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Collector's World 0106
The Hockey News has been providing the most comprehensive coverage of the world of hockey since 1947. In each issue, you'll find news, features and opinions about the NHL and leagues across North America and the world.
ESSENSA
What you see is what you get, which in the case of Winnipeg Jets’ goalie Bob Essensa, is usually something at the top of the net. Essensa, however, has developed into something of a master of illusion. Fitting pucks into those inviting, even gaping openings would appear to be as easy as shooting fish in a barrel. It is not. There are no mirrors, no cheap card tricks. Essensa, the 26-year-old Toronto native, simply gets the job done by taking away the floor, so to speak. His quick legs block many a puck and when shooters go high, if they have the time, they often find the cupboard bare or some leather mitt stealing from it. While there are those who give him low marks for his flopping, butterfly style, he may…
WHAT’S IN YOUR CARDS?
WORSTCARD Picking the worst card of the year is not an easy task. With all the errors made by the companies this season, narrowing the field to five is not easy. But these are the five we believe stand out for being particularly poor cards. Each is a bad card in its own way. The cards we’ve selected in the category of “Worst Card” are, left to right: Adam Oates, Bowman (a horribly blurry photo of a star player); Kelly Kisio, Score (it’s a nice picture of his stick); Dave Manson, Pro Set (a poor photo of Steve Konroyd); Vancouver Team Card, Upper Deck (a bad drawing of Petri Skriko in an old uniform); Doug Brown, Pro Set (they barely got him in the photo). Please mark your choice for worst card of ’90-91…
DON’T GET MAD, GET EVEN: RETURN DAMAGED CARDS
Sandra Nelson must sometimes feel like a Grade 4 teacher checking her students’ home-work. The customer relations representative at Pro Set in Dallas has heard just about every excuse in the book from irate collectors complaining about damaged hockey cards. And while many have legitimate demands, there are obviously some collectors trying to pull the wool over her eyes. “If you only knew how many times people say, ‘You know, I had a Stanley Cup hologram card but it went through the wash’ or ‘ My dog ate it so can I get another one?’,” Nelson said. “Some collectors even call up and say, ‘I didn’t realize you replaced cards, so I threw them away.’ Well we do, and we’d be happy to help out.” Like all the major card companies, Pro Set has…
A COLLECTOR’S VIEW OF THE PROFESSOR
The play of Geoff Courtnall and Cliff Ronning with the Vancouver Canucks sparked wide-spread criticism of St. Louis Blues’ general manager Ron Caron. He has taken a lot of heat for the deal which netted the Blues center Dan Quinn and Garth Butcher. The last time he was so heavily criticized for a trade was when he sent Rob Ramage and Rick Wamsley to the Calgary Flames for Brett Hull, and we all know how that deal turned out. Caron has made several blockbuster deals in his eight seasons with the Blues. Some have helped, some have hurt and nearly all were heavily scrutinized. The Blues’ on-ice performance tells us how Caron’s trades have helped turn an average hockey team into a Stanley Cup contender. But how would Ron Caron the card…
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