Happy Victoria Day!

 After using 2/14 baby Victoria Cartagena last year, it is back to tradition. 

No matter how forced the comparison between her and Triple H is.

Hold my Mail

 Canada Post may be on strike as of May 22. So if you're planning on sending me a package, don't.

I don't want it sitting in a sorting center like Matt here.

A Ranger Round-up

 I'm returning to my to-be-posted box for this post, and I'm showing off all the Kitchener Rangers alumni cards contained within.

ITG's Franchises releases are always fun, and there were a lot of names in the set that didn't make many appearances in releases at the time and since then. While that might not be true for Coffey, Bellows definitely isn't a common sight in sets, and this was probably Mike Hough's last card outside of buybacks.

Alternate Threads was an insert set in 2023-24 MVP to highlight teams' reverse retro jerseys. I'm torn between "They should just have used one player to better show off the jersey" and "more players mean more PC opportunities like via Gibson's presence".

Speaking of Gibson, here's a Variante Francaise of his.

Of course airbrushed jerseys count towards the collection. Taylor was a 7th round pick of the Islanders, but never reached the NHL.

Landeskog made his return to the NHL during Colorado's first-round loss to Dallas. He did so after an almost three year absence due to injury. Nothing like taking things easy after a very extended absence. He has still been getting cards during the time off, so that's nice for my collection.

Speaking of the playoffs, Jeff Skinner finally made his playoff debut this season. He made his NHL debut in 2010. For this year, he's played in one game so far - the opener. Still, I bet it was worth the wait.

There you have it!

New 2/14 Faces

No events this time, meaning this won't be nearly as dark as the last 2/14 post.

My first sumo card! He's also a contender for the biggest member of the collection, tipping the scales at 386 pounds. While pro-wrestler Mabel/Viscera was billed at being in the 500 pound range, I'm far more trusting of Masashi's listed weight as opposed to a likely gimmicked weight.

Still, even 100 worked pounds is quite the deficit.

His Calder-nominated rookie season made acquiring his Young Guns card in time for this year's 2/14 recap cost-prohibitive. However, with his being all over Series 2, and likely also being all over Extended will make for some cheaper additions as the year progresses. Either way, this e-pack entry starts his presence in the collection. 

Despite being born in 2007, Sebastian Norman is still 6 years older than the youngest person in my collection in Indie Desroches from something in the Star Wars universe. He could end up drafted this year to give him some MLB cards in Bowman. If that doesn't work out, he will be off to Oklahoma State. 

Soccer may occupy its own section in my binders and spreadsheets, yet I still know very little about it beyond the most basic rules. But here's the latest addition to that binder in Alvaro Sanz on a Starball Foil parallel. I do know he played for FC Barcelona but is now with a second tier team known as Racing de Ferrol. I'm not too optimistic about cards becoming available of him there.

But there you have it!

2025 Adventures in Repacks - Part 15 - Repacks in the TMV Mail

 Like last time, there was a baseball repack in the TMV mailer. I foolishly opened it before taking a picture of it. It had a different design than the previous one, but the contents were the same.

The single purple was a definite downgrade from the Vientos from the first one. Still, a nice little bonus.

The other 9 random cards went above expectations with the '82 appearances. I'll always remember Bruce Kison based on his encounter with George Bell. There's a reason pitchers really didn't want to throw inside on Bell after that. One of those World's Series program cards counts as even more unexpected. The art is amazing - so much better than the generic stuff on newer entries in this subset.

Here's the packs.

I'll start with the S2 pack. The top row was extremely generic, but celebratory photos make the second one a lot more interesting.

Update Pack #1. Zzzzzz.

The bunting photo combined with a City Connect jersey makes things more interesting here.

The weather element to Stott's card makes it my favourite card from the packs - even over the Blue Jays content.

And some shininess from the final pack. 

The best overall card was in the previous repack with the Vientos parallel, but I think this one was more solid throughout with the 82s, the program card, and the Stott and Wade Jr. So it all evens out in the end.

There you have it!

Raptors Miscellany

Just a basketball post today, with the Raptors content in the TMV mailer, and a pair of cards from my recent COMC shipment.

If I want a card to salute Thad Young's time with the Raptors,  this entry, from an odd set known as "Top Class", is my only option. There are stickers, but those aren't cards. I had no idea this set even existed until I was looking for Raptors content on COMC. 

These backs are strange as well. No gameplay stats beyond 'appearances'. And those aren't even broken down by season. Oddness.

As much as I was proven wrong in my belief that a card of Young as a Raptor would never happen, I'll also make that belief here with AJ Lawson. Although it would be nice for a Canadian player to get a Raptors card, it won't be happening with his status as a bench/G-league type. So, a collegiate card will suffice.

Off to the TMV mailer, which brought the foil content, and nobody currently on the team. But at least I can still cheer on Siakam with the Pacers. 

Here's the relic content. I'm probably one of a handful of people that really like those sweater cards, and that just means "More for me!".

We're far enough removed from the 2006 draft to look back at Bargnani's time in Toronto to see him as a perfectly fine NBA player, even if not worthy of #1 slot. But, there really weren't too many people that worked out for such an honour. LaMarcus Aldridge, Rajon Rondo and Kyle Lowry probably were the best in the long run, and still one of them managed to make their way here, and become a beloved teama legend.

At least they didn't draft Adam Morrison.

And speaking of Lowry, here he is to wrap this post up in plate form. This originated from 13-14 Flawless. May he never have to ever buy a meal or drink in Toronto.

There you have it! 

Greatest Minor League Card Ever?

A pre-major league card of a superstar? Bah!

It will never reach the magnificence of what some child did with some scissors, paste, some blue pieces of cardboard and a team media guide.

Judging by the list on the back, I guess this was Mr. Akins' child.

This is cardboard at its most amazing.

Another TMV Mailer: Bills Bills Bills

 Back to the bubbler!

Here's the easy pick for my favourite card among the Bills. I loved it so much, I had a copy of it in my most recent COMC shipment. Not a problem, though! I can just as easily add it to my next Night Owl mailer.

The scramble for the ball after a fumble definitely counts for an "Action Highlight" set. Since this is a 1984 release, it has to come from a 1983 game. That's definitely Rich Stadium vs The Orange Bowl, so that traces to Week 1 of the season. 

Which was a rather pedestrian-sounding 12-0 Dolphins win. I guess that was probably the most action-packed play of that game.

Here's the rest of the unnumbered non-hits in here. It's primarily shiny and/or recent stuff, so it was nice to see that random Henry Jones in there.

I guess this is technically a Texans card, but my hits/number binder won't care.

Here's a whole pile of swatches. It is nice to be welcoming Tre'Davious White back to the team after a short diversion elsewhere. I just hope he can avoid any heartbreaking injuries this time around. Hopefully, the Large on the Travis Henry refers to the size of the patch, and not the number of children he has. It and the Scott Chandler card are the only ones listed as game-worn swatches. Of course, swatches from an ultra-high-end set like National Treasures should be game-worn.

Finally, the one auto for this portion of the post. Sure, Stevenson only appeared in a handful of games with the Bills, but why wouldn't any of his cards count for the collection? It's a nice low-numbered parallel /25 too, the Mirror Red parallel to be precise.

There's still baseball and Raptors stuff to go. Until then, there you have it!

2025 Adventures in Repacks - Part 14 - Back to Hockey

 The ol' reliable from Dollarama, a pair of repacks.

Top loaders for a future mailer, and a new themed repack are in the opener.

It is disappointing for my hockey knowledge to realize that Alexander Korolyuk has almost 300 games over 6 seasons worth of NHL experience, all with the Sharks, and I have absolutely zero memories of him. Staying with the Sharks, Bonino actually has a great example of how to make a generic skating photo interesting and intense.

No super-dull 2021 UD entries in the 2020 pack is enough to make me give a thumbs up. And there's a nice casual photo too for Cernak's card. Alternate jersey too!

The Captains/Assistants pack provided no Captains. Still, the contents were entirely assistants/alternates. So there were no lies involved. 

Fine repack with the Cernak and Bonino being highlights.

Here's what's in #2. Will there be a card worthy of the snap holder? Likely not, but I'm sure I'll find something to go inside it.

The rookie card was a definite surprise, with it being that Triple Diamond of Eric Gelinas. While he didn't have too lengthy of a career in the NHL, but I still appreciate a fairly SPd rookie card appearing in the product. Despite the Rookie label on the Amonte, that's a second year card. Artemi's got a nice photo for his.

Defunct team alert! Not just the Whalers, but also the short-lived OHL Detroit Compuware Ambassadors. The OHL's early journey into American teams lasted two seasons. 

Just some flagship stuff in the 2020s pack, but at least there's one big name with Malkin.

With Gelinas, a Whalers card and Malkin, the winner this time around was the second one.

There you have it!

Getting Dark

 I guess if I'm going to include 'events' as part of the 2/14 collection, sometimes, they're going to get dark.

So yes, a card (from something called the Panarizon Story of America set) featuring dead bodies counts for the collection. I mean, it is named after Valentine's Day after all. And it is classier and was less expensive than another card saluting it available at COMC. I just can't see myself adding a card with the word 'WHACKED' splashed across it.

Even I have standards, low as they are.

Here's the rather verbose back of the card.

I really don't want to add "died on that date" cards to the collection. Johnny Longden, a jockey, is the exception, since he died on his birthdate. And if someone gets a card saluting their death, that counts as well. James Cook got himself a card commemorating his Feb 14 1779 death, so that counts as well. Unless I get an upgrade, I'll leave this James Cook's content in the collection with this 1950 one.

Cards featuring James Cook of the Bills are still very welcome, though.

The back isn't much better, but you can make out the death date on it. 

But there you have it!