The Great Zo
Verified Trader,
Here's my last post before a break in the action, and I'm glad to finish off July with a selection of cards from my original player collection!
Mail Post #12 for 2014
-------------------------------------------------------
98-99 Black Diamond Myriad Curtis Joseph (1456/1500)
Before I get the Samsonov mail, I have a few other items to cover first. This card arrived from ebay, and leaves me with just seven cards to go for my 98-99 Black Diamond Myriad insert set.
-------------------------------------------------------
08-09 Upper Deck Brian Boyle RC (SP)
08-09 Upper Deck Victory Brian Boyle RC
08-09 Ultra Brian Boyle RC (SP)
08-09 UD Artifacts Brian Boyle RC (804/999)
08-09 SP Game Used Brian Boyle RC (229/999)
From the same seller, I also received six RCs of new Tampa Bay Lightning forward Brian Boyle. Here are the first five Boyle RCs, which are generally lower-end cards.
-------------------------------------------------------
08-09 Be A Player Brian Boyle RC (88/99)
The sixth card, however, is one of Boyle's most important rookie issues! With only 99 copies made, it's his toughest RC.
-------------------------------------------------------
91-92 Pro Set base cards
Next, I have four pictures from a very easy purchase I made from Jake (jagrnyr68). Here's this post's edition of the mandatory "random base cards" that always seem to find their way to me!
-------------------------------------------------------
11-12 ITG Heroes and Prospects Top Prospects Jersey Black TPM-15 Vladislav Namestnikov (/100)
03-04 Upper Deck Victory Nathan Horton RC (SP)
09-10 UD Artifacts Artem Anisimov RC (392/999)
10-11 Upper Deck Victory Sergei Bobrovsky RC
11-12 Upper Deck Matt Frattin RC (SP)
The bottom four cards in this post are low-end RCs for my various rookie collections. The Nathan Horton card is from the 10-card rookie redemption subset. I don't know much about the scarcity of those cards, but I would guess they aren't too hard to find.
The top card in this picture features Tampa Bay Lightning forward prospect Vladislav Namestnikov. The card features a black jersey swatch from the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game.
Namestnikov is an interesting case. He's one of two Lightning players who debuted before the Olympics, along with goalie Kristers Gudlevskis. I had thought that appearing before the Olympic break made them eligible for RCs in this year's products, but they have yet to be included in any checklists. Am I wrong about the timing of the cut-off rule for 13-14?
-------------------------------------------------------
08-09 O-Pee-Chee Brian Boyle RC (SP)
08-09 Upper Deck Ice Brian Boyle RC (046/999)
Jake also helped me out with some Brian Boyle RCs. These two are on the lower end of the scale.
-------------------------------------------------------
08-09 SP Authentic Brian Boyle RC (437/999)
08-09 Ultimate Collection Brian Boyle RC (222/299)
However, these are two of Boyle's better rookie issues! With everything I've acquired in this post, I'm already up to 10-of-20 for Brian Boyle's rookie cards. It looks like the toughest of the remaining cards will be The Cup and UD Black.
Jake, thanks for the transaction, and for helping me with my collection!
-------------------------------------------------------
2014 Panini Father's Day Absolute Tools of the Trade Lava Flow Tim Thomas
-------------------------------------------------------
2014 Panini Father's Day Absolute Tools of the Trade Cracked Ice Tim Thomas
In my last post, I picked up two of the four Tim Thomas parallels from this year's Panini Father's Day set -- the base and autograph versions. With the Lava Flow and Cracked Ice versions, I now own all four!
These cards were tough to photograph, as the direct light from a camera flash does not activate any of the holofoil elements, leaving the card looking dark and dull. I had to set them up a little bit differently and use indirect lighting to get the cards to look as awesome as they should.
The cards all feature plain black puck swatches, and I still have no idea where they came from. Three of the four cards have the same thickness (about as thick as a typical Panini memorabilia card), but the Cracked Ice version is as thick as a patch card. I'm not sure why it's thicker, since it's otherwise constructed exactly the same as the other variations.
As for scarcity? I've seen several copies of the Lava Flow version, but only three or four of the Cracked Ice. The autographed parallel that I own is still the only one I've seen.
-------------------------------------------------------
11-12 Pinnacle 30 Tim Thomas
11-12 Pinnacle 250 Tim Thomas
Here are two more Tim Thomas cards -- base cards from the 11-12 Pinnacle set. These cards show Tim Thomas with all three trophies he won in 2011 -- the Vezina, the Conn Smythe, and the Stanley Cup.
I already own the Rink Collection parallels for both cards, but for some reason I never picked up the base cards.
These two cards arrived in from Shawn (djsports), along with the next item.
-------------------------------------------------------
97-98 Katch Fabrique Au Canada Gold 12 Sergei Samsonov
Can I finally be done with Katch now? Yes, I can!
It's not surprising that the final Katch item on my wantlist was the 97-98 Made In Canada / Fabrique In Canada gold parallel. Between 97-98 and 98-99, Samsonov was featured on nine different coins. I'm now 9-for-9.
97-98: Base, Silver, Gold, Canada Base, Canada Silver, Canada Gold
98-99: Base, Silver, Gold
Perhaps more importantly, my Samsonov wantlist from 97-98 is now down to just one non-1/1 item, and it's another coin: the Gold Plated Proof from Pinnacle Mint (limited to 100 copies).
Shawn, thanks a ton for the deal!
-------------------------------------------------------
02-03 Pacific Pacific Nights Special Edition Sergei Samsonov (05/10)
Here's a very scarce promotional card featuring Sergei Samsonov. I couldn't find very much information about this set, but I do know that it was some sort of promo piece from events held at local card shops. It looks like Pacific made similar parallels (across the entirety of the base sets) for both 01-02 Private Stock and 02-03 Pacific.
I'm not sure if I'll count this toward my collection -- probably not -- but for just a few dollars, it was certainly worth the purchase.
-------------------------------------------------------
06-07 Upper Deck MVP One-on-One Autographs Michael Ryder / Sergei Samsonov
The next card is from a deal with Stephanie (xnuancex), who was breaking up a Michael Ryder collection. The dual autograph cards from 06-07 MVP are very tough to find. By my best guess, the print run is definitely no higher than 100 copies, and possibly under 50. The odds were 1:240 packs, which I think was a case hit.
It has been a while since I've seen one of the Ryder/Samsonov autographs, so I was very happy to find one for a good price!
Thanks for the sale, Stephanie.
-------------------------------------------------------
02-03 Upper Deck Fan Favorites Jersey Sergei Samsonov
This may just look like another of the plethora of basic jersey cards from 02-03 Upper Deck, but there's a little more to the story than that. The 14-card Fan Favorites set was released only in retail packs of Series 2, with stated odds of 1:96 packs. That alone makes it pretty clear as to why these cards are hard to find, but I made it even harder on myself, searching only for a copy with a multi-colored swatch. I only recall seeing one or two back when the product was fairly new -- just enough to know that they were out there.
Finally, after a decade of waiting around, I picked this one up for just a few dollars on ebay. The swatch is outstanding, with three colors -- white, yellow, and black. Samsonov was featured on four different standard jersey cards in 02-03 Upper Deck, and I finally own them all.
-------------------------------------------------------
02-03 BAP Ultimate Memorabilia Dynamic Duos (24 of 30)
-- Pavel Bure (Blue) / Sergei Samsonov (Black/Yellow)
This card features two skilled Russian forwards, though other than their nationality, they never really had much of a connection between them. The swatches on this card come from New York Rangers and Boston Bruins jerseys. Samsonov had three cards in 02-03 BAP Ultimate Memorabilia, and this was the last of the three that I needed.
-------------------------------------------------------
03-04 Upper Deck Trilogy Limited Threads LT-27 Sergei Samsonov (33/50)
Every year or two, I run across an ebay user dumping off a collection of Samsonov cards. That was the case in late June, as a pretty nice collection went up for auction -- primarily early-00s memorabilia cards. There were only two in the batch that I still needed, and I won both for the very-reasonable opening bid prices!
The first card is the last I needed from 03-04 Upper Deck Trilogy. This thick, multi-layered card features two different pieces of fabric. On the left is a manufactured patch, depicting one of the alternate logos used by the Boston Bruins. On the right is a white swatch from a game-used Sergei Samsonov jersey. I've seen quite a few copies of this card over the years, and every single one of them has had a plain white jersey swatch. I'm pretty sure that this is the best I'll be able to do.
-------------------------------------------------------
00-01 Upper Deck Game-Used Jersey Patch SS-P Sergei Samsonov
Here's a card with some really long odds -- 1:2500 packs of 2000-01 Upper Deck Series 1! I can't remember if I've ever seen one of these before, but I certainly haven't seen one recently. Patch cards from the flagship Upper Deck releases in the early 00s were really special cards, and quite hard to find. The patch swatch has three layers -- black patch / yellow patch / black patch.
Unfortunately, this card is yet another example of why collectors need to just say no to screwdown holders. Cards are not meant to be smashed between two plates of glass (or whatever the material is). This card was held way too tight, and upon releasing it, was damaged in two ways. First, a tiny crease developed at the bottom right of the swatch window. Second, and more obviously, there are several small spots on the left side of the card where the finish on the surface was removed. I'm definitely going to keep this card as part of my collection, but I'm still not happy with the fact that it's no longer in perfect shape.
-------------------------------------------------------
02-03 In The Game-Used Teammates Jerseys Gold T-3 Joe Thornton / Sergei Samsonov (/10)
I have to thank Tim (TurcoCollector3) for alerting me to this card on ebay. The listing was very poor, and it does not appear that the seller realized that this was the gold parallel of the Thornton/Samsonov dual jersey card! The difference is pretty obvious when compared to the silver version, which has a print run of 70 copies. Because of Tim's good eye, I was able to get this gold version for about what I would have paid for the silver version, had I not already owned it. The dual-jersey card has swatches from Joe Thornton (yellow) and Sergei Samsonov (white).
Samsonov received 11 cards in 02-03 ITGU, and I only need one more -- the autographed jersey, limited to ten copies.
-------------------------------------------------------
13-14 ITG Stickwork Stick Rack Triple Silver SRT-28 (/14)
-- Joe Thornton / Sergei Samsonov / Byron Dafoe
My first card from ITG Stick Rack is a pretty nice one! I have always liked stick cards a little better than plain jersey cards. ITG has a big back stock of Samsonov stick pieces, so why not use them?
The stick swatches on this card are pretty nice. The Thornton swatch is silver with a single black stripe. The Samsonov swatch is gold, with the letters "ADE" printed in black -- perhaps from the word "made." The Dafoe swatch is made of wood, with a few black marks, possibly from a puck.
-------------------------------------------------------
13-14 ITG Superlative The First Six Auto Jersey Gold AJ-SSA Sergei Samsonov (/5)
Obviously, recent ITG products are the focus near the end of this mail post, and it's nothing unusual that the checklists are full of very scarce and mostly redundant cards. This one certainly qualifies -- it's a pretty boring parallel from the Superlative The First Six release. I already own the base version (/20). At least the gold parallel (which differs only due to the words stamped in gold foil on the card front) has a multi-color swatch (white seam with yellow jersey).
-------------------------------------------------------
13-14 ITG Decades 1990s Rookie Jersey and Autograph Black Sergei Samsonov (/3)
This card isn't much more exciting than the last one, especially with a plain black Boston Bruins jersey swatch, but its scarcity makes it an important addition to my collection! I was patient with this one -- it had been on ebay for months, and I finally pulled the trigger when it was let go at an auction with a fair starting price.
A second copy of this card sold just a week or two later, but I didn't purchase it. I also know the location of one of the Silver (/2) versions, but I couldn't agree on a price with the owner.
-------------------------------------------------------
2014 In The Game-Used Spring Expo Team ITG Silver
-- TIR-45 Joe Thornton / Sergei Samsonov / Byron Dafoe (/9)
I do still believe that ITG has some pretty strong redemption programs for the Toronto expo, especially when creating completely unique sets that aren't available anywhere else. The Team ITG set was available only for people redeeming boxes of 2013-14 In The Game-Used. Sergei Samsonov was included on just one card in the set -- a triple jersey card with the same late-90s / early-00s lineup as the Stick Rack card a few pictures up.
Joe Thornton's swatch is plain yellow, and Sergei Samsonov's swatch is plain black. The Byron Dafoe swatch has three layers -- black, yellow, and white, with seams between each of the colors.
Each Team ITG card had nine copies printed of the silver version.
-------------------------------------------------------
2014 In The Game-Used Spring Expo Team ITG Gold
-- TIR-45 Joe Thornton / Sergei Samsonov / Byron Dafoe (1/1)
Each Team ITG card also had a Gold 1/1 produced, in typical ITG fashion. I was happy to get both versions at about the same time!
All three Boston Bruins swatches on this card are outstanding, with three colors each -- a combination of yellow, black, and white. The Thornton and Dafoe swatches have seams, while the Samsonov swatch is all one layer.
It's not one of my favorite cards in my Samsonov collection, but I do think it's an example of ITG making a pretty nice card under their usual limitations. This is Sergei Samsonov 1/1 #15 for my collection.
-----------------
News and notes:
** This will be my last mail post for a while, as I am about to depart for a lengthy vacation this week. Outside of the occasional check on ebay, I'll be taking a break from card transactions for about the next month.
** It's sure going to be fun if one of my players gets included on one of the National Treasures 24-player memorabilia cards!
That'll be it. Thanks everyone!
--Andy
http://www.thegreatzo.com/cards/
-------------------------------------------------------
Mail Post #12 for 2014
-------------------------------------------------------
98-99 Black Diamond Myriad Curtis Joseph (1456/1500)
Before I get the Samsonov mail, I have a few other items to cover first. This card arrived from ebay, and leaves me with just seven cards to go for my 98-99 Black Diamond Myriad insert set.
-------------------------------------------------------
08-09 Upper Deck Brian Boyle RC (SP)
08-09 Upper Deck Victory Brian Boyle RC
08-09 Ultra Brian Boyle RC (SP)
08-09 UD Artifacts Brian Boyle RC (804/999)
08-09 SP Game Used Brian Boyle RC (229/999)
From the same seller, I also received six RCs of new Tampa Bay Lightning forward Brian Boyle. Here are the first five Boyle RCs, which are generally lower-end cards.
-------------------------------------------------------
08-09 Be A Player Brian Boyle RC (88/99)
The sixth card, however, is one of Boyle's most important rookie issues! With only 99 copies made, it's his toughest RC.
-------------------------------------------------------
91-92 Pro Set base cards
Next, I have four pictures from a very easy purchase I made from Jake (jagrnyr68). Here's this post's edition of the mandatory "random base cards" that always seem to find their way to me!
-------------------------------------------------------
11-12 ITG Heroes and Prospects Top Prospects Jersey Black TPM-15 Vladislav Namestnikov (/100)
03-04 Upper Deck Victory Nathan Horton RC (SP)
09-10 UD Artifacts Artem Anisimov RC (392/999)
10-11 Upper Deck Victory Sergei Bobrovsky RC
11-12 Upper Deck Matt Frattin RC (SP)
The bottom four cards in this post are low-end RCs for my various rookie collections. The Nathan Horton card is from the 10-card rookie redemption subset. I don't know much about the scarcity of those cards, but I would guess they aren't too hard to find.
The top card in this picture features Tampa Bay Lightning forward prospect Vladislav Namestnikov. The card features a black jersey swatch from the CHL/NHL Top Prospects Game.
Namestnikov is an interesting case. He's one of two Lightning players who debuted before the Olympics, along with goalie Kristers Gudlevskis. I had thought that appearing before the Olympic break made them eligible for RCs in this year's products, but they have yet to be included in any checklists. Am I wrong about the timing of the cut-off rule for 13-14?
-------------------------------------------------------
08-09 O-Pee-Chee Brian Boyle RC (SP)
08-09 Upper Deck Ice Brian Boyle RC (046/999)
Jake also helped me out with some Brian Boyle RCs. These two are on the lower end of the scale.
-------------------------------------------------------
08-09 SP Authentic Brian Boyle RC (437/999)
08-09 Ultimate Collection Brian Boyle RC (222/299)
However, these are two of Boyle's better rookie issues! With everything I've acquired in this post, I'm already up to 10-of-20 for Brian Boyle's rookie cards. It looks like the toughest of the remaining cards will be The Cup and UD Black.
Jake, thanks for the transaction, and for helping me with my collection!
-------------------------------------------------------
2014 Panini Father's Day Absolute Tools of the Trade Lava Flow Tim Thomas
-------------------------------------------------------
2014 Panini Father's Day Absolute Tools of the Trade Cracked Ice Tim Thomas
In my last post, I picked up two of the four Tim Thomas parallels from this year's Panini Father's Day set -- the base and autograph versions. With the Lava Flow and Cracked Ice versions, I now own all four!
These cards were tough to photograph, as the direct light from a camera flash does not activate any of the holofoil elements, leaving the card looking dark and dull. I had to set them up a little bit differently and use indirect lighting to get the cards to look as awesome as they should.
The cards all feature plain black puck swatches, and I still have no idea where they came from. Three of the four cards have the same thickness (about as thick as a typical Panini memorabilia card), but the Cracked Ice version is as thick as a patch card. I'm not sure why it's thicker, since it's otherwise constructed exactly the same as the other variations.
As for scarcity? I've seen several copies of the Lava Flow version, but only three or four of the Cracked Ice. The autographed parallel that I own is still the only one I've seen.
-------------------------------------------------------
11-12 Pinnacle 30 Tim Thomas
11-12 Pinnacle 250 Tim Thomas
Here are two more Tim Thomas cards -- base cards from the 11-12 Pinnacle set. These cards show Tim Thomas with all three trophies he won in 2011 -- the Vezina, the Conn Smythe, and the Stanley Cup.
I already own the Rink Collection parallels for both cards, but for some reason I never picked up the base cards.
These two cards arrived in from Shawn (djsports), along with the next item.
-------------------------------------------------------
97-98 Katch Fabrique Au Canada Gold 12 Sergei Samsonov
Can I finally be done with Katch now? Yes, I can!
It's not surprising that the final Katch item on my wantlist was the 97-98 Made In Canada / Fabrique In Canada gold parallel. Between 97-98 and 98-99, Samsonov was featured on nine different coins. I'm now 9-for-9.
97-98: Base, Silver, Gold, Canada Base, Canada Silver, Canada Gold
98-99: Base, Silver, Gold
Perhaps more importantly, my Samsonov wantlist from 97-98 is now down to just one non-1/1 item, and it's another coin: the Gold Plated Proof from Pinnacle Mint (limited to 100 copies).
Shawn, thanks a ton for the deal!
-------------------------------------------------------
02-03 Pacific Pacific Nights Special Edition Sergei Samsonov (05/10)
Here's a very scarce promotional card featuring Sergei Samsonov. I couldn't find very much information about this set, but I do know that it was some sort of promo piece from events held at local card shops. It looks like Pacific made similar parallels (across the entirety of the base sets) for both 01-02 Private Stock and 02-03 Pacific.
I'm not sure if I'll count this toward my collection -- probably not -- but for just a few dollars, it was certainly worth the purchase.
-------------------------------------------------------
06-07 Upper Deck MVP One-on-One Autographs Michael Ryder / Sergei Samsonov
The next card is from a deal with Stephanie (xnuancex), who was breaking up a Michael Ryder collection. The dual autograph cards from 06-07 MVP are very tough to find. By my best guess, the print run is definitely no higher than 100 copies, and possibly under 50. The odds were 1:240 packs, which I think was a case hit.
It has been a while since I've seen one of the Ryder/Samsonov autographs, so I was very happy to find one for a good price!
Thanks for the sale, Stephanie.
-------------------------------------------------------
02-03 Upper Deck Fan Favorites Jersey Sergei Samsonov
This may just look like another of the plethora of basic jersey cards from 02-03 Upper Deck, but there's a little more to the story than that. The 14-card Fan Favorites set was released only in retail packs of Series 2, with stated odds of 1:96 packs. That alone makes it pretty clear as to why these cards are hard to find, but I made it even harder on myself, searching only for a copy with a multi-colored swatch. I only recall seeing one or two back when the product was fairly new -- just enough to know that they were out there.
Finally, after a decade of waiting around, I picked this one up for just a few dollars on ebay. The swatch is outstanding, with three colors -- white, yellow, and black. Samsonov was featured on four different standard jersey cards in 02-03 Upper Deck, and I finally own them all.
-------------------------------------------------------
02-03 BAP Ultimate Memorabilia Dynamic Duos (24 of 30)
-- Pavel Bure (Blue) / Sergei Samsonov (Black/Yellow)
This card features two skilled Russian forwards, though other than their nationality, they never really had much of a connection between them. The swatches on this card come from New York Rangers and Boston Bruins jerseys. Samsonov had three cards in 02-03 BAP Ultimate Memorabilia, and this was the last of the three that I needed.
-------------------------------------------------------
03-04 Upper Deck Trilogy Limited Threads LT-27 Sergei Samsonov (33/50)
Every year or two, I run across an ebay user dumping off a collection of Samsonov cards. That was the case in late June, as a pretty nice collection went up for auction -- primarily early-00s memorabilia cards. There were only two in the batch that I still needed, and I won both for the very-reasonable opening bid prices!
The first card is the last I needed from 03-04 Upper Deck Trilogy. This thick, multi-layered card features two different pieces of fabric. On the left is a manufactured patch, depicting one of the alternate logos used by the Boston Bruins. On the right is a white swatch from a game-used Sergei Samsonov jersey. I've seen quite a few copies of this card over the years, and every single one of them has had a plain white jersey swatch. I'm pretty sure that this is the best I'll be able to do.
-------------------------------------------------------
00-01 Upper Deck Game-Used Jersey Patch SS-P Sergei Samsonov
Here's a card with some really long odds -- 1:2500 packs of 2000-01 Upper Deck Series 1! I can't remember if I've ever seen one of these before, but I certainly haven't seen one recently. Patch cards from the flagship Upper Deck releases in the early 00s were really special cards, and quite hard to find. The patch swatch has three layers -- black patch / yellow patch / black patch.
Unfortunately, this card is yet another example of why collectors need to just say no to screwdown holders. Cards are not meant to be smashed between two plates of glass (or whatever the material is). This card was held way too tight, and upon releasing it, was damaged in two ways. First, a tiny crease developed at the bottom right of the swatch window. Second, and more obviously, there are several small spots on the left side of the card where the finish on the surface was removed. I'm definitely going to keep this card as part of my collection, but I'm still not happy with the fact that it's no longer in perfect shape.
-------------------------------------------------------
02-03 In The Game-Used Teammates Jerseys Gold T-3 Joe Thornton / Sergei Samsonov (/10)
I have to thank Tim (TurcoCollector3) for alerting me to this card on ebay. The listing was very poor, and it does not appear that the seller realized that this was the gold parallel of the Thornton/Samsonov dual jersey card! The difference is pretty obvious when compared to the silver version, which has a print run of 70 copies. Because of Tim's good eye, I was able to get this gold version for about what I would have paid for the silver version, had I not already owned it. The dual-jersey card has swatches from Joe Thornton (yellow) and Sergei Samsonov (white).
Samsonov received 11 cards in 02-03 ITGU, and I only need one more -- the autographed jersey, limited to ten copies.
-------------------------------------------------------
13-14 ITG Stickwork Stick Rack Triple Silver SRT-28 (/14)
-- Joe Thornton / Sergei Samsonov / Byron Dafoe
My first card from ITG Stick Rack is a pretty nice one! I have always liked stick cards a little better than plain jersey cards. ITG has a big back stock of Samsonov stick pieces, so why not use them?
The stick swatches on this card are pretty nice. The Thornton swatch is silver with a single black stripe. The Samsonov swatch is gold, with the letters "ADE" printed in black -- perhaps from the word "made." The Dafoe swatch is made of wood, with a few black marks, possibly from a puck.
-------------------------------------------------------
13-14 ITG Superlative The First Six Auto Jersey Gold AJ-SSA Sergei Samsonov (/5)
Obviously, recent ITG products are the focus near the end of this mail post, and it's nothing unusual that the checklists are full of very scarce and mostly redundant cards. This one certainly qualifies -- it's a pretty boring parallel from the Superlative The First Six release. I already own the base version (/20). At least the gold parallel (which differs only due to the words stamped in gold foil on the card front) has a multi-color swatch (white seam with yellow jersey).
-------------------------------------------------------
13-14 ITG Decades 1990s Rookie Jersey and Autograph Black Sergei Samsonov (/3)
This card isn't much more exciting than the last one, especially with a plain black Boston Bruins jersey swatch, but its scarcity makes it an important addition to my collection! I was patient with this one -- it had been on ebay for months, and I finally pulled the trigger when it was let go at an auction with a fair starting price.
A second copy of this card sold just a week or two later, but I didn't purchase it. I also know the location of one of the Silver (/2) versions, but I couldn't agree on a price with the owner.
-------------------------------------------------------
2014 In The Game-Used Spring Expo Team ITG Silver
-- TIR-45 Joe Thornton / Sergei Samsonov / Byron Dafoe (/9)
I do still believe that ITG has some pretty strong redemption programs for the Toronto expo, especially when creating completely unique sets that aren't available anywhere else. The Team ITG set was available only for people redeeming boxes of 2013-14 In The Game-Used. Sergei Samsonov was included on just one card in the set -- a triple jersey card with the same late-90s / early-00s lineup as the Stick Rack card a few pictures up.
Joe Thornton's swatch is plain yellow, and Sergei Samsonov's swatch is plain black. The Byron Dafoe swatch has three layers -- black, yellow, and white, with seams between each of the colors.
Each Team ITG card had nine copies printed of the silver version.
-------------------------------------------------------
2014 In The Game-Used Spring Expo Team ITG Gold
-- TIR-45 Joe Thornton / Sergei Samsonov / Byron Dafoe (1/1)
Each Team ITG card also had a Gold 1/1 produced, in typical ITG fashion. I was happy to get both versions at about the same time!
All three Boston Bruins swatches on this card are outstanding, with three colors each -- a combination of yellow, black, and white. The Thornton and Dafoe swatches have seams, while the Samsonov swatch is all one layer.
It's not one of my favorite cards in my Samsonov collection, but I do think it's an example of ITG making a pretty nice card under their usual limitations. This is Sergei Samsonov 1/1 #15 for my collection.
-----------------
News and notes:
** This will be my last mail post for a while, as I am about to depart for a lengthy vacation this week. Outside of the occasional check on ebay, I'll be taking a break from card transactions for about the next month.
** It's sure going to be fun if one of my players gets included on one of the National Treasures 24-player memorabilia cards!
That'll be it. Thanks everyone!
--Andy
http://www.thegreatzo.com/cards/
-------------------------------------------------------
