New Tangradi Additions

I picked up a couple new Tangradi's for my PC recently.  Actually, I won both of these on auction quite a while ago but between the lengthy wait time for shipping from Canada and the lack of time on my part, they have been sitting on my desk for a few weeks. 

I'll keep this short and just get to the goods.

2010-11 Victory Black Rookie - The black parallels in Victory are a tough pull.  Most boxes only had one, some had none.  But either way, these aren't even listed in the Beckett because of scarcity.  I'm going to guess there are probably less than 50 of these although Upper Deck didn't serial number them.  I have the base and hopefully will have the Red Parallel soon.  There is a little nick on this one down on the bottom right but otherwise, it's an awesome card.

2010-11 Certified Potential Mirror Blue Parallel - - I have the base one of these I think as well as a Mirror Red Parallel.  The Blue are numbered out of /100 so they are a much tougher pull.  But not as hard as the Mirror Gold, Mirror Emerald, or Mirror Black which fall /25, /5, and /1 respectively.  I have yet to see any of these out there floating around, nor the other versions of the base auto card. 

Latest Ebay pickups for the PC and the Return of the PWE

As the Pens are heading out of the playoffs, my focus on hockey cards could be facing it's annual lull...

Awww, who am I kidding?  I have no lulls in collecting.  Even when I am bored with it sometimes, I find something to re-spark that interest.  At any rate, I picked up a few more for the PC off the Bay over the last week or so that have found their way to my humble abode. 

As an unrelated, well somewhat related, side note; I have been noticing a lot lately that sellers are starting to bring back the ever popular PWE, or Plain White Envelopes.  I have gone about a year or so without seeing a single one of these but in the last two weeks I have received 4 of them.  I generally haven't made a big stink about these because for the most part, the PWEers will package the items well enough that their containers haven't led to their demise.  Mostly that's because they are only single cards and really haven't taken much abuse.  But there is always that chance.

I am more bothered by the fact that for most auctions, shipping prices have increased in order for sellers to off set the new Ebay seller charges.  As an occasional seller, I get that.  What I don't get is how anyone can charge $2.50 or more (one was actually $3.75) for shipping and send it in a PWE.  That, my friends, is ridiculous.  Especially when you get the envelope and happen to notice that the shipping cost was barely a buck.  I know what you are all thinking...So don't bid.  Yeah that's one option but when you find stuff that you don't normally see very often and it would make a nice addition to your PC, as a collector, you have to bid.  You have to.  It's a law.  I know none of "us" are the culprits here but I just wanted to voice my concern. 

So back to the subject at hand.  Let's show off some new PC stuff.

Here are two more Letter Marks cards from SPGame Used for my Eric Tangradi collection.  Finding one of these is a feat in and of itself.  But two?  That's ludicrous.  Fortunately, the same seller had both.  I now have 2 "A's" and this "D".  I now need T, N, G, R, & I.  I think I mentioned on here once about the "T" that I had won but it was conveniently lost in the mail.  That's ok, though.  There are 49 others out there and one day I will snag one.  I just hope it is before he gets traded to another team.  He played some good hockey in the playoffs so he might have a chance at staying on for another year.  I hope he can make a roster spot next season but with the talent in the Pens farm system, that's never an easy task.

This is one that I was quite happy about.  It's an 05-06 Parkhurst Season Highlights card of everybody's favorite diving whiner, Sidney Crosby.  I saw this card and noticed it looked quite different than the one I thought I already had.  First, the "Season Highlights" block on the left side is red instead of the tan color on the base card.  Second, you can see right there next to the puck he is holding.  Yeah, that's an autograph.  But...not a real autograph.  The card is #586 in the set but this one is serial numbered #/100.  FOr some reason, Parkhurst included a Facsimile Autograph parallel set that were serial numbered.  I'm not sure what genius at Upper Deck came up with this idea back then, especially considering there are Signature cards included in the basic print run.  Maybe they just got bored with different borders or foil stamping.  I don't know. 

I have seen these at shows before selling for upwards of $50 (for a fake auto?  that's crazy).  I guess the PG has it listed for $60.  I bid on this one after looking at completed auctions.  They were selling for $20-40 pretty consistently so at $5 bucks, I figured why not?  I got it for $10.  SOLD!

I know GU cards have lost their luster (assuming they had luster in the first place) but I still like them.  I like Rookie Materials cards even better.  There is something about getting that little piece of jersey from a guy just starting their career that is satisfying as a collector.  I'm not a Colorado fan/collector nor am I on some crusade to start a Landeskog collection.  But I couldn't resist making a play for this at a couple cents and was fortunate enough to get it.  After busting about a half a case of Series II this year, I am surprised I didn't pull this one on my own.  Regardless, I guess this guy is kind of good or something...

- Lead Colorado in goals (22), plus/minus (+22), shots (267), hits (216) and game-winning goals (5-tied).
- Is the only Avalanche player to appear in all games.
- Set the franchise rookie record for shots on goal with 267.
- Is the youngest player in franchise history to score an OT goal (19 years, 110 days).
- NHL Rookie of the Month for February after leading all rookies with 13 points (7g/6a) in 12 games.
- Had a six-game point streak (5g/5a) from Feb. 17-27, the longest streak by an Avalanche player this season.
- Set the franchise rookie record with shots on goal in a single game, nine vs. Vancouver and again at Winnipeg.
- Represented the Avalanche at the 2012 NHL All-Star Weekend in Ottawa, participating in the All-Star Skills Competition on Jan. 28.
- Youngest Swedish-born player in NHL history to score a goal.

He is one of the three finalists for the Calder, which has already been chosen but won't be announced until the awards show.  If you ask me, he should be the front runner because I think he meant more to his team overall.  In the end, I think the Nuge will get the nod, though, with the better points per game.  

New Tangradi PC additions

 I've been busy on the Bay searching for all the lost Tangradi's.  I have nothing better to do considering the Pens absolutely suck eggs in the playoffs so far.  They couldn't hold a lead to save their lives.  This series is going to be over quickly if they don't find a way to get back their special teams game that they had in the regular season.

I don't want to talk about it because it only makes me mad-er.  God, they suck!!

So here are the last few that I have added to the PC.

I know what you are thinking...you already have this card.  Well that is sort of true.  I have the real card but you can see that this one is quite larger than the standard card size.  Plus, the name at the top is not in the same foil print as the Young Guns logo.  That's because this is card OS4, the over sized card that apparently came from retail blaster boxes [ok maybe they were the tins but I'm sure I bought those too] distributed in some parallel universe because I certainly never found any in any of the ones I purchased back then.  You can't really tell here but the card is still wrapped in the cellophane it originally came in.

I have bid on this card 8 times and lost every last one of them.  Not this time.  These were the Rookie Breakouts inserts loaded into Series II.  These fell about 1 every 3 boxes.  They are numbered out of /100 and are die cut on the top like the shards of ice sticking out.

Finally, I nabbed another The Cup 1/1 Printing Plate.  This time it is a black plate and it is autographed.  The plate was used for the 2010-11 SPx Level I Auto Rookie Jersey.  The jersey swatch would normally be found where the auto is on this card.  I have a copy on my Tangradi page if you wanted to see it.  Either way, it is cool to knock a few of these off my want list.

Latest Tangradi PC Pickups

I just wanted to take a second and share a couple new Tangradi's that I picked up.  None are as epically awesome as that Cup patch auto but they are all still pretty cool.

I can't understand why I didn't have the Victory card.  I think I actually did but it is in my set.  Maybe it's just that I have seen it so many times on Ebay that I figured I had it already.  Either way, it is one of the only cards I have seen where he is wearing number 78.  He is 25 in case anyone was wondering.  He was 26 last year.  He also wore 56 the year before.

The Contenders auto is just another of the multi-tiered cards that I needed.  I already had the regular one without the auto which was the Playoff Ticket version.  This one is labeled Season Ticket.

This one is pretty cool.  I have the basic jersey card (black swatch) which is numbered out of 200.  This one, however, is the PATCH version numbered out of /35.  It is all white but either comes from the belly of the penguin on the front logo or the center section from a number on the black or blue versions of the jersey.  At least, that's what I can figure.  I suppose it could also be from a practice jersey but those usually say so on the back.  This one just says it was worn during the Rookie Photo Shoot.  I don't think they had practice jerseys there although, you never know with Upper Deck.  Still, it is cool.

A Few From the Bay

I thought I would take a moment and share a few new acquisitions that recently came to my door via the E of Bay.  I have been on there way too much lately, partially because of trying to unload some of THE CUP cards I picked up, the other part because it becomes addicting.

I received three cards in the mail last week that all will find their place into my PC.  Here they are in no particular order...

The first one is this 2010-11 Certified Mirror Red Dual Sweater #'d/150 of former Dallas Star and current Pittsburgh Penguin James Neal.  I have always liked James Neal.  He's been on my fantasy team quite often and always seems like the guy that doesn't make a lot of noise and just lets his game speak for itself.  I like that.  I haven't gone crazy yet and started a PC of him or anything but it's an option.  I just wish Crosby would get healthy.  I think that line would do amazing things. 

Panini did an interesting thing on these cards.  The swatch cut outs are positioned into the card design so that depending on the sweater color, it may or may not blend into the card.  When I first bid on this, I had no idea it had the GU pieces in it.  Wasn't I surprised?

The second card that came was this 2011 Topps Game Day Autograph of Emmanuel Sanders.  As you can see, it's a sticker auto and Mr. Sanders isn't going to win any penmanship awards anytime soon.  But it's a great looking card in my opinion of an up and coming Steeler.  He was a 3rd round pick in last years draft and hasn't quite broken into the full time roster for Bruce Arians offense, at least yet.  He still plays a role as could be seen in last week abysmal showing by the "black & yellow".  He hauled in two passes for 20 yards, one of which for six.  Here's hoping for more to come. 

Apparently there are four different versions of each of these autograph cards in the Topps set.  Each one features a write up on the back talking about a different moment in a particular game from last season.  These "Game Day Moments" are broken down by quarter.  This card here is 2nd quarter.  I'm not sure on scarcity or whatnot of each version.

Finally, we got this 2010-11 Limited Phenoms Autograph #'d/299 of my apparent "man-crush" Eric Tangradi.  I believe this makes 10 Tangradi autos, or maybe 11, I lost count.  Invariably, it means he will either be traded, retire, or suffer a career ending injury because that is my luck.  I know I always say that but I have a bad track record.  Hopefully he can recover from that concussion he got back in February, make a big impression in the Prospects Tournament coming up, and strap the skates back on for the Pens.  His size and presence on the ice are key to him maximizing his potential.  He just needs to get tougher along the boards, own the paint, and master the art of being a "pest" in front of the net.  Lots to handle but I think he can do it.

I really like these cut out style cards.  I think the concept is cool as it makes the card look more like a focal piece for display.  They did a really good job with the Crown Royal Scratching The Surface ones with the rink inset and the material patch with the team logo on these is really well done too.  I can't believe I'm saying this but, good job Panini.

A Few From the Bay

I find myself doing a lot of watching but not a whole lot of shooting when it comes to Ebay auctions lately.  The fees are starting to mount up and the overall price of a lot of singles has increased as a result.  Sellers are trying to hold onto some semblance of a profit margin but it's getting tougher.  Despite all that, I have actually been able to land a few nice bargains for my Penguins PC and my Guerin collection. 

I thought I would share a few of the latest because, they make me happy.

 2010-11 Score Brad Thiessen Autograph - Not an on-card auto but most of the rookie ones are not.  Despite that, I think the sticker is kind of unobtrusive and the signature is prominent enough not to make you second guess whether it is actually signed.  Brad played a few last year for the Pens and has a bright future in a pretty deep goalie lineup.

 2008-09 O-Pee-Chee Rainbow Bill Guerin #/100 - I have actually bid on this card three times, only to lose it in the last few seconds.  This time...I was the only bidder and I got it for a dollar.  That, by the way, included shipping.  Not a bad deal for a short print parallel.

 2005-06 Artifacts Frozen Artifacts Bill Guerin #/275 - For some reason, I have become obsessed with jersey cards.  What I once hated or at the least, was indifferent about has become one of my favorite cards to pull.  Although this one is a bit on the small size, It is a nicely designed card and the low print run makes it a perfect addition to my Billy G. collection.

2007-08 Artifacts Treasured Swatches Patch #/25 - My favorite card of the bunch is also my least favorite.  It is a franken-card of epic proportions.  The team credited to the card, as you can see under the serial number is the New York Islanders.  The last time I checked, the Islanders didn't have gray, black, and turquoise uniforms.  Since Billy is pictured on the Sharks, you would think the patch would be from, oh, I don't know...maybe a San Jose jersey.  But alas, it is a patch from a Dallas Stars jersey.  Three teams, same player, epic fail.  So epic, that is is outstanding.  Oh, and I didn't notice on the original scan but there is a soft corner on this as well as a nick on the top above the F in Artifacts.  The soft corner boggles my mind since the card is about a 130 pt. thickness.  But, I can't argue once again with $.99.