Signature Sundays - An All-Time Great Defenseman

For this week's Signature Sundays post I've got a recent hockey addition that I'm really excited about.  If you check in here from time to time you may have already seen me mention and show off a couple of '92-93 Fleer Ultra hockey buybacks.

These were inserted randomly into 2016-17 Fleer Showcase.  I'm not entirely sure what the odds of pulling one are, but they're definitely tough at just 25 copies each.  So far I've shown a Slava Kozlov rookie...

...and a pair of Whalers in Adam Burt...

...and the "Little Ball of Hate", Pat Verbeek.

Some of the more prominent athletes actually signed their 25 buybacks for Upper Deck, which I find intriguing.  Many of the names on the autograph checklist are HOFers, or will be someday.  I wasn't sure I'd be able to nab one at a price I was comfortable with, but a few weeks after the product hit shelves I scored one on eBay.

Featuring one of the greatest defenseman ever to lace up skates, I was beyond pumped with the one I ended up with.  I found myself eagerly checking the mailbox in anticipation in the days following this win, and at last I have the card in hand.  Check it out!

Nicklas Lidstrom played a full twenty seasons at the game's highest level, over 1,500 games played and every single one of them wearing a Red Wings sweater.  Nick was selected as an All-Star twelve times, and the team never missed the playoffs even once over the course of his career.  He served as team captain for quite a few years too as his career was winding down.

What's most impressive to me are his four Stanley Cup Championships and seven (wow!) Norris Trophies as the league's top defenseman.  Only one man captured more Norris', and his name was Bobby Orr.  Lidstrom was arguably the overall top defenseman in the league during his era, and made the HOF as an absolute lock in 2015.

I really love this one because I had never acquired an autograph of Lidstrom previously.  Aside from the fact that he was so dominant during the era that I really grew up in as a fan, I have fond memories of collecting the '92-93 Ultra set as a kid.  Nick's rookie cards were issued the season prior, so it's still a very young Lidstrom that we see on this card.

Here's my Certificate of Authenticity, I like that Upper Deck includes these and ties them by serial number to the sticker affixed to the back of the card.  Not that I plan on selling this at any point, but I appreciate it nonetheless.

So yeah, there it is, one of my top hockey pick-ups of 2017 so far.  The best part about this one might be the absolute steal I got on it.  My cost?  $13.51 plus a couple bucks shipping.  These are the kinds of eBay deals that I get so much joy out of finding, and I'll certainly be enjoying this card for many years to come.

Thanks as always for stopping by!