Craig Billington

Craig Billington

Retired player.

Signed insert card.

Purchased from a card shop on September 30, 2011.

Craig Billington played in the NHL for quite a while. He broke into the league with New Jersey during the 1985-86 season, and finally retired after the 2002-03 season. Of course, he spent most of the mid-to-late 1980s in the minors, but by 1991 was pretty much an NHL regular.

This Be A Player card from 1995-96 shows Billington from his relatively short (less than 2 season) stint with the Boston Bruins.

Curt Fraser

2011-12 TTM Stats
Letters sent: 32
Successes: 3
Percentage: 9%

Curt Fraser

Retired player. Currently the Head Coach of the Grand Rapid Griffins (AHL).

Fan letter sent: October 12, 2011.

Autographs received: October 28, 2011.

The 2011-12 season has been good for TTMs. Right now, I have 3 successes in 4 days.

Curt Fraser played in the NHL with the Vancouver Canucks, Chicago Blackhawks and Minnesota North Stars. He made the jump from junior hockey to the NHL without playing in the minor leagues, and his career spanned from 1978 to 1990.

Fraser is now the coach of the Grand Rapids Griffins, the AHL affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings. He kindly signed all 5 cards in black Sharpie marker.

James van Riemsdyk

James van Riemsdyk

2011-12 TTM Stats
Letters sent: 32
Successes: 2
Percentage: 6%

Currently with the Philadelphia Flyers.

Fan letter sent: October 12, 2011.

Autograph received: October 27, 2011.

Nice! Two successes within the past 3 days--one from an AHL coach (Todd Nelson), and this one from current NHLer James van Riemsdyk. Just over 2 weeks is a great return for an active player.

Van Riemsdyk's signature--in blue Sharpie marker--is pretty much just a J and his uniform number 21. Maybe not the most exciting autograph (do current players sign their contracts like that?), but still great to have a signature from this up-and-coming player.

Todd Nelson

Todd Nelson

2011-12 TTM Stats
Letters sent: 32
Successes: 1
Percentage: 3%

Retired player. Currently the Head Coach of the Oklahoma City Barons (AHL).

Fan letter sent: October 14, 2011.

Autograph received: October 25, 2011.

Since the start of the 2011-12 season, I've sent out 32 letters. This return, from Oklahoma City Barons head coach Todd Nelson, is my first success from the season. He signed my card in black Sharpie marker. 

Nelson shares this card with Wendell Young. Both were assistant coaches with the Chicago Wolves when this card was made. I am going to send it to Young next to (hopefully) get it signed by him too.

This is my second successful return from Nelson. Three years back, he signed two cards for me.

Jordin Tootoo

Jordin Tootoo

Currently with the Nashville Predators.

Fan letter sent: September 27, 2010

Autographs received: October 20, 2011.

Jordin Tootoo kindly signed all four cards sent in blue Sharpie marker, adding his number 22 under his name. On the Upper Deck card, he accidentally smeared the 22 with his thumb--you can see the print if you look closely. This success took just under 13 months. 

Alexander Selivanov

Alexander Selivanov

Retired player.

Signed insert card.

Purchased from a card shop on September 30, 2011.

Alexander Selivanov's played pro hockey for a long time. In addition to 459 games in the NHL, he also played in the IHL, in Russia and in Germany. He also played for the minor-league Chicago Wolves during their inaugural season.

Dan Cloutier

Dan Cloutier

Retired player.

Signed insert card.

Purchased from a card shop on September 30, 2011.

Dan Cloutier played in 351 NHL games from 1997-98 to 2007-08. He was drafted in the first round of the 1994 NHL Entry Draft by the New York Rangers.

This card pictures Cloutier during his junior hockey days with the Sault Ste. Marie ("Soo") Grayhounds of the Ontario Hockey League. It is from the "Classic 4-Sport" set, which featured prospects from the four major sports.

Brian Leetch

Brian Leetch

Retired player. Elected to the Hall of Fame in 2009.

Signed insert card.

Purchased from a card shop on September 30, 2011.

Now this is what I'm talking about! Recently, I scored a bunch of autographed inserts from a local card shop. Many of them were of less-than notable players, but there were a few gems in the mix, such as Alexander Mogilny and Brian Leetch.

This card was inserted in the 1998-99 Topps set at a rate of 1 in every 209 packs. Not impossible odds, but much harder than many of the sets nowadays where you get 1 to 4 autographs per box. So, you could say it isn't a card you see every day. The signature is on-card and in blue Sharpie marker. Best of all, it is of Brian Leetch--one of the greatest Americans to play the game.

Needless to say, I'm pretty happy to have this in my collection.

Johnathan Aitken

Johnathan Aitken

Retired player.

Signed insert card.

Purchased from a card shop on September 30, 2011.

By 1996, my hockey card collecting had slowed down. As I started to save (or at least try to save) for art school, I had to cut back on some of my hobbies. Thus, buying cards by Classic--who focused on prospects and draft picks--was not a priority for me, even though I enjoyed their sets from previous years.

Fast forward to 2011. I found this card for a buck. I have never seen this design before, or heard of the set "Classic Visions". Heck, I don't even remember Jonathan Aitken as a player. It turns out that he was the Boston Bruins first round draft choice in 1996. He played 3 games for the Bruins during the 1999-2000 season, and later played another 41 games for the Chicago Blackhawks in 2003-04.

And now you know.

Kaspars Daugavins

Kaspars Daugavins

Currently with the Binghamton Senators (AHL).

Signed insert card.

Pulled from a pack of 2010-11 SP Authentic in September 2011.

It is cards like this that make me dislike so-called "high end" products. You spend $100, and one of your hits ends up being an autograph of a guy who played one--ONE!!!--game in the NHL.

That is not to say that Kaspars Daugavins won't have a promising career. Last season, he netted 54 points in 72 AHL games with the B-Sens, and currently has 6 points in his first 5 games this season.

Anyway, I got this card in a pack of 2010-11 SP Authentic. It is signed on-card and in blue Sharpie marker.

Eric Strobel

Eric Strobel

Retired player. Member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team.

Signed insert card.

Purchased from a card shop on September 30, 2011.

Eric Strobel was a member of the "Miracle on Ice" team that won the Olympic gold medal in 1980. This card is a signed insert from a pack, numbered 1,109 out of 2,000 and autographed in blue Sharpie marker.

Dave Christian

Dave Christian

Retired player. Member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic Hockey Team.

Signed insert card.

Purchased from a card shop on September 30, 2011.

Not only was Dave Christian a member of the 1980 U.S. Olympic Team, but he also had a distinguished, 14-year career in the NHL.

This card is from the 1994-95 Miracle on Ice Set put out by a company called Signature Rookies. It is numbered 1,077 out of 2,000 and signed in blue Sharpie marker. One day, I would like to have a complete set of these "Miracle on Ice" signed cards.

Alexander Mogilny

Alexander Mogilny

Retired player.

Signed insert card.

Purchased from a card shop on September 30, 2011.

Late last month, I scored a bunch of signed inserts from my local card shop. So far, you've seen the Mike Richter and Patrik Stefan signed cards I got. And here is a 1995-96 Be A Player signed insert card of Alexander Mogilny.

I never did get Mogilny's autograph, so it is nice to finally own a card signed by him. I do wish he was in his Sabres uniform, though. It boggles my mind that the Buffalo Sabres would have traded this guy during the peak of his career.

Claude Giroux

Claude Giroux

Currently with the Philadelphia Flyers.

Fan letter sent: February 14, 2011.

Autographs received: October 15, 2011.

This is one of those rare but pleasant instances where the player included more cards than what I sent. I mailed the AHL Top Prospects card (left) to Claude Giroux. He signed that and also enclosed an autographed SP Authentic card. Both are autographed in blue Sharpie marker. The SP Authentic card looks particularly stunning.

Chad Kolarik

Chad Kolarik

Currently with the New York Rangers.

Signed insert card.

Pulled from a pack of 2010-11 SP Authentic in September 2011.

I can't seem to figure out where Chad Kolarik is playing right now.  Supposedly, he is with the New York Rangers but he is not listed on their online roster. When I wrote to him last season, he was playing for the Connecticut Whale, but he's not listed on their roster either.

Anyway, I got this card from a pack of 2010-11 SP Authentic Hockey. It is signed on-card in blue Sharpie marker.

Patrik Stefan

Patrik Stefan

Retired player.

Signed insert card.

Purchased from a card shop on September 30, 2011.

My local card shop dealer had no idea who Patrik Stefan was. I told him that I'd take the card off of his hands if he paid me. We settled on me paying a dollar for this card, which is hard-signed in blue Sharpie marker. 

As you may or may not recall, Patrik Stefan was the first overall draft pick in the 1999 draft, but his career did not pan out as well as the Atlanta Thrashers had hoped.

No blog post about Patrik Stefan would be complete without this infamous video:


On second thought, I might have paid too much for this card.

Mike Richter

Mike Richter

Retired player.

Signed insert card.

Purchased from a card shop on September 30, 2011.

Since 2006, I've slowly been piecing together a set of 1998-99 Be A Player autographs. Most of the cards can be found for $1 or $2, while every other card--except Wayne Gretzky--is at an attainable price.

The shiny foil board background makes it hard to see, but the card is signed in black marker. I now have 141 out of 300 signed cards in this set.

Travis Hamonic

Travis Hamonic

Currently with the New York Islanders.

Signed insert card.

Pulled from a 2010-11 Score Rookie & Traded Boxed Set in August 2011.

Travis Hamonic was the second pick by the Islanders in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft. Last season, he played 62 games for the Isles, so he should stick with the big club this year.

This card was an insert in the 2010-11 Score Rookie & Traded boxed set. You got one signed card in each set. It is signed in blue Sharpie marker on a somewhat reflective sticker.

Kari Lehtonen

Kari Lehtonen

Currently with the Dallas Stars.

Fan letter sent: October 14, 2008.

Autographs received: September 17, 2011.

Here is a blog post that has been almost 3 years in the making--literally. I wrote to Kari Lehtonen way back in October 2008. After 3 seasons, Lehtonen--who is now with Dallas--sent back all 4 of my cards, signed in black Sharpie marker.

Honestly, I had given up on this request.

By the way, this is not the longest I've waited for autographed cards. My longest-ever return will be the subject of a future blog post.