The Great Zo
Verified Trader,
Note: Part 1 can be found here: LINK
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Welcome to the second of two parts of a comprehensive look at my complete player collections. I'll highlight five of my collections here, with five others depicted in part one.
This thread is one of the larger threads that I have posted, and I suggest leaving it open for a couple of minutes to load before trying to read it.
Along the way, I hope to provide a little insight in the cards I've acquired and in the players themselves. Where I recall, I will tell where some of the cards came from I'll also bold the "completion card" - the one that finished the collection off. It is important to note that the "completion card" is the card that initially completed the collection - if I had to re-complete it later, those "re-completions" don't really count for quite as much to me.
Enjoy!
-------------------------------------------------------
Dale Rominski
Member of the Detroit Vipers: 1999-2000, 2000-2001.
Dale Rominski played four years at the University of Michigan before turning pro; perhaps because of that, he had an excellent hockey sense that helped him be one of the leaders on the young Vipers team. He retired after two seasons with the Vipers, including three games in the NHL (with one assist) for Tampa Bay, presumably to pursue other interests. How I'll remember Dale is for singlehandedly doing the best thing that happened to me in my time with the Vipers. After a discussion I had with him on how I was going to be starting play in a DekHockey league (where I played for three years before moving to college), he offered me some of his old equipment -- a stick, gloves, elbow pads, and shin pads -- and delivered it to me at my home. That kind of generosity and friendliness is a huge part of what made my time as a reporter for the Vipers so great.
-------------------------------------------------------
1999-00 Detroit Vipers 13 Dale Rominski
2000-01 SPx 108 Dale Rominski RC (/1500)
2000-01 SPx Spectrum 108 Dale Rominski (/50)
Rominski is one of three players in this post who made an appearance in the Vipers' last card set in 99-00. He was originally slated for 00-01 Upper Deck, but got pushed back into SPx. Despite this collection being only three cards large, I recognize it as a very difficult one. It took me two years to find the Spectrum parallel, which I obtained from FunStuff in Finland. I still regularly search for Rominski's cards, and in the three years since I picked this one up, I have yet to see another copy!
The Dale Rominski collection was certified as completed - 2002.
-------------------------------------------------------
Kyle Kos
Member of the Detroit Vipers: 1999-2000, 2000-2001.
To be totally honest, I don't remember much about Kyle Kos. He was part of the youth movement that really hurt the Vipers in their final two seasons; simply put, it was due to inexperience. Kos was another very friendly, humble guy, though. He has returned to the Detroit area, playing for the Motor City Mechanics of the UHL.
-------------------------------------------------------
1997 Bowman CHL 156 Kyle Kos
1997 Bowman CHL OPC 156 Kyle Kos
1997 Bowman CHL Autographs 36 Kyle Kos
1996-97 Red Deer Rebels Kyle Kos
1997-98 Red Deer Rebels Kyle Kos
1998-99 Red Deer Rebels Kyle Kos
1999-00 Detroit Vipers Kyle Kos
This collection really wasn't a very difficult one, though it did require a bit of patience. I had good luck with his Bowman CHL cards, and the Vipers card was certainly an easy one, as I own over 50 copies of it. I had to be more patient with the Red Deer Rebels cards, though. The 96-97 and 98-99 fell into my lap fairly easily, but I had to wait to find a collector with the 97-98. I picked it up earlier in the month and completed the collection!
The Kyle Kos collection was certified as completed - October 24, 2005.
-------------------------------------------------------
Gordie Dwyer
Member of the Detroit Vipers: 1999-2000, 2000-2001.
Dwyer fit the bill well as a colorful goon. He was a heck of a pugilist at the minor league level and since leaving the Vipers, did have a few stints in the NHL. At the same time, he was one of the more gracious Vipers with the fans, and did always seem to be in good spirits.
-------------------------------------------------------
1992 Quebec Pee-Wee Tournament 185 Gordie Dwyer
1995 Slapshot Memorial Cup 61 Gordie Dwyer
1997 Bowman CHL 53 Gordie Dwyer
1997 Bowman CHL OPC 53 Gordie Dwyer
2004-05 Lowell Lock Monsters 4 Gordie Dwyer
2004-05 Lowell Lock Monsters Photo Album 4 Gordie Dwyer
Whereas I had good luck with the Bowman CHL cards in the Kyle Kos collection, the OPC parallel of Dwyer gave me fits. I found it for 10 cents at a card show, buried in a gigantic four-row box, in a stack of about 10 four-row boxes. This ended up proving that a bit of searching can end up with good results! It completed the collection, and over the past year I re-completed it by picking up the two Lowell cards from the 04-05 season. Dwyer is one of a number of players I collect who made an appearance in a Quebec Pee-Wee Tournament set. There's no way around it; it's neat to see some of your favorite players at age 12!
-------------------------------------------------------
2000-01 Pacific 383 G. Dwyer RC/M. Posmyk
2000-01 Pacific Gold 383 G. Dwyer/M. Posmyk (/50)
2000-01 Pacific Ice Blue 383 G. Dwyer/M. Posmyk (/45)
2000-01 Pacific Copper 383 G. Dwyer/M. Posmyk (/40)
2000-01 Pacific Premiere Date 383 G. Dwyer/M. Posmyk (/40)
2001-02 SPx 192 Gordie Dwyer
00-01 Pacific parallels are very difficult to find, due to a relatively low print run, and also to a gigantic set size. Time and patience is the name of the game for those, but I was thankfully able to complete this set. Marek Posmyk is another player I collect, but I still have a lot of work to do on my collection of him. The fairly random selection of Dwyer from 01-02 SPx (by way of 01-02 Rookie Update) finishes things out here.
The Gordie Dwyer collection was certified as completed - July 23, 2004.
Most recently certified re-completed - October 24, 2005.
-------------------------------------------------------
Dimitri Afanasenkov
Member of the Detroit Vipers: 2000-2001.
Afanasenkov is one of my absolute favorite players. When he was on the Vipers, I could tell early on that his skill package was phenomenal, especially his stickhandling and playmaking abilities. After the Vipers folded, I was worried that he wouldn't continue his development; indeed, the Lightning organization nearly wrote him off as well. He responded by making the team out of training camp in 03-04, and playing regularly on the third line. He has the ability to make a jaw-dropping play, but the one thing eluding him is a consistent finishing touch. If he finds it, look out! For sticking through criticism and for an excellent work ethic, Afanasenkov is someone I admire.
-------------------------------------------------------
1998-99 Moncton Wildcats Dmitri Afanasenkov (/1150)
Is this a card, or is this not a card? It's a question I've toiled over, especially given that many teams issue these "game programs" that feature a player in a card-like design on the front, with a roster on the back. Usually, I don't consider those cards. This was a subjective call, but since this one is serial-numbered on the back, and also numbered as part of a complete set on the front, I decided to call it a "card" for the sake of my collection. Interestingly, it's also the only part of my player "card" collections that is too big to be stored easily, and thus it's the only piece of the collection I keep at home.
-------------------------------------------------------
1999-00 QMJHL All-Star Dmitri Afanasenkov
2000-01 Upper Deck 200 Dmitri Afanasenkov RC
2000-01 Upper Deck Exclusives Tier 1 200 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/100)
2000-01 Upper Deck Exclusives Tier 2 200 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/25)
2000-01 Upper Deck MVP 214 Dmitri Afanasenkov RC
2000-01 Upper Deck MVP Third Stars 214 Dmitri Afanasenkov
2000-01 Upper Deck MVP Second Stars 214 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/100)
2000-01 Upper Deck MVP First Stars 214 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/25)
The QMJHL all-star cards have gotten a bit of attention in Beckett recently, thanks to the inclusion of a few higher-profile players than Afanasenkov. Everything else here came surprisingly easily, and shortly after the products were released, except for the Tier 2 Exclusives. I didn't find that one until March of 2005. Also, note that the MVP Second Stars parallel is number 21/100, and 21 is the jersey number he wore while with Sherbrooke.
-------------------------------------------------------
2000-01 Black Diamond 65 Dmitri Afanasenkov RC (/1999)
2000-01 Black Diamond Gold 65 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/100)
2000-01 Upper Deck Ice 45 Dmitri Afanasenkov RC (/1500)
2000-01 Upper Deck Ice Stars 45 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/500)
2000-01 Upper Deck Ice Legends 45 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/150)
2000-01 Upper Deck Ice Immortals 45 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/25)
2001-02 UD Victory 388 T.Ziegler RC/D.Afanasenkov
2001-02 UD Victory Gold 388 T. Ziegler/D. Afanasenkov
2002-03 Springfield Falcons 2 Dmitri Afanasenkov
It was an exercise in rookie parallels, and though the Tim Thomas collection (below) dwarfs the difficulty of this one, my limited resources in 2001 made the Afanasenkov cards more difficult than they would be now. Only the Ice Immortals gave me trouble, but with patience I picked it up for a good price. I really like the Ice cards, especially with the four different colors of shading. On the other hand, the die-cut design that Upper Deck used makes them really hard to store in sheets without them tilting to one side. Moving on from there, surprisingly, the 01-02 UD Victory Gold took me years to find! This seems to be a hard set because no one feels like listing up junk parallels from a junk product. I collect Ziegler as well, but he has a large number of late 90's Swiss cards that I may never locate.
-------------------------------------------------------
2003-04 BAP Memorabilia 223 Dimitri Afanasenkov
2003-04 Topps Traded TT60 Dimitri Afanasenkov
2003-04 Topps Traded Blue TT60 Dimitri Afanasenkov (/500)
2003-04 Topps Traded Red TT60 Dimitri Afanasenkov (/100)
2003-04 Topps Traded Gold TT60 Dimitri Afanasenkov (/50)
2003-04 Pacific Complete 573 Dmitri Afanasenkov
2003-04 Pacific Complete Red 573 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/99)
2004-05 Back To Russia 6 Dmitri Afanasenkov
Is it Dimitri, Dmitry, or Dmitri? I may never know for sure! I was glad to see him get some attention from the card companies after having a very respectable 03-04 season. I recall a print of 1000 for the BAP Memorabilia update set, though I can't locate any official documentation stating as such. As for the Topps Traded parallels, they didn't contain the slightly-shiny sheen that the original Topps parallels in 02-03 and 03-04 had, which was disappointing. Be sure to note also the suit-clad gentleman behind Afanasenkov, whose face was clearly airbrushed out! The Back To Russia came from the very helpful Igor Otlivanchik, and finished this collection off!
The Dimitri Afanasenkov collection was certified as completed - June 1, 2005.
(CONTINUED IN THE POST BELOW)
-------------------------------------------------------
Welcome to the second of two parts of a comprehensive look at my complete player collections. I'll highlight five of my collections here, with five others depicted in part one.
This thread is one of the larger threads that I have posted, and I suggest leaving it open for a couple of minutes to load before trying to read it.
Along the way, I hope to provide a little insight in the cards I've acquired and in the players themselves. Where I recall, I will tell where some of the cards came from I'll also bold the "completion card" - the one that finished the collection off. It is important to note that the "completion card" is the card that initially completed the collection - if I had to re-complete it later, those "re-completions" don't really count for quite as much to me.
Enjoy!
-------------------------------------------------------
Dale Rominski
Member of the Detroit Vipers: 1999-2000, 2000-2001.
Dale Rominski played four years at the University of Michigan before turning pro; perhaps because of that, he had an excellent hockey sense that helped him be one of the leaders on the young Vipers team. He retired after two seasons with the Vipers, including three games in the NHL (with one assist) for Tampa Bay, presumably to pursue other interests. How I'll remember Dale is for singlehandedly doing the best thing that happened to me in my time with the Vipers. After a discussion I had with him on how I was going to be starting play in a DekHockey league (where I played for three years before moving to college), he offered me some of his old equipment -- a stick, gloves, elbow pads, and shin pads -- and delivered it to me at my home. That kind of generosity and friendliness is a huge part of what made my time as a reporter for the Vipers so great.
-------------------------------------------------------
1999-00 Detroit Vipers 13 Dale Rominski
2000-01 SPx 108 Dale Rominski RC (/1500)
2000-01 SPx Spectrum 108 Dale Rominski (/50)
Rominski is one of three players in this post who made an appearance in the Vipers' last card set in 99-00. He was originally slated for 00-01 Upper Deck, but got pushed back into SPx. Despite this collection being only three cards large, I recognize it as a very difficult one. It took me two years to find the Spectrum parallel, which I obtained from FunStuff in Finland. I still regularly search for Rominski's cards, and in the three years since I picked this one up, I have yet to see another copy!
The Dale Rominski collection was certified as completed - 2002.
-------------------------------------------------------
Kyle Kos
Member of the Detroit Vipers: 1999-2000, 2000-2001.
To be totally honest, I don't remember much about Kyle Kos. He was part of the youth movement that really hurt the Vipers in their final two seasons; simply put, it was due to inexperience. Kos was another very friendly, humble guy, though. He has returned to the Detroit area, playing for the Motor City Mechanics of the UHL.
-------------------------------------------------------
1997 Bowman CHL 156 Kyle Kos
1997 Bowman CHL OPC 156 Kyle Kos
1997 Bowman CHL Autographs 36 Kyle Kos
1996-97 Red Deer Rebels Kyle Kos
1997-98 Red Deer Rebels Kyle Kos
1998-99 Red Deer Rebels Kyle Kos
1999-00 Detroit Vipers Kyle Kos
This collection really wasn't a very difficult one, though it did require a bit of patience. I had good luck with his Bowman CHL cards, and the Vipers card was certainly an easy one, as I own over 50 copies of it. I had to be more patient with the Red Deer Rebels cards, though. The 96-97 and 98-99 fell into my lap fairly easily, but I had to wait to find a collector with the 97-98. I picked it up earlier in the month and completed the collection!
The Kyle Kos collection was certified as completed - October 24, 2005.
-------------------------------------------------------
Gordie Dwyer
Member of the Detroit Vipers: 1999-2000, 2000-2001.
Dwyer fit the bill well as a colorful goon. He was a heck of a pugilist at the minor league level and since leaving the Vipers, did have a few stints in the NHL. At the same time, he was one of the more gracious Vipers with the fans, and did always seem to be in good spirits.
-------------------------------------------------------
1992 Quebec Pee-Wee Tournament 185 Gordie Dwyer
1995 Slapshot Memorial Cup 61 Gordie Dwyer
1997 Bowman CHL 53 Gordie Dwyer
1997 Bowman CHL OPC 53 Gordie Dwyer
2004-05 Lowell Lock Monsters 4 Gordie Dwyer
2004-05 Lowell Lock Monsters Photo Album 4 Gordie Dwyer
Whereas I had good luck with the Bowman CHL cards in the Kyle Kos collection, the OPC parallel of Dwyer gave me fits. I found it for 10 cents at a card show, buried in a gigantic four-row box, in a stack of about 10 four-row boxes. This ended up proving that a bit of searching can end up with good results! It completed the collection, and over the past year I re-completed it by picking up the two Lowell cards from the 04-05 season. Dwyer is one of a number of players I collect who made an appearance in a Quebec Pee-Wee Tournament set. There's no way around it; it's neat to see some of your favorite players at age 12!
-------------------------------------------------------
2000-01 Pacific 383 G. Dwyer RC/M. Posmyk
2000-01 Pacific Gold 383 G. Dwyer/M. Posmyk (/50)
2000-01 Pacific Ice Blue 383 G. Dwyer/M. Posmyk (/45)
2000-01 Pacific Copper 383 G. Dwyer/M. Posmyk (/40)
2000-01 Pacific Premiere Date 383 G. Dwyer/M. Posmyk (/40)
2001-02 SPx 192 Gordie Dwyer
00-01 Pacific parallels are very difficult to find, due to a relatively low print run, and also to a gigantic set size. Time and patience is the name of the game for those, but I was thankfully able to complete this set. Marek Posmyk is another player I collect, but I still have a lot of work to do on my collection of him. The fairly random selection of Dwyer from 01-02 SPx (by way of 01-02 Rookie Update) finishes things out here.
The Gordie Dwyer collection was certified as completed - July 23, 2004.
Most recently certified re-completed - October 24, 2005.
-------------------------------------------------------
Dimitri Afanasenkov
Member of the Detroit Vipers: 2000-2001.
Afanasenkov is one of my absolute favorite players. When he was on the Vipers, I could tell early on that his skill package was phenomenal, especially his stickhandling and playmaking abilities. After the Vipers folded, I was worried that he wouldn't continue his development; indeed, the Lightning organization nearly wrote him off as well. He responded by making the team out of training camp in 03-04, and playing regularly on the third line. He has the ability to make a jaw-dropping play, but the one thing eluding him is a consistent finishing touch. If he finds it, look out! For sticking through criticism and for an excellent work ethic, Afanasenkov is someone I admire.
-------------------------------------------------------
1998-99 Moncton Wildcats Dmitri Afanasenkov (/1150)
Is this a card, or is this not a card? It's a question I've toiled over, especially given that many teams issue these "game programs" that feature a player in a card-like design on the front, with a roster on the back. Usually, I don't consider those cards. This was a subjective call, but since this one is serial-numbered on the back, and also numbered as part of a complete set on the front, I decided to call it a "card" for the sake of my collection. Interestingly, it's also the only part of my player "card" collections that is too big to be stored easily, and thus it's the only piece of the collection I keep at home.
-------------------------------------------------------
1999-00 QMJHL All-Star Dmitri Afanasenkov
2000-01 Upper Deck 200 Dmitri Afanasenkov RC
2000-01 Upper Deck Exclusives Tier 1 200 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/100)
2000-01 Upper Deck Exclusives Tier 2 200 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/25)
2000-01 Upper Deck MVP 214 Dmitri Afanasenkov RC
2000-01 Upper Deck MVP Third Stars 214 Dmitri Afanasenkov
2000-01 Upper Deck MVP Second Stars 214 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/100)
2000-01 Upper Deck MVP First Stars 214 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/25)
The QMJHL all-star cards have gotten a bit of attention in Beckett recently, thanks to the inclusion of a few higher-profile players than Afanasenkov. Everything else here came surprisingly easily, and shortly after the products were released, except for the Tier 2 Exclusives. I didn't find that one until March of 2005. Also, note that the MVP Second Stars parallel is number 21/100, and 21 is the jersey number he wore while with Sherbrooke.
-------------------------------------------------------
2000-01 Black Diamond 65 Dmitri Afanasenkov RC (/1999)
2000-01 Black Diamond Gold 65 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/100)
2000-01 Upper Deck Ice 45 Dmitri Afanasenkov RC (/1500)
2000-01 Upper Deck Ice Stars 45 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/500)
2000-01 Upper Deck Ice Legends 45 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/150)
2000-01 Upper Deck Ice Immortals 45 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/25)
2001-02 UD Victory 388 T.Ziegler RC/D.Afanasenkov
2001-02 UD Victory Gold 388 T. Ziegler/D. Afanasenkov
2002-03 Springfield Falcons 2 Dmitri Afanasenkov
It was an exercise in rookie parallels, and though the Tim Thomas collection (below) dwarfs the difficulty of this one, my limited resources in 2001 made the Afanasenkov cards more difficult than they would be now. Only the Ice Immortals gave me trouble, but with patience I picked it up for a good price. I really like the Ice cards, especially with the four different colors of shading. On the other hand, the die-cut design that Upper Deck used makes them really hard to store in sheets without them tilting to one side. Moving on from there, surprisingly, the 01-02 UD Victory Gold took me years to find! This seems to be a hard set because no one feels like listing up junk parallels from a junk product. I collect Ziegler as well, but he has a large number of late 90's Swiss cards that I may never locate.
-------------------------------------------------------
2003-04 BAP Memorabilia 223 Dimitri Afanasenkov
2003-04 Topps Traded TT60 Dimitri Afanasenkov
2003-04 Topps Traded Blue TT60 Dimitri Afanasenkov (/500)
2003-04 Topps Traded Red TT60 Dimitri Afanasenkov (/100)
2003-04 Topps Traded Gold TT60 Dimitri Afanasenkov (/50)
2003-04 Pacific Complete 573 Dmitri Afanasenkov
2003-04 Pacific Complete Red 573 Dmitri Afanasenkov (/99)
2004-05 Back To Russia 6 Dmitri Afanasenkov
Is it Dimitri, Dmitry, or Dmitri? I may never know for sure! I was glad to see him get some attention from the card companies after having a very respectable 03-04 season. I recall a print of 1000 for the BAP Memorabilia update set, though I can't locate any official documentation stating as such. As for the Topps Traded parallels, they didn't contain the slightly-shiny sheen that the original Topps parallels in 02-03 and 03-04 had, which was disappointing. Be sure to note also the suit-clad gentleman behind Afanasenkov, whose face was clearly airbrushed out! The Back To Russia came from the very helpful Igor Otlivanchik, and finished this collection off!
The Dimitri Afanasenkov collection was certified as completed - June 1, 2005.
(CONTINUED IN THE POST BELOW)
Last edited:
The difference between Ovechkin and Afanasenkov is that one of the two has a team surrounding them 
