Blog Bat Around, Mystery RAK, and a Franchise Farewell

Our resident Diamond Jester Matt started a Blog Bat Around last week, giving us all the opportunity to discuss our greatest pack-pulled cards. I was reluctant to list mine because I've sold many of them so long ago that I don't even have a saved scan, but here's my top ten anyhow:

honorable mention - Grant Fuhr 2005-06 The Cup Scripted Swatch patch/auto

In terms of value, this would rank as one of my all-time top-ten pack pulls. However, I'm calling it an 'honorable mention' because it was the best card I pulled from a tin of The Cup, which I was lucky enough to purchase for a mere $450 in 2006. At that price you'd better pull at least one $100 card lol.

10. Carson Palmer 2003 Finest RC Auto #d/399

There was a mini-box of 2003 Finest in my Christmas stocking courtesy of my mom. Autographs were one per box IIRC, and I somehow pulled the #1 overall pick. I sold it for about $150 shortly after.

9. Chris Osgood 1988-99 Upper Deck Game Jersey

This was my first memorabilia hit, way back when jersey cards were tough pulls (1:288 hobby packs per TCDB). Even a semi-star like Osgood sold for well over $100 on an upstart auction site called eBay. It was a nightmare transaction; I sold it to a guy in Nova Scotia who had to send a wire transfer to my girlfriend. I don't have a scan of the card but I think I still have her note, "here's the $140 from that weirdo in NS :P "

8. Eli Manning 2004 Topps Chrome RC Refractor

Bought a bunch of 2004 Topps Chrome at Target in a futile attempt at completing the set. I pulled Larry Fitzgerald and Philip Rivers but gave up when I couldn't land a Big Ben RC. It didn't help the set build that my Manning was a refractor - but I was able to sell it for about $80 well before he won two Super Bowls. (They sell for $200+ these days.)

7. Mario Lemieux 2000-01 Upper Deck Return to Excellence jersey #d/66

Upper Deck made a special set of Lemieux relics where every card was hand-numbered to 66 and inserted into various late-season products. This was my first major superstar swatch pull, and likely my first with a print run under 100. I sold this one in another disastrous eBay transaction that made me want to leave the site forever (I managed to stay away for about a year.)

6. Aaron Judge 2017 Topps Heritage RC photo variation

5. Carlos Correa 2017 Topps Heritage Real One Auto red ink #d 19/68

Now we're getting to more recent pulls, where I actually have scanned evidence. The recent release of 2024 Topps Heritage reminded me of the 5-box break I revealed in the early years of this blog. Judge (which I later submitted to PSA) and Correa basically covered the price of that break.

4. Mike Trout 2011 Bowman Chrome RC

I never pulled a Topps Traded Trout RC despite buying several packs and hangers, yet I got this Bowman Chrome RC from a blaster box purchased during a Dave & Adam's Black Friday sale. This and my all-time greatest pack-pulled hit were submitted to BGS via COMC. I got more money for this card, because I was smart enough to sell it at peak value (unlike the top two...)

3. Marian Gaborik 2005-06 Black Diamond Gemography Onyx Auto 1/1

Once the lockout ended and the much-hyped Crosby/Ovechkin rookie class hit shelves, I gobbled up all the cards I could. Even though I was a poor college student living in a cruddy apartment I managed to buy one hobby box of Black Diamond. The quad diamond SPs (one per box) were more interesting to me, but it was cool to pull an autograph. Only when I sorted the cards by number did I notice the serial numbering on the back. It was my first (and only) one of one pull. I sold it in yet another nightmare eBay transaction.

2. Connor McDavid 2015-16 Upper Deck Young Guns RC

Pulled the big kahuna out of a retail blaster at Target and squealed with glee. I sold it a few months after, for a very good reason: COMC had gem mint copies for rock-bottom prices. An almost free upgrade to a slabbed copy was one of the few smart decisions I made with an all-time top ten pull.

1. Aaron Judge 2013 Bowman Chrome Gold Refractor Auto #d/50

I've told the story here before but if you're new to the blog, here it is... back in my prospecting days I would buy one Jumbo box of Bowman Draft every Black Friday or Christmas. One of the jumbo packs had some gold shine and when I saw the card I was... nonplussed. Aaron Judge? Okay. It's a Yankee, so that's something. Wow, this kid is huge. Let's see how he did last year.. oh, he was injured. Great.

Once he climbed up the ladder and made it to the Bronx I sent this to COMC for grading, along with a few others:

If I'd sold it after his record-breaking rookie season, or his American League-record 62 home run season, I 'd have had enough cash to buy a car - even after feeBay took their 22%. But I did not sell it at the right time. I sold it when I was making minimum wage and there was a family matter that drained the budget. Another major family issue is gathering steam, but I'm in a better financial position to weather the storm. Which is good, because if I let another 20k card slip though my fingers at less than full value, I'd...

Moving on... it seems that a wave of mystery PWEs has been circulating, with few clues other than "TCDB" and a Hartford postmark. This kind stranger sent six Packers and six Devils over this way (no Whalers though?)

I don't watch Pat McAfee; is A.J. Hawk as bland as everyone says? Or would anyone look like an NPC compared to Patty McCaffeine?

The three best ever Devils are represented here, along with the second-best goalie in Cory Schneider. Mystery person, if you're reading this... thank you!

Last night the Arizona Coyotes closed out their 28th - and final - season in Arizona with a 5-2 win over the Oilers. As someone who lost my hometown hockey team as a teenager, I felt a kinship with the Coyotes. That franchise had somehow survived so many awful decisions from ownership and management -- and just when it seemed like they were on the right track, they couldn't secure an arena. It was Atlanta all over again, and it sucks.

I could write a whole essay on this topic, but I'll spare you my thoughts on the matter except to say that when any franchise has to relocate it's heartbreaking. What that fan base lacked in raw numbers they made up for in resiliency. Who among us would stand by a team through two decades of incompetence, relocation rumors, and scores of insults from snickering, gatekeeping out-of-towners who claim that their favorite team shouldn't exist? Congrats, bullies. You got your wish. The Coyotes are no more.

But! There is an arrangement being discussed to possibly bring them back. If the now-former owner can secure a building within five years, the Coyotes may one day rise from the ashes like... some type of bird.

That said, the players definitely deserve to play for a team with stable ownership and a permanent home. I'd be interested to see how far this young squad can go in the coming years. Good luck in Salt Lake, boys.

Thanks for the memories... even though they weren't so great.

Thanks for reading!




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Weekend Long Read: Howl Yeah

Have you ever been bullied? Ever been relentlessly mocked in person and on social media just for existing in a space where the "cool kids" didn't want you? 

Have you ever been a fan of a TV show and emotionally invested yourself in the characters or plot even though it wasn't a trendy series that everyone was talking about? Ever enjoyed a musical act that wasn't on top-40 radio, or loved a band that the indie-cool taste makers insisted was vapid garbage?

Have you ever worked for a company whose management structure is in complete disarray and the executives are out of touch with the problems on the floor, but the employees work hard anyhow?

Have you ever supported a candidate for political office only because you believed that the media was being unfair to him(or her)? Have you ever supported a cause that seemed hopeless because you knew in your heart that you were right and they were wrong? 

 

Okay, I'm being overdramatic here. Let me zoom in a little...

Have you ever been a fan of an underdog sports team? I don't mean a decent-to-good team that's expected to lose a close playoff series to a title contender. I mean a team that is struggling to pay their bills, find a home, win over fans, complete a rebuild, hire competent management, draft players who aren't racist abelist assholes, spend the league-mandated minimum amount of salary, and convince everyone that they aren't an incompetent clown show. 

No? Well, you will be. Because I'm going to convince someone reading this to become a fan of the..

Before I lose any non-hockey fans reading this, think of a team like the Oakland Athletics, Tampa Bay Rays, or Miami Marlins. Do you see a lot of neutral fans dunking on these franchises and constantly berating them? If you're like most baseball fans, you're not calling for the Athletics to relocate unless or until every possibility of keeping them in the Bay Area has been exhausted. Yes, it seems like the A's have been trying to find a new home for-ev-err, and no, they're not going to field a competitive team until a) they get a brand new state-of-the-art facility or b) a salary cap forces them to spend a minimum amount. Neither option seems to have any chance of happening.

The Rays' stadium is not much better, and it's in a lousy location - similar to the Coyotes' former home in Glendale. The Marlins... still aren't very competitive, but their existence isn't an affront to "real" baseball fans.

Remember when the Sacramento Kings almost moved? Small market, lousy team with a long playoff drought. Who would even miss them, right? They didn't move, and now they're leading the Pacific Division. And would you look at that - their attendance figures this season are better than the Knicks, Bulls, Lakers and 76ers. :shocked Pikachu face:

But this is the NHL we're talking about. Hockey isn't the most inclusive sport, to say the least. In fact it's very elitist. The Council of Real Hockey Fans™ will mercilessly berate your favorite team and demand its relocation if they:

• play in a warm-weather city (Panthers, Lightning, Hurricanes, Kings, Sharks, Ducks, Knights, Stars, Predators)
  
  
• finish dead last in attendance (Sabres, Senators, Islanders, Hurricanes, Panthers)
  
  
• can't keep star players in town (Flames, Canucks)
  
  
• miss the playoffs for five consecutive seasons (Red Wings, Senators, Sabres, Devils)
  
  
• fail to win a playoff round in their first decade of existence (Devils, Blue Jackets, Lightning, Jets, Predators)
  
  
• leave a Canadian city for a U.S. city (Avalanche)
  
  
• nearly relocate and need the league's assistance to stay in town (Blues, Penguins, Oilers)
  
  
• go bankrupt or are on the verge of bankruptcy (Penguins, Sabres, Senators)
  

You may be wondering why I added playoff droughts to the above list. If your team is in a "non-traditional" market, near-immediate on-ice success is imperative toward building a fan base. The Sharks, Panthers, and Golden Knights checked this box. The Coyotes did, too. On the other hand we have the Blue Jackets and Thrashers. Neither were successful in their first decade, but the northern franchise had a stable ownership structure while the southern franchise... didn't. Neither team was last in the league in attendance despite the seemingly endless mediocrity.

Watching the Atlanta Thrashers fly north to Winnipeg almost overnight makes me want to fight for the Coyotes. Not just cheer for them, fight for them. At least us Whalers fans got to say goodbye to our team. Atlanta didn't even know their team was leaving until after the season ended.

More than a decade later, there are still a lot of misconceptions about why the Thrashers moved and the Coyotes didn't.

Emily is correct here. ASG refers to the Atlanta Spirit Group, the consortium that owned the Thrashers and NBA's Hawks. Technically, Inter is correct also - in that Gary Bettman cannot dictate what a franchise owner does with their franchise.

We'll get to the player management portion in a minute, but first I need to settle something once and for all: Gary Bettman does not own the Coyotes, and the NHL has not owned them for nearly a decade. Alex Merulello owns the franchise and, as Inter Autosport pointed out, you can't tell people what to do with their private property.

Our POTUS has reminded me that some people just can't be moved by facts. The vultures (in mostly Canadian cities) are still circling and pecking at our beloved Coyotes, squawking about how no one cares about this godawful team in Arizona and wailing about how the league should somehow step in and force the franchise to move somewhere with "actual hockey fans": Quebec City, Saskatoon, Letterkenny... wherever. As long as it's north of the 49th, eh?

Some Winnipeg fans (who still haven't given Gary Bettman credit for his role in bringing the Jets back at the first available opportunity) felt bad for Thrashers fans. They had no quarrel with the good folks in Atlanta. It was Phoenix they were after. That franchise is ours and we want it back! Enough with this failed experiment of hockey in the desert!

Is it failed though? How do we even know? The Coyotes haven't had an owner and a building in place since the days of Jeremy Roenick and Keith Tkachuk. Bettman has given this franchise several lifelines, primarily because the Phoenix market is the 11th largest in the country. But their ownership is stable now. Repeat: their ownership is stable. And yes, they're playing in a 5,000-seat college rink called (you can't make this up) Mullett Arena. 

These are fans that have suffered through fifteen years of instability and uncertainty: who own the Chiefs? Will this team even be here next year? They deserve better.

This May, the city of Tempe is going to vote on finally giving this franchise a permanent home. If they vote "no" then I wouldn't blame the owner or commissioner to start looking at relocation - Houston, Quebec, Letterkenny... wherever.

But! If the arena is approved and the Coyotes stay in state.. they've got a chance to reward the eternal patience of their small but loyal fanbase with something special.

Root for these guys regardless. They've been through a lot -- and they might be coming to your town in the near future.

The franchise continues to lose money and as a result they have had to trade several established NHL players. As mentioned in the tweet, management acquires a lot of "goddamn contracts" and "retained salary". This is basically bookkeeping: other teams are paying Arizona to retain a portion of a player's contract so that those teams can fit under the salary cap ceiling and the Coyotes can exceed the cap floor.

What do the Coyotes get for doing the rich franchises a favor? Draft picks. Lots and lots of draft picks.

This team has sooo much draft capital to play with! And by the time the entry draft rolls around, the young players who hear their names called by GM Bill Armstrong will know if the team is staying and playing in Tempe or not. Add these players to the three first round picks Arizona had last year, along with the young players already on the roster and... what's the opposite of "F*** Them Picks"?

Let's meet the future stars of your new favorite team:

Logan Cooley (3rd overall) -- 5' 10", 174-lb Center. Currently playing at the University of Minnesota.
Conor Geekie (11th overall) -- 6' 3", 196-lb Center. Currently playing for the Winnipeg Ice of the WHL.
Maveric Lamoureux (29th overall) -- 6' 7", 197-lb Defenseman. Currently playing for Drummondville of the QMJHL.


Arizona has the fifth-best odds (8.5% chance) to win the lottery and select uber-prospect Connor Bedard 1st overall. They won't. Shane Wright was considered the top prospect in 2022 but Arizona passed on him and selected Cooley instead. Bedard won't fall to them, and they won't win the #1 pick.

It's amazing how many lifelong hockey fans actually believe that Gary Bettman has somehow favored this franchise and swear that he will rig the lottery in their favour -- even though they have never won the lottery ever. (Meanwhile the Oilers and Devils combined owned more than half of the #1 overall picks in the 2010s.) The Coyotes have never even picked second overall. And do you know why they don't draft that high? 

Because this team won't tank. 

Even with their supposed minor-league roster, they're still ahead of the Blue Jackets, Blackhawks, Sharks, and Ducks. They're not waiting for the next Connor McDavid or Auston Matthews to save them.

If Connor Bedard comes to the Coyotes, that would be great. But he's probably going to Columbus or Chicago because Arizona is too good this year. And if Arizona does what Toronto did to get Matthews and Edmonton did to get McDavid, Canadian fans will cry foul without a hint of irony.

Now's the time to jump on the bandwagon. Watch these young players grow. Amaze your friends with knowledge of Matias Maccelli, Juuso Valimaki, and Jack McBain.

Follow this franchise as they rise from the ashes. What was once a dumping ground for toxic contracts could soon become pro sports' next dynasty if they play their cards right.

Have you ever played a sports video game in franchise mode? I haven't done it in years, but I'mma do it right now.

First thing we do is package up some of those picks for a top-pair defenseman. We need one now that Jakob Chychrun is gone.

Maybe Maveric can be that guy eventually, but he'll need a tutor. The oldest player on this blueline right now is 31 year-old Patrik Nemeth and no one else is over 26. More veteran leadership would help. We don't want our goalie, the hard-working Karel Vejmelka, to get bombarded with 50 shots a night.

The next draft will add more young talent to our stable. Let's stop collecting contracts of injured and unplayable veterans and build around our young core of Clayton Keller, Nick Schmaltz, Dylan Guenther, and Lawson Crouse. On second thought, don't get too attached. Maybe we'll trade a couple of those guys to make room for Cooley, Geekie, and the gang. It's like Dime Box Nick said - we're rooting for laundry. So why not root for this laundry:

Homer, find your soulmate

If the Coyotes win the Connor Bedard lottery this summer and the Tempe plan is approved, then maybe just maybe they can persuade a certain 2024 free agent to come home and play for his boyhood team (it worked for the Leafs and John Tavares.)

If they don't get the arena built and they have to move, the Coyotes have the potential to build an instant winner in their new home - just like the Colorado Avalanche did in the mid 1990s. Perhaps they'll share a city with another pro sports franchise that finished dead last for several seasons, stockpiled high draft picks, and built a perennial championship contender.

Get in on the ground floor. Jump on this rocket before it takes off. Become an Arizona Coyotes fan.

Thank you for coming to my TED talk. Have a great weekend!




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All-Time Teams: Coyotes

Today we'll look at the first of seven franchises that originated in another city. Here's the All-Time roster for the Arizona Coyotes:

Arizona has often struggled to advance beyond the first round of the playoffs. Their high point was a Western Conference Finals appearance in 2012, in which they lost to the eventual champion Los Angeles Kings.

 

 1st Line

Left Wing - Keith Tkachuk A borderline Hall of Famer and member of the 500-goal club, Tkachuk is third in Jets/Coyotes history with 323 goals and fourth with 623 points. The American power forward is the franchise leader in career penalty minutes and owns two of the team's four 50-goal seasons.

Center - Dale Hawerchuk The first overall pick in the 1981 draft, Hawerchuk won Rookie of the Year honors in 1982. The Hall of Famer is second in franchise history with 379 goals and 929 points in just 713 games as a Jet. His career total of 1,409 points is 20th in NHL history.

Right Wing - Paul MacLean A three-time 40-goal scorer, MacLean ranks sixth among Jets/Coyotes in career assists and points. His 248 career goals for the franchise are good for fifth all-time.

2nd Line

Left Wing - Morris Lukowich A member of the original Jets following their merger from the WHA, Lukowich scored 65 goals in the franchise's final WHA season. He's seventh on the team's all-time list with 168 markers in 431 NHL games for Winnipeg.

Center - Thomas Steen Stellar two-way center played 14 seasons in the NHL, all with Winnipeg. Ranks third in franchise history in games played and points. Steen's 553 assists are second in team annals, just below the next player on this line. His son Alex is a member of another All-Time Team.

Right Wing - Shane Doan Franchise lifer was the Jets' first round pick in 1995. Played one season in Winnipeg and two decades in the desert. Sits atop the team's leader board in a dozen offensive categories, most notably goals and points. Second cousin of Canadiens goalie Carey Price.

3rd Line

Left Wing - Ladislav Nagy Slovak forward scored 249 points in 321 games with Phoenix, posting four straight 50-point seasons in his brief tenure with the team.

Center - Alexei Zhamnov This was a tough call. Zhamnov played eight seasons with Chicago (compared to the minimum four years for this franchise) but had no chance at making the Blackhawks' roster. While he wasn't a natural fit here, I'd take his 267 points in 235 games over Ron Wilson's 209 points in 535 games with Winnipeg.

Right Wing - Radim Vrbata Czech winger is eighth in franchise history with 157 goals, including a league-high total of 12 game winners in 2011-12. His 49 power play goals are tied with Teemu Selanne for seventh on the Jets/Coyotes career list.

4th Line

Left Wing - Doug Smail The franchise standard-bearer in short-handed goals, Smail is sixth in Jets/Coyotes history with 189 goals and 691 games played. He ranks seventh in team annals with 397 total points.

Center - Martin Hanzal Recently retired from the NHL, Hanzal was a dependable defensive forward over his ten seasons with the franchise. Only three players have played more games in a Coyotes uniform.

Right Wing - Brian Mullen Two of the Jets/Coyotes' top 20 scorers are on other All-Time Teams, and seven are defensemen. Mullen (brother of Hall of Famer Joe) is #20, and he slides into a top-12 spot with 296 points in just five seasons for Winnipeg.

Spares - Laurie Boschman, Mikkel Boedker

Boschman ranks ahead of Hanzal, Zhamnov, and all but seven players on the franchise's career point-scoring list. He wasn't afraid to drop the gloves, either. However his -103 rating for a perennial playoff team dropped him out of a starting spot. Boedker, the 8th overall pick in the 2008 draft, squeaks onto this roster over Ron Wilson and Darrin Shannon. The Danish-born speedster was rarely penalized, serving just 86 PIMs over eight seasons with Arizona.

Defense Pair 1

Teppo Numminen - Oliver Ekman-Larsson

Numminen played two decades in the NHL, including 15 seasons for this franchise. He ranks second on the Jets/Coyotes' all-time list for games played, represented Phoenix in three All-Star games, and represented his native Finland in four Olympics. Ekman-Larsson, the Coyotes' current captain, is tenth in team history with 239 assists and 364 total points.

Defense Pair 2

Fredrik Olausson - Randy Carlyle

The Jets boasted a plethora of puck-moving defensemen including Olausson, who sits seventh on the team's all-time list with 249 assists. Carlyle (the first player/coach you'll see on these rosters) won a Norris trophy with Pittsburgh in 1981. I considered him for the Penguins - who are surprisingly thin on defense - but his ten years with Winnipeg won out.

Defense Pair 3

Keith Yandle - Zbynek Michalek

Yandle is yet another offensive-minded defenseman, perhaps the best of the Arizona era. His 246 assists are ninth in team history - seven ahead of Ekman-Larsson and two behind Dave Babych, who didn't make this team. Michalek, the NHL's top shot-blocker in 2008-09, gives this roster a much-needed stay-at-home rearguard.

Spare - Derek Morris

Dave Ellett was considered here, but again there are plenty of puck movers in the top six. Morris ranks just below Ellett in Defensive Point Shares and they both rank behind Tim Watters. Basically, I'm going with Morris because of his decade of dependable (if unspectacular) defensive play for the franchise.

Goalies

Starter - Sean Burke

Backup - Ilya Bryzgalov

Burke played more games for the Hartford Whalers but he was a much more effective goalie in Phoenix. The Coyotes' career leader in goals saved above average and co-leader in goals against average was a Vezina finalist in 2001-02. 

 

 

Mike Smith was initially my choice to back up Burke, but Bryzgalov won more games (in 58 fewer starts), had a slightly better save percentage, and earned just one fewer shutout than the man who succeeded him in Arizona's net.

Head Coach: Dave Tippett  Captain: Shane Doan

Tippett's .520 winning percentage with the Coyotes doesn't seem impressive, but it's just .007 short of the career record. The current Oilers bench boss is first in Winnipeg/Arizona history in games coached, wins, and playoff victories.

Guess who has the third-most wins of any coach in Coyotes history?

 

 

Yep, it's the Great One.

I hope you'll join us tomorrow for our next All-Time Team, the Boston Bruins.

Thanks for reading!

 

 

 

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