Fast Eddie...

Ed Belfour
1995-96 Pinnacle #153

A half-decent look at Ed Belfour's iconic eagle for Freaky Mask Friday.

Organizing my duplicates, and was once again thrilled to discover an extra copy of this card. (Might even put it in a toploader and stick it to my wall)

We saw the bird appear with all kinds of color schemes, from gold & green in Dallas, to blue in San Jose...

Ed Belfour
1993-94 Leaf #62

But it's the red one from his early days with the Hawks that instantly comes to mind when thinking of Eddie The Eagle.

Ass Over Teakettle...

Martin Brodeur
1996-97 Leaf #6

Possibly the most unflattering Martin Brodeur photo I've seen - And it's on his own card!

Le Chiffre...

Daren Puppa
1996-97 Leaf #73

Another card featuring a Tampa Bay VS Montreal matchup...
Can also appreciate the black and silver Lightning jerseys.

This was also during the time of Tampa Bay's experimental font (1996-1999) for the numbers and player names (all of which were basically illegible).

Daren Puppa
1996-97 Leaf #73
(card back)

Tampa Bay's current netminder Andrei Vasilevskiy wears number 88.

One of their first goalies was Darren Puppa wearing number 93, which was a fairly unusual digit at the time.

Even more surprising, back of the card shows a teammate wearing number 95 (Michel Petit).
Had just assumed that 93 would have been the highest number on the team.









On a sidenote, I wonder if we'll ever see another goaltender win a championship while wearing a traditional goalie number (1, 29, 30, 31...).

Florida VS Tampa Bay

Joe Cirella
1993-94 Leaf #269

2021 marks the first time that the two Florida-based expansion teams will face each other in the postseason.

The Florida Panthers went to the Finals in just their third year in existence...

They haven't had much luck in the playoff department since that magical year (1995-96), having missed the playoffs 10 times in 17 years. Yikes.

Petr Klima
1993-94 Upper Deck #526

The Tampa Bay Lightning went all the way during their tenth season (2003-04), and again in 2019-20.

Decided to dig up some cards depicting some early 1990s meetings between these two franchises.

Still missing the majority of that pesky Series 2 (93-94 UD). Just happened to have this one in my collection.

John Vanbiesbrouk Cameos...

Brian Bellows
1993-94 Leaf #76

A couple cards showing a New York Rangers goaltender that I simply couldn't place...

Overall, a good looking card that just happens to be an Original Six matchup.

Appears to be a NYR mask briefly worn by John Vanbiesbrouk.

This one features the "cat's eye" cage. Vanbiesbrouk is better known for the square cage, but did wear the cat eye cage with a regular helmet earlier in his career.

John Vanbiesbrouk
1991-92 Upper Deck #324

Just a look at John Vanbiesbrouk's helmet / cage combo.

Always liked this card. Looks as if he's bracing for impact, or clearing his crease...

Either way, it's Claude Lemieux - In that case, hit him again!

Alexei Kovalev
1993-94 Topps/OPC Premier #187

In the background and slightly out of focus, we can see the typical square cage associated with John Vanbiesbrouk.

Three Rangers in this snapshot, looking as if they're preparing for a defensive zone faceoff. (Guessing the other guy is Adam Graves?)

Was surprised that no major card sets feature Vanbiesbrouk actually wearing this mask on his own card.

John Vanbiesbrouk
1993-94 Topps/OPC Premier #314

In addition to the 1993-94 Premier cameo, Vanbiesbrouk also appears in Series 2 as a member of the Florida Panthers.

Hawks & Whalers Trade of '93 (Weinrich, Larmer)

Eric Weinrich
1993-94 Leaf #271

Researching the trades between the Chicago Blackhawks and Hartford Whalers in 1994 caused me to take a look at a Hawks-Whalers trade from the previous season (1992-1993).

Steve Larmer
1993-94 Topps/OPC Premier #240

One of my favorite cards from this set.
An incredible snapshot with six bodies in front of the Tampa Bay net on Steve Larmer's card... As a bonus, the Stanley Cup Centennial logo is on the boards, just above the focal point.

From nhltradetracker.com:

Eric Weinrich
1995-96 Upper Deck #45

Partial trade history for Eric Weinrich, with a good handful of familiar '90s characters involved in the deals.

Explains how the Whalers got goaltender Sean Burke, and how they obtained Steve Larmer and Bryan Marchment.

Steve Larmer
1994-95 Flair #113

This deal also has a case of a player who got traded, without playing a single game for the Whalers before being traded again.

Steve Larmer was immediately dealt to the New York Rangers, where coach Mike Keenan was collecting pieces of the eventual 1994 champion Rangers. (Steve Larmer had been a member of the Chicago Blackhawks coached by Mike Keenan)

Ron Superior...

Ron Francis
1996-97 Leaf #11

One of my newest Ron Francis cards, and possibly my favorite...

Already had a couple good ones in my collection, but none can compare to the action captured on this card.

Looks like Francis is still tracking the puck, as Washington's Dale Hunter falls to his knees in an effort to grab and slow the future Hall of Famer.

Bonus point for wearing the captain's "C" during Mario's absence.

Another random diagonal "KOHO" stick visible in the foreground, in the hand of (presumably) a fourth Washington Capital defender.


The Pens and Caps were Patrick Division rivals from 1981-82 thru 1992-93. They were "re-united" from 2013-14 to 2019-20 in the Metropolitan Division.

As of 2020-21, both teams play in the newly formed East Division.

First Rounders (1995-96 Leaf Limited)

Chad Kilger RC
1995-96 Leaf Limited #34

The Mighty Ducks had some high expectations for Chad Kilger, being a first round draft pick from 1995 (4th overall).

Chad Kilger RC
1995-96 Leaf Limited #34
(card back)

Anaheim ended up trading Chad Kilger to Winnipeg in a deal that involved another first round draft pick - Teemu Selanne (selected 10th overall in 1988).

Oleg Tverdovsky
1995-96 Leaf Limited #46

Here's Oleg Tverdovsky, yet another first round draft pick, (2nd overall in 1994).

Just so happens that Chad Kilger and Oleg Tverdovsky each played 714 and 713 career games, respectively.

Leaf Limited (by Donruss)

Oleg Tverdovsky
1994-95 Leaf Limited #24

Recently acquired some cards from Leaf Limited.
Seems there were 3 releases of this premium trading card brand by Donruss:

Leaf Limited
1994-95: 120 cards
1995-96: 120 cards
1996-97: 90 cards

Oleg Tverdovsky
1994-95 Leaf Limited #24
(card back)

Oleg Tverdovsky, drafted 1st round (2nd overall), 1994 NHL Entry Draft.

"The Russian Skyrocket". Maybe that nickname never really took off... Either way, the comment on the back of the card likens this offensive defenceman to Bobby Orr and Pavel Bure...

Valeri Karpov RC
1994-95 Leaf Limited #51

Really enjoy the overall card design of this set, printed on slightly thicker cardstock. Some of the appeal is lost when scanned, but still a very clean, classy set.

The placement of the card number is the only thing that loses points, although the legibility of the player name could also be improved.

Another Obscure LA Kings Goaltender...

Jamie Storr
1997-98 Leaf #138

Just happened to pull a lone 1997-98 Leaf card out of a random re-pack....

Only have a handful from this set, glad to find a good shot of a goaltender.

Jamie Storr
1995-96 Collector's Choice #213
[Player's Club Parallel]

Picked up this one last year, with a "complete set" of 1995-96 Collector's Choice...

(Technically got all 396 numbered cards - Although a few dozen are technically from the "Player's Club" parallel set.)

Jamie Storr spent almost a decade with the LA Kings, before playing 14 games with the Hurricanes during the 2003-04 season.

WTF Hockey Card: Eric Fichaud (1996-97 Skybox Impact #150)

This is a decent looking card, but it was Eric Fichaud's mask on the card back that caught my attention. I just assumed that it was an alternate mask, and that the dolphin was somehow part of the NY Islanders Captain Highliner / Fish Sticks motif...

Eric Fichaud
(1996-97 Skybox Impact #150)

But then I noticed an older card of him wearing the same dolphin mask with Toronto...

Eric Fichaud
(94-95 Leaf #443)

As a 1st round draft pick in 1994 (16th overall), I was surprised to discover that Fichaud has no statistics with the Toronto Maple Leafs... The snapshot on the Leaf card must have been taken during an exhibition game. (He was soon traded to the New York Islanders for Benoit Hogue and a couple of draft picks.)

Impressive stat from the Leaf card:
"Eric played in more playoff games last year (26) than any other goaltender in professional, junior or college hockey"

Although the mask actually fit the Toronto Maple Leafs' color scheme quite nicely, it turns out the dolphin design is actually one he wore with the Chicoutimi Sagueneens of the QMJHL.

Eric Fichaud
Chicoutimi Sagueneens

Felix Potvin also played for the Chicoutimi Saqueneens in the QMJHL, and coincidentally was also drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs (2nd round of the 1990 draft, 31st overall). Potvin was eventually traded to the New York Islanders in 1999 for Bryan Berard.

Felix Potvin
(Upper Deck 91-92 #460)