1990-91 Topps Hockey

I can't believe nothing's been posted here so far in 2012. Since I was picking up some supplies at the hobby shop yesterday I decided to grab a pack of 1990-91 Topps hockey to rip. As the final couple of weeks of the NHL season unravel it seemed like the perfect time for a pack of hockey cards. For 50 cents I got 14 base cards and a glossy Team Scoring Leaders insert. I've already got a factory set of this stuff kicking around somewhere, but I still need some of the glossy inserts so maybe I'll get lucky there. Here's what I got:

#360 - Kevin Stevens

I think this is a rookie card. Kevin looked like he was poised for stardom early on in his career, but in retrospect his early numbers were somewhat inflated due to playing on a line with Mario Lemieux. Stevens was a member of both Pittsburgh Cup-winning teams in the early '90s, and went on to play for Boston, Los Angeles, New York and Philadelphia before returning to the Pens to finish his career.

I think the design on the fronts is half-way decent, but the backs are lacking as far as I'm concerned.

#157 - Tony Tanti

Unfortunately for Tony, he was traded during the '90-91 season to the Buffalo Sabres so he was not on Pittsburgh's roster when they captured the Cup in 1991.

#24 - Brent Ashton

Brent played for the Vancouver Canucks, Colorado Rockies, New Jersey Devils, Minnesota North Stars, Quebec Nordiques, Detroit Red Wings, Winnipeg Jets, Boston Bruins, and the Calgary Flames in his NHL career. How's that for a resume?

#336 - Ray Ferraro

I was hoping to pull at least one Hartford Whaler. Not long after these cards came out Ferraro was dealt to the Islanders, where he would go on to have some pretty memorable playoff games. These days Ferraro works as a broadcaster for TSN...

#68 - Michal Pivonka

Pivonka defected to the United States from Eastern Europe to begin his NHL career, and was a lifelong Washington Capital. If Wikipedia can be trusted he's still the Capitals' career assist leader.

#32 - Allan Bester

#267 - Daniel Marois

Team Scoring Leaders #17 - Mario Lemieux

Great, this is one of the glossy Team Scoring Leaders inserts that I needed. Guess this pack was worth the price of admission after all. Without looking, can you guess who was second in team scoring for Pittsburgh in '89-90 behind Super Mario?

If you guessed defenseman Paul Coffey give yourself a pat on the back.

#376 - Dean Evason

Two Whalers, this pack was officially a win. Evason is now a coach in the Capitals organization.

#363 - Chicago Blackhawks Team Card

I always liked the horizontal team cards in this set. One of the last helmet-less players, Doug Wilson, is lurking in the background of this photo.

#190 - Randy Burridge

#193 - Mark Messier All-Star

Aside from the Lemieux insert, this is easily the best card in the pack. 25 years in the NHL and 6 Stanley Cup championships. The All-Star cards were a separate subset, so each player from the All-Star team has both a standard base card as well as an All-Star card.

#215 - Benoit Hogue

Most notable for being involved in the Pierre Turgeon/Pat LaFontaine swap between the Sabres and Islanders.

#251 - Edmonton Oilers Team Card

Headless Ray Bourque makes an appearance on this card.

#140 - Sean Burke

We finish the pack with Sean Burke, who would go on to be a longtime netminder for the Hartford Whalers.

For 50 cents I wasn't expecting much, but I have to say I was pleasantly surprised with this pack. A couple of Whalers and a Lemieux insert that I needed made it worthwhile. I opened so much of this stuff as a kid that it was fun to take a trip down memory lane as well.