become a fan of this particular offering from Upper Deck. And this is the most basic of the parallels so they only get nicer from here.

I have to say that is probably one of the best looking scans I've posted here in a long time. By that I just mean the way it perfectly captured the gradient of the rainbow foil from top to bottom. Things like this usually do not show up this well.

Here's another one that was easy to spot in the quarter bin. This one featuring Ryan Ellis is a retro rainbow parallel from 2018-19 OPC Platinum. Its an interesting design to say the least. Not sure how I feel about it just yet. Also, just like the Rinne, the rainbow effect is difficult to see in the scan, it looks so much better in person when the light hits it.

Continuing with OPC Platinum, I was also able to snag this neat In Action card of Filip Forsberg. I like how the cropped the photo so the words run in front of Forsberg's legs, but behind his gloves and stick. It really gives the card some depth. This also has more of a chrome/mirror finish on the front and shows just how dirty my scanner really is.

Switching gears, next we have a red parallel of Ryan Johansen from 2017-18 SP Authentic. I really like the look of the last few SPA base sets. They use some crazy geometric designs that somehow all work together. The best part, which you can't really tell from the scan, is how the player image is glossy while the rest of the card has more of a matte finish.

Sticking with SPA, but jumping forward to 2018-19, I was able to find several base cards in a dime box. Up first is Ryan Ellis. The overall design is very similar to the previous year shown above, although there may be slightly less of the geometric background craziness.

Then there was this Filip Forsberg. 

The third one was Pekka Rinne. I wish there was some more variety in the photos on all these Rinne cards I've gotten lately. I can think of at least three that have him in almost the exact same pose. None are bad, I just wish there was something different occasionally.

Along with the three base SPA cards, I was able to find another red parallel, this time of Rinne. It is essentially the same design as the base card other than the grey background and foil being changed to red. It looks more like a really dark shade of pink if you ask me. 

Switching gears once again, I was able to make a nice dent in the Preds checklist for 2019-20 MVP. This was the first time I had seen these cards in person and I have to say I kind of like the overall design. I just wish they would get away from the newer cursive looking MVP logo and go back to the original. Up first is Filip Forsberg.

Up next is Roman Josi with a cameo from Rinne, again in a standing position.

My favorite Predator to watch is still probably Viktor Arvidsson. He's a smaller guy but has some incredible speed and hands. I've seen him score some amazing goals the last couple of seasons and hop there is more to come here soon.

Up next is card #70 in the set featuring Ryan Johansen.

Here we have defenseman Ryan Ellis. This time we can see the Preds other goalie, Jusse Saros, in the background. I love the gold pads he went with last season, although they looked a little better with the road white jerseys. This setup was almost too much gold.

Last but not least we have Wayne Simmonds, who actually isn't even on the Preds at this point. He signed with New Jersey over the summer joining fellow former Pred P.K. Subban.

So that's it for another Predators card show haul. Even though these are pretty much all base cards it was still very enjoyable searching for them at the show. The benefit of most collectors not caring about base cards like these is how cheap I can get them. Usually at these shows they run me just $0.10 each, maybe $0.25 if they are from a higher end set.

Predators Collection Total: 75

Golden Knights: February Card Show Pickups

Along with the Predators cards from my last post, I was able to snag a nice group of base cards for my Golden Knights collection as well. While there is nothing amazing among these, it is still nice to get a variety of sets and at great prices too. The card shows I go to are always in metro Detroit so any base cards that aren't Red Wings never cost much. 

Up first is my favorite card of the bunch, a Marc-Andre Fleury from 2017-18 SP Authentic. I feel like if I had to put a priority on any one Golden Knights player it would be Fleury. I never liked him during his time with the Penguins, but once he became the guy in Vegas my opinion has changed. Plus I love goalie cards, so that makes it even easier.

 

The second of three from SPA was this one of Reilly Smith. I always forget that he is the brother of former Red Wings Brendan Smith. I guess Reilly has become the better of the two based on the last couple of seasons. He's been excellent for the Knights.

To finish off SPA, there was this one featuring James Neal. I have to say I don't understand why some people had such a problem with the whole white glove thing Vegas went with for the away jerseys. I think they work pretty well with the overall look. 

I showed off a couple of these Trilogy cards in my previous Preds post and the same thing I brought up there is true here. This would look a whole lot better if Fleury was pictured in the dark jersey. And is it just me or does the cropping look a bit odd on all of these?

I think this is my first non action shot on a Vegas card. The photo on this one from 2017-18 Upper Deck featuring Brayden McNabb appears to be from the 2017 Expansion Draft. He was there in person along with several other players including Marc-Andre Fleury.

Moving onto 2018-19 Upper Deck we have this one featuring one of the newer Golden Knights, Max Pacioretty. He is pictured skating against the Minnesota Wild. Notice the camera guy and the huge camera in the background?

Up next is Paul Stastny. Not sure which team they are playing in this one. Who knows, maybe its the same game as the Pacioretty above.

Then there was this Brayden McNabb, tying him with Fleruy for the most cards in this post so far. He is shown skating against the Sabres. Upper Deck must really like Vegas' away uniforms. All but one of these have shown it so far.

Here's an interesting close-up shot of William Karlsson. I'm assuming he's looking up at the jumbotron or something. One neat detail that you probably wouldn't see on a standard shot is the gold accent on the corner of his visor. Don't see that every day.

Continuing with the white jersey trend, there was this one featuring defenseman Nate Schmidt. Hopefully he can play the entire year this upcoming season after being suspended to start last season. He is an important part of their defensive core.

Finally, back to the awesome home gray jerseys. These are still my favorite in all of the NHL at the moment. I've only bought one brand new jersey in the last 10 year or so and it was this one right here. I can't wait to see what they do for their upcoming third jersey.

Not a major. That's all I can think of now whenever I see Cody Eakin. If you're wondering, I'm referring to the major penalty he received back in round 1 against the Sharks this year. I don't blame him at all for what happened, it was just an unfortunate series of events. Thankfully the Sharks stuck to their ways and didn't win much after that anyway.

My Golden Knights collection is coming along nicely now. It's great having a couple of other teams to chase now after 20 years of collecting nothing but Red Wings stuff. Even though none of these new Knights cards are really high-end, I'm glad to have them in my collection representing my second favorite team. 

Golden Knights Collection Total: 19