A golden oldie from this year's O-Pee-Chee!

People have been raving about this year's O-Pee-Chee, and I don't blame them. A nice low price point, tons of RCs and a shot at pulling out a quad jersey or something even cooler.

Customer Stewie's definitely raving after nailing this beauty out of a box purchased from The IceBox on Christmas Eve:



That's right -- a 74-year-old card! When the redemption comes in, we'll put up a scan for you! Congrats to Stewie!

A customer goes Bolland in UD Ultimate!

Okay, it was a lousy pun, but Adam's not laughing. He's now pulled these two beauts from packs of 2006-07 Upper Deck Ultimate:



We're still carrying Ultimate at $369.99 per box or $94.99 per pack. Stop by and try your luck!

Crosby Ice RC /99 BGS 9.5 on eBay!

Just for fun, you might to keep your eyes on this beauty. I think it could hit $4K easily, and I wouldn't be surprised to see someone hit the BIN.

We had two of these bad boys last year -- man, do I miss them!

Thanks for the head's up, Big Bob!

Gretzkymania runnin' wild!

Chris stopped by this afternoon and busting a pack of our newly cheaper 2006-07 UD Ultimate at just $99.99 a pack, and pulled a Wayne Gretzky autographed jersey out of 50!

Not to be outdone, Adam dropped in just a few minutes later, bought a box of Ultimate (for just $369.99!) and pulled a Gretzky Ultimate Signatures autographed card!

That's right -- two Gretzky autos in five minutes! Top that!

Here are their smiling mugs, and the sweeeeeet cards!

Props to the Canadian dollar!

Thanks to the strength of the Canadian dollar, prices are falling on many products! Check these changes out:

* 2005-06 UD Series II Hobby -- was $4.49 per pack or $84.99 per box; now $3.99 per pack or $74.99 per box!
* 2006-07 UD Ultimate -- was $119.99 per pack or $429.99 per box; now $99.99 per pack or $369.99 per box!
* 2006-07 Fleer Hot Prospects -- was $9.49 per pack or $129.99 per box; now $6.99 per pack or $99.99 per box!

There are more great deals to be had! Call us for great case pricing with no-hassle CANPAR shipping inside Canada -- and no customs fees either!

Hello, Quad!

No scan on this one, but Dave opened the rest of a box of 2006-07 BAP and pulled the quad auto of Peter Forsberg, Nicklas Lidstrom, Daniel Alfredsson and Markus Naslund! Numbered 1/10, this one is a beaut!

Nice pull, Dave!

One nifty Ultimate pull!

Chris, one of our very best customers and a big help in the store, came in last night and pick up a couple of packs of 2006-07 UD Ultimate.

He did okay on the first break, pulling a Malkin Ultimate Signatures auto, but the second box had something a little juicier in it:



This card is listed on eBay and will close on Sunday, Sept. 16.

Nice pull, Chris!

A big hit in The Cup!

Mike came in last week and bought a box of 2006-07 Fleer Hot Prospects. It bore a serial number ending in "66".

Just to get people a little geeked up, I make a habit of looking at the last two numbers of the serial numbers on the boxes, and then mentioning a corresponding player. "Hey, it can't be Lemieux," I said, "but it could be Staal or Malkin, right?"

Well, Mike came in tonight and reported he had indeed pulled out a Jordan Staal patch auto.



Our attention turned to the two tins of The Cup sitting on the shelf.

A "98" ... and a "99".

That was it -- Mike was sold, and he opened his tin in the back of the store right before close. He did get a Gretzky base card, but both of us were just a little happier with his pull in the middle of his pack.



Look more closely -- Mike's son Liam has good reason to look a little shocked.

Here, I'll help with the optics:





That's right -- the dual NHL Shield 1/1 card of Toronto Maple Leafs Darcy Tucker and Michael Peca! AMAZING!!

Congrats to Mike and Liam, and we'll let you know right here if he decides to sell it!

Photos from the Vezina Show!

Thanks to everyone who came by Shoppers World in Brampton for the Vezina Winners Show in Brampton! I know I'm a little late in getting these photos up, but hope you enjoy!



Tony Esposito is not only a friendly guy, but one of the snappiest dressers in the sports world!



Johnny Bower is always a big hit with the fans. He also said he approved the art work for his new McFarlane figurine due out in December, just in time for Christmas -- and The IceBox will have plenty of them!



Ed Giacomin chats with a big fan -- see more below! Giacomin was extremely personable and looks like he could hop back in goal right now (we hear Phoenix could be interested!)



This young lady had a Rangers jersey with "FAN" and "1" on the back, and said she had worn it several times to Madison Square Garden. Ed was so impressed he invited her around the table and we had to shoot pictures! If our Rangers fan will contact me through the web site or this blog, we'll get you copies of this photo!



Denis DeJordy was a big hit with fans. Here he signs a beautiful 16x20 piece for one of our best customers.



Not only did Charlie Hodge draw well, but he also was a real trooper at the end of his signing time! We had several people show up right at 1 p.m., but Charlie stuck it out and signed for everyone -- even a couple people who had to catch him having lunch!



Finally, Bernie Parent is always a favourite of ours and the fans too! Bernie signed, told stories and generally kept us all entertained through the afternoon. I understand he even made it out of the parking lot safely, even with Glenn giving the directions!

Thanks again to everyone who came out, and watch the web site for more big signings coming up in the near future! We also have plenty of signed photos and pucks left for sale, along with our gorgeous 11x14 Vezina Winners prints signed by all six goalies and limited to 100!

Crosby Future Watch RC hit!

Paul just came back in to pick up a few things and reported he nailed a Sidney Crosby Future Watch autographed rookie out of his box of 2006-07 SP Authentic he purchased a couple weeks ago! We just keep hitting the Penguins stuff!

We'll have a photo of his pull up soon -- no trading, though, it's going out for grading!

Oh, the wrong box (but the right one for a customer!)

I was feeling lucky Saturday, so I cracked a box of 2006-07 Upper Deck Series I. I didn't get anything too exciting, but it's hard to complain with the quality of rookies available in the set.

Our part-timer, Colin, however, called on Sunday to tell me that another lucky customer bought the other Series I box and pulled the Crosby checklist High Glossy! Congrats to our mystery customer!

In other news, we had three big strikes in a row out of 2006-07 Fleer Hot Prospects:

Box 1) Jordan Staal two-colour patch auto RC out of 199!
Box 2) Hotagraph pack with a Sidney Crosby auto!
Box 3) Phil Kessel redemption patch auto RC out of 199!

With a guaranteed auto patch RC in every boxes, plus 2-3 jerseys and the chance of a five-auto pack, these boxes are becoming more popular by the day! Swing by and grab one -- or a case!

Oh, my achin' jaw!

After an extended bout with a jaw infection and a burned-up fuel pump (hey, Saab's are great -- until you get the repair bill!), we're back and writing again. Thanks to Dr. Steven Mocrae in the Kozlov Centre for the diagnosis and the quick prescription.

Reviews seem to be pretty mixed about this year's Upper Deck Ultimate. I've only seen a couple packs broken here, and it's nice stuff -- but as always with the higher-dollar product, your results will vary wildly from pack to pack.

I haven't cracked a box yet -- and I'm not sure if I will -- but it keeps calling to me from the shelf right over my left shoulder where I type this. I may give in b the end of the weekend.

In other news, we have placed our preorder for The Cup, and we'll be getting only one case to start. If you want to get your tin(s) (limit two per customer) in advance, let me know via email or through the web site. Tins will be $449.99 each plus tax. I think that's pretty reasonable, but we won't hold them -- you can only buy them in advance.

We also just had a nice run of consignment stuff sell, from a large whack of Blue Jays game jerseys courtesy of Ed Belfour to a bunch of nice high-end cards. Up next through our eBay store (eBay ID: hit_the_icebox) is a nice group of 1952-53 Parkhurst single with both set fillers and a couple beauts, some gameworn Blackhawks jerseys and a few other choice goodies!

On preorder this week: 2007 Benchwarmer Gold Edition at $114.99 + tax per box; 2007 UD Premier Football at $299.99 + tax per box; 2007 Razor Poker (6 autos per box!) at $119.99 + tax per box. Call or email with questions!

A little help!

A customer brought it this patch today. It's about eight inches across and could be linked to the Beehive family of memorabilia?

Do you know what it is? Email us!

Update: Ken from the Bee Hive Hockey Photo Museum has written and informed us this is actually a 1957-58 Star Weekly crest with a value of around $200 in mint condition. Check out his web site, which has just about everything you'd want to know about Bee Hive memorabilia available!

Thanks, Ken!

Puppies and coincidences ...

It's Saturday morning, and as usual, I start the day off by making up some of our world-famous $5 grab bags. If you're not familiar with them, I put in 10-12 cards of each of four different issues, then add star, rookie or vintage cards in between. Each bag also contains a 5x7 card and either a jersey, autographed or numbered card. They're a great buy.

So the phone rings and it's Mitch and his mother asking about a Mark Visheau card. I do a search on hockeydb.com and find that he has only one NHL issue in the 1998-99 Pacific Omega, and because that set isn't very popular, it would difficult to find a single of him.

I tell Mitch's mom they'd probably be best served to do an eBay search for Visheau. While we're talking, I do an eBay search for Visheau and turn up a copy of his RC, which he shares with Josh Green. I glance at the photo -- and it's the set of cards I had just been sorting into grab bags!

I ask her to hold on a moment, go to the sorting tables and sift through a few bags I had already partially put together -- and there it is, the 1998-99 Pacific Omega #116 Mark Visheau RC!

The odds of me having this card readily available are pretty slim normally, but to have had it in my hands just seconds before the customer called? Suffice it to say, I'll be buying a Lotto 6/49 ticket this afternoon.

It turns out Visheau is going to be purchasing a dog from Mitch and wanted a card for him to sign. The family has fifteen purebred Golden Retriever puppies right now, so if you're interested, you can reach them at (705)322-4438.

Adam strikes in SP Authentic again!

Okay, I have to tell the full story now.

A few days ago, Adam came back in with his prize pull from a box of Upper Deck SP Authentic. It was the dual Sign Of The Times Evgeni Malkin/Mario Lemieux -- and it came out of a box that's serial number ended in "71"!

When he came in, I was out of SP Auth boxes, so he bought the remaining 12 packs I had in the box on the shelf. Before he left, though, Stew came in with an order from our supplier, Grosnor, and in the order were more boxes of SP Authentic. Adam asked if he could swap the 12 packs back toward a full box, which I of course did.

When Adam left, Stew bought the 12 packs Adam had put back -- and pulled the triple Malkin/Lemieux/Fleury redemption. I felt terrible for Adam, as he could have had both the double and the triple Penguins!

Today, Adam came back in -- and I don't feel bad for him after all.



Those are the three big cards he pulled from the box he bought Tuesday -- an Anze Kopitar autographed Future Watch RC, a triple SOTT Staal/Heatley/Nash, and the redemption for this year's SOTT Sidney Crosby!

Adam picked up another box while he was in. I'm almost scared to see what he comes back with this time!

It's a plethora of Penguins!

No, the plethora didn't involve those guys, but on back-to-back days two different customers pulled big Pittsburgh cards!

Adam yanked the short print Sign Of The Times dual autographed card of Mario Lemieux and Evgeni Malkin. The next day, Stewie pulled the SOTT triple autographed card of Lemieux, Malkin and Marc-Andre Fleury! Awesome!

This year's Upper Deck SP Authentic, in case you didn't know, is smoking hot! In addition to the normal autographed rookies, duals, triples and more, many autographs that ended up not being released last year (long story -- ask me about it) are seeded in this year's boxes. That means 3-4 autos per box, plus rookies and short prints!

It's drying up already, so if you're interested, come in and grab some now!

Welcome to our newest feature!

If you're a customer of The IceBox, you know we love to share information and talk about card collecting, gameworn jerseys, autographs and everything else to do with hockey and sports.

Unfortunately, trying to make changes to a web site and add all this good stuff is tough, because it keeps moving information about upcoming signings and new products down the page at our store web site, Hit The IceBox. So now there's this blog to allow me to add little tidbits about box breaks, new products, big pulls and whatever else strikes me.

Feel free to leave your comments (no profanity, please!) and hopefully we'll have a new way of communicating!

Thanks!