Puck Junk Podcast: Ebay Buys Goldin Auctions

Plus: 2023-24 Tim Horton’s Greatest Duos
Episode #186: April 19, 2024

In this episode, we discuss eBay’s acquisition of Goldin Auctions and what it means for the card collecting hobby. We also talk about the lack of hockey cards at Target and other major retail stores, the upcoming FanaticsFest sports convention, the new Tim Horton’s Greatest Duos set, crazy auction prices for Connor Bedard’s SP Game Used cards, and more. It’s 85 minutes of hockey goodness! 

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Follow Clemente Lisi on X/Twitter @ClementeLisi. 
Podcast music by Retro Game Remix – follow them on YouTube. 

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2024 National Hockey Card Day is This Saturday

Get Free Hockey Cards from Your Local Card Shop.

Considering how hard it has been to buy almost any recent hockey card products, the idea of actually getting some 2024 hockey cards in 2024 – for free, no less! – is exciting! 

This Saturday – April 13 – is National Hockey Card Day in the U.S., in Canada, and in even some other countries around the world. Fans who visit a participating card shop can get a free, exclusive pack of National Hockey Card Day 2024 cards, made by Upper Deck. Continue reading “2024 National Hockey Card Day is This Saturday”

High-End Connor Bedard Cards Are Finally Here

2023-24 SP Game Used Gives Us First Bedard RPAs.

Last week, the 2023-24 SP Game Used Hockey set hit hobby shops and shipped from online retailers.

While several Connor Bedard autographed cards were issued in Upper Deck Series Two, this year’s SP Game Used set has his first truly high-end rookie cards, such as rookie patch autographs (RPAs), and autographed letter mark cards. 

Continue reading “High-End Connor Bedard Cards Are Finally Here”

Puck Junk Podcast: Triple Crown Line Interview

Episode #185: April 4, 2024

Sal Barry interviews the Los Angeles Kings’ famed “Triple Crown Line” – Marcel Dionne, Dave Taylor, and Charlie Simmer. The three talk about how their line was formed and some of their best memories of playing together. It’s 15 minutes of hockey goodness. 

Show Notes and Links
Marcel Dionne career stats at HockeyDB
Dave Taylor career stats at HockeyDB
Charlie Simmer career stats at HockeyDB
Special thanks to the Sport Card Expo for recording the interview. 

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Follow Sal Barry on X/Twitter @PuckJunk & Instagram @PuckJunk.
Follow Tim Parish on X/Twitter @TheRealDFG & Instagram @therealdfg66.
Follow Clemente Lisi on X/Twitter @ClementeLisi. 
Podcast music by Retro Game Remix – follow them on YouTube. 

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or Transistor.

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Clemente’s Corner: Rookies You Should Collect Besides Connor Bedard

Say the word “rookie” and the name Connor Bedard instantly comes to mind. It’s a reflex. None of us can help.

While the Chicago Blackhawks center may very well be on his way to taking the Calder Trophy, there are other rookies – even sleeper ones – that may be worth gobbling up now given that the majority of people are so laser-focused on acquiring Bedard.

Players like Luke Hughes of the New Jersey Devils and Leo Carlsson of the Anaheim Ducks have lived up to the preseason hype, although both have been overshadowed by Bedard mania. Both Hughes and Carlsson remain in the mix – although they are longshots – to capture the Calder.

Instead, here are five NHL rookies from this season (not named Bedard) who remain under the radar and worth chasing:   

Continue reading “Clemente’s Corner: Rookies You Should Collect Besides Connor Bedard”

Puck Junk Podcast: Hobby Terms We Hate

Episode #184: March 29, 2024

From “white whale” to “Holy Grail”, “net to me” and “nasty,” we discuss some of the most-hated terms in the sport card collecting hobby. Plus, the sheer number of graded Connor Bedard Young Guns cards, college hockey cards, and more. It’s 108 minutes of hockey goodness! 

Show Notes and Links
Sport Card Expo Toronto (link)
Sport Card Expo Edmonton (link)
OnIt Athlete College Hockey Cards (link)

Follow
Follow Sal Barry on X/Twitter @PuckJunk & Instagram @PuckJunk.
Follow Tim Parish on X/Twitter @TheRealDFG & Instagram @therealdfg66.
Follow Clemente Lisi on X/Twitter @ClementeLisi. 
Podcast music by Retro Game Remix – follow them on YouTube. 

Listen
Listen to the Puck Junk Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, Castbox, Deezer, iHeartRadio, Overcast,  
PlayerFM, PocketCasts, Podcast Addict, Podchaser, Spotify, Stitcher,
or Transistor.

Connect 
Connect with us and other hockey fans on the Puck Junk Facebook Group.

Subscribe
Subscribe to the Puck Junk Email Newsletter and the YouTube Channel. 

Support 
Support this podcast and buy a shirt from the Puck Junk Online Shop. ■

Tim’s Take: Four Hobby Phrases That Should Be Retired Now!

You know the feeling you get when you hear the same phrases repeated over and over and over again?

Whether it was your parents yelling things like “Don’t make me come back there,” or “Because I said so,” or that catchphrase your once favorite sports personality now uses as a noun, verb, adjective, and every other part of speech you can think of, certain phrases just get beaten into the ground.

The same can be said for the card-collecting hobby. While those not on social media may not hear these things often, those that are and interact with others in the hobby daily, get bombarded by these words and phrases regularly.

The solution? I think it’s about time that some of these phrases get retired now. 

Continue reading “Tim’s Take: Four Hobby Phrases That Should Be Retired Now!”

Puck Junk Podcast: The Spring 2024 Chicago Sports Spectacular

Plus: Is Card Cleaning Wrong? 
Episode #183: March 22, 2024

In this episode, Sal, Tim, and Clemente talk about the Spring 2024 Chicago Sports Spectacular – and how nearly everyone was looking for Connor Bedard’s Young Guns rookie card. They also discuss if “card cleaning” is right or wrong, the new Parkhurst Champions set, and the upcoming PWHL sets. It’s TWO HOURS of hockey goodness. 

Show Notes and Links
2022-23 Parkhurst Champions Checklist (Trading Card DB)
Is Cleaning Cards a Dirty Business? (Puck Junk)
Connor Bedard’s Young Guns Prices Do Not COMP-ute! (Puck Junk)
The Decline in Value of the Connor Bedard Young Guns Card (Puck Junk)
Finally, here’s that awesome card that Clemente found (and Sal bought)…

It’s…beautiful! 

Follow
Follow Sal Barry on X/Twitter @PuckJunk & Instagram @PuckJunk.
Follow Tim Parish on X/Twitter @TheRealDFG & Instagram @therealdfg66.
Follow Clemente Lisi on X/Twitter @ClementeLisi. 
Podcast music by Retro Game Remix – follow them on YouTube. 

Listen
Listen to the Puck Junk Podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Amazon Music, Castbox, Deezer, iHeartRadio, Overcast,  
PlayerFM, PocketCasts, Podcast Addict, Podchaser, Spotify, Stitcher,
or Transistor.

Connect 
Connect with us and other hockey fans on the Puck Junk Facebook Group.

Subscribe
Subscribe to the Puck Junk Email Newsletter and the YouTube Channel. 

Support 
Support this podcast and buy a shirt from the Puck Junk Online Shop. ■

 

The Decline in Value of the Connor Bedard Young Guns Card

When You Start at the Top, There’s Only One Way to Go.

This past weekend, I set up at the Chicago Sports Spectacular to sell hockey cards and t-shirts. The Spectacular is a twice-annual, three-day show with around 400 vendors and dozens of autograph guests. The show draws a large crowd, and many in the crowd were wearing Blackhawks jerseys with Connor Bedard’s name and number 98 on the back. 

The March Chicago Sports Spectacular was the first major Chicago-area show since Bedard’s Young Guns card was released in 2023-24 Upper Deck Series 2 on March 6 – and as you probably have guessed, everyone was talking about him.

At least half of the people who stopped by my booth asked if I had any Bedard cards, though many of them were looking specifically for his Young Guns card. And some even offered to sell me a Bedard Young Guns card, usually asking around $500 to $600. I could have bought that card ten times over.

But I didn’t. Continue reading “The Decline in Value of the Connor Bedard Young Guns Card”

Clemente’s Corner: Connor Bedard’s Young Guns Prices Do Not COMP-ute!

Amid the usual sea of Michael Jordan, Mark Grace and Walter Payton cards and jerseys, another – much younger – athlete was prominently on display at the recent Chicago Sports Spectacular.

Connor Bedard was very much on the minds and tongues of many at the three-day event, the Windy City’s biggest sports collectables gathering and one of the best-attended regional shows in North America.

And Bedard’s Young Guns card was hands down the most-talked about item – even by those who don’t typically buy hockey. It was a card that had shaggy-haired teens carrying silver cases scurrying about in search of it, while seasoned collectors shook their heads (some in disgust) at some of the prices in the showcases.

Continue reading “Clemente’s Corner: Connor Bedard’s Young Guns Prices Do Not COMP-ute!”