Archive for Hockey
Winnipeg Jets Fans Love Superstars Sports Collectibles
Posted by: | CommentsI’ve known Al Franklin, the owner of Superstars Sports Collectibles, for quite awhile now and he is one of the best store owners I have ever met. I feel this way primarily because he works very hard to provide his customers with a store that is very well maintained and an experience they will not find with many other shops in the area. He also makes it a point to set up at shows as well and recently I was able to catch up with him at the Sports Cards & Collectibles Expo.
And here is a little more about them:
Superstars Sports Collectibles
1885C Portage Avenue
Winnipeg, MB R3J 0H3
(204)831-9001
Email: collect@superstarssports.com
Click HERE to “Like” Superstars Sports Collectibles on Facebook and click HERE to follow them on Twitter.
Hours: Mon-Weds: 10:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m., Thurs-Fri: 10:00 a.m. – 9:00 p.m., Sat: 10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Sun: 12:00 p.m. – 4:00 p.m.
Superstars Sports Collectibles was established in 1990 by Al and Kyle Franklin when they opened their first store at 1885C Portage Avenue in Winnipeg, Manitoba. Both Al and Kyle are lifelong sports fans so it was easy to convert their love of all things sports into a successful business which has grown rapidly and continuously over the last twenty plus years.
The team at Superstars are always available to help their customers locate what they need.
They have been at the same location for the entire time, but have undergone three major renovations including a substantial expansion to increase the size of the store a couple of years ago. They believe it is necessary to put back some of their gains to improve the service levels they provide their customers and show them they are here for the long term.
Superstars carries tons of inventory on all the latest trading cards and even vintage products.
They are open sixty hours a week, with partners Kyle and Al, manager Jason Hinther and part-timer Tyler manning the store. They are presently working on replacing the outside signs on our building to give us a fresh and more pertinent look, with emphasis on being an Upper Deck Certified Diamond Dealer and Authorized Internet Retailer.
Inside the store they have twelve hundred square feet of space devoted to sports cards, collectibles and memorabilia. They carry every brand of sports cards released by the major manufacturers in the four major sports as well as a good selection of non-sport and gaming cards. Their customers appreciate the fact that they carry a good inventory of all new releases and they are able to get their product on any visit to the store.
Superstars carries just about everything a sports fan could want or need and has it all very organized.
They have over half a million cards in stock, all sorted by product and number to facilitate easy access for their customer’s want lists. They have spent a lot of time to make sure finding what you are looking for is a very easy experience.
UD will sometimes work with Superstars to provide some prizes for events they throw to thank their customers for their support and loyalty.
Throughout the year they hold a number of events, draws and contests to create and maintain additional interest in the hobby for their customers. For the last two years they have also held a specific Upper Deck customer appreciation night tied in to the release of one of Upper Deck’s major releases (this year was SP Authentic Hockey). Over fifty people attended for a fun night of pack and box breaks, free draws and prizes. Superstars Sports Collectibles also provide pizza, pop and lots of sports card hobby talk. Special thanks to Upper Deck for their contribution to the event.
Fans love the events Superstars holds for them!
As of late there has been a tremendous interest in all things Winnipeg Jets and Superstars Sports Collectibles is one of the best places to shop for Jets collectibles and apparel. As an Authorized Internet Retailer for Upper Deck, Jets fans throughout Canada can visit their website and pick up their favorite items. Go Jets Go!
Remember to visit Superstars Sports Collectibles for National Hockey Card Day as well where they always have tons of giveaways for their customers including free packs from Upper Deck!
Popularity: 1% [?]
Send Your Birthday Wishes to Jeff Skinner and Score!
Posted by: | CommentsToday is Jeff Skinner’s birthday and we have enjoyed a great relationship with him thus far in his young career. Whether it was working with him at the NHL All-Star Game in North Carolina or helping him learn how to handle the dreaded man-crush fan, we have really had a lot of fun with the Hurricanes’ star.
We want to keep the fun going with him today on his birthday. We are looking for fans to record a special birthday with for Jeff Skinner and post it to the Upper Deck Facebook Timeline or send it to the Upper Deck Hockey Twitter Account (@UpperDeckHockey) today by 4:00 p.m. Pacific. It can either be an image like you see here where Jeff gave a birthday shout out himself to a fan…
Create a birthday message for Jeff Skinner in a photo and you may get a FREE box of 2011-12 NHL SPx!
Or it can be a video like this Slovakian super fan made for him.
We’ll select our favorite message to receive a FREE box of 2011-12 NHL SPx and we’ll do our best to get all the birthday messages to Jeff. Thanks fans!
Popularity: 1% [?]
Do Moms Collect Upper Deck Trading Cards? You Better Believe It!
Posted by: | CommentsWith Mother’s Day coming up this weekend we asked our Facebook fans if there were any mothers out there who like collecting Upper Deck cards and we were surprised to receive so many responses. Having a mom that collects has got to be a dream come true for their kids and such is the case with Erica Jackson of Kingston, Ontario. Here is her story:
“Being a mother is one of the most amazing and rewarding feelings a woman can have. Collecting hockey cards was something I actually stumbled into. I was searching a local website and I found a huge lot of hockey cards up for sale. I thought it would be interesting to see what was in this collection. After buying and sorting the lot, and of course a trip to the store for the Beckett book, I was hooked.
One of our favorite moms; Erica Jackson shares some of her favorite Upper Deck NHL cards!
“Collecting cards allows me to have something I enjoy now, and my daughter can enjoy in her future. I will have something to leave to my daughter and her children when my time comes to leave this world. She will be able to keep them and continue to collect or she can sell them and use the money to pay for whatever she may need or want. I have been collecting for about three years now and I am very proud of my collection.
“Unfortunately a lot of my friends and family do not share my passion for cards. They know I collect, but do not understand anything about it. They have really never seen the sheer mass quantity and quality of my collection. I had to purchase a safe to keep everything protected, and I may have to buy a second!
Erica also has a very nice collection of signed memorabilia on display throughout the house.
“I am a Canadian girl so I like Toronto, Ottawa and Vancouver, but I am also partial to the Detroit Red Wings. There are of course a few cards that I would still love to add to the collection and someday I hope to have them. Until then, I will continue to enjoy my collection and adding to it!”
Erica clearly chases the biggest names in the sport and she has a collection that would make most serious collectors jealous.
Wow! How cool it that? Thanks so much for sharing your passion with us Erica. Your daughter is very lucky! Look for a special Mother’s Day present from Upper Deck soon to thank you for taking the time to share your collection with our fans! Happy Mother’s Day!
Popularity: 1% [?]
UD Makes Collectors a “Priority” at the Sports Cards and Collectibles Expo
Posted by: | CommentsTwice a year Upper Deck makes a trek to Toronto, Canada for the Sports Cards and Collectibles Expo where thousands of rabid hockey fans turn out in droves. And we don’t come empty handed. UD spends a lot of time (and money) putting together one of the most appreciated autograph card sets in the industry with our Priority Singings wrapper redemption program to share with collectors at the show. Giving out these rare autograph cards to loyal fans who purchase new UD products is a great way to say, “Thank you for your support.” And to be able to hand them to fans in person is only an extra bonus.
In years prior the program has been so popular that lines have stretched throughout the convention center just for the shot at getting one of these cards limited to less than 100 copies each. Sometimes fans were turned away when stock depleted early unfortunately.
The semi-annual Sports Cards & Collectibles Expo draws in collectors and dealers from all throughout Canada.
This spring however Upper Deck rolled out a whole new strategy to greatly improve the customer experience. We worked with the show promoters to create a special line that would not put fans in the way of other booths or traffic. Additionally we allocated the lion’s share of Priority Signings cards to Saturday which has traditionally been the busiest day of the show. We also opened the booth for the program right at 10:00 when the show opened instead of at noon as we have in year’s prior which eliminated the prospect of fans waiting in a huge line. We kept allowing fans to bring boxes purchased from Certified Diamond Dealers well after the hours of the promotion had ended to make sure that all fans who wanted a Priority Signings autograph card could get one. All these efforts resulted in one of the best executed promotions we have ever run at the Expo and just take a look at the proof!
Fans could check out details on the Priority Signings wrapper redemption promotion right at the Upper Deck booth.
Fans were quick to get in line each day for their chance to score a FREE autograph card from Upper Deck.
Another group of excited fans ready to bust new UD boxes to score a Priority Signings autograph card.
Gretzky!
Gretzky!!!
Mr. Wayne Gretzky!
And yes, another Gretzky!
Did you know only Upper Deck can bring you Wayne Gretzky trading cards? That's right, he's an exclusive spokesman for UD and fans LOVED pulling his autograph cards at the Expo!
Stamkos!
Do the Nugent-Hop!!!
Lines moved smoothly as collectors scored sweet autographs courtesy of Upper Deck!
Eric Lindros autograph of 5!
Crosby time!
And we have another Crosby autograph!
He shoots, he scores!
This is kind of what it feels like to pull a Wayne Gretzky Priority Signings autograph card. Yes!!!
Another new program this year was the case breaker promotion where collectors who wanted to break a case of an approved product would not have to wait in any line and would also receive three (3) Priority Signings autograph cards along with an instant redemption. Thirty participating collectors walked away with cool items like signed jerseys, pucks, sticks, gloves and cards. Some fans also won a selection of Upper Deck boxes. The promotion was so popular, UD ran out of prizes by Saturday afternoon. Take a look at some of the happy collectors who scored their cool new items to add to their collection.
This collector grabbed a Gabriel Landeskog signed glove!
The foil was flying as case breakers rushed through packs to score their goodies from UD.
One of the lucky collectors who nabbed a full size, signed stick from young stars in the NHL.
Gloves and a puck? Awesome!!!
Popularity: 1% [?]
Upper Deck Shares Short Print Information on 2011-12 NHL SPx
Posted by: | CommentsPuck fans have been jumping on the opportunity to grab autograph rookie jersey cards in 2011-12 NHL SPx which arrived in stores this week. There are several other solid inserts that have collectors fired up however and today Upper Deck is pleased to share short print information on many of the more popular inserts in the product that are not crash numbered:
2011-12 NHL SPx Flashback Fabrics: Overall Ratio 1:126 packs
Group A: Combine to fall 1:35,431 packs
| 226 | Jussi Jokinen |
Group B: Combine to fall 1:16,872 packs
| 211 | Chris Pronger |
Group C: Combine to fall 1:3,615 packs
| 210 | Chris Higgins |
| 232 | Roberto Luongo |
Group D: Combine to fall 1:1,070 packs
| 207 | Jaromir Jagr |
| 209 | Bill Ranford |
| 215 | Doug Weight |
| 219 | Jaromir Jagr |
| 230 | Nik Antropov |
Group E: Combine to fall 1:146 packs
| 206 | Jaromir Jagr |
| 208 | Bernie Nicholls |
| 212 | Craig Anderson |
| 213 | Daniel Paille |
| 214 | Dave Taylor |
| 216 | Dustin Penner |
| 217 | Ed Jovanovski |
| 218 | Erik Johnson |
| 220 | Ilya Kovalchuk |
| 221 | Jamie Langenbrunner |
| 222 | Jason Arnott |
| 223 | Joe Mullen |
| 224 | Jordan Leopold |
| 225 | Jose Theodore |
| 227 | Kari Lehtonen |
| 228 | Matt Stajan |
| 229 | Michael Frolik |
| 231 | Raffi Torres |
| 233 | Saku Koivu |
| 234 | Scott Gomez |
| 235 | Sergei Gonchar |
2011-12 NHL SPx Autographed Flashback Fabrics: Overall Ratio 1:252 packs
Group A: Combine to fall 1:32,210 packs
| 239 | Guy Lafleur |
Group B: Combine to fall 1:1,817 packs
| 236 | Alexander Ovechkin |
| 247 | Mario Lemieux |
| 248 | Mark Messier |
| 249 | Martin Brodeur |
| 252 | Mike Modano |
| 253 | Joe Thornton |
| 254 | Patrick Roy |
| 257 | Phil Esposito |
| 259 | Ray Bourque |
| 261 | Ron Francis |
| 262 | Ron Hextall |
| 263 | Sidney Crosby |
| 264 | Tony Esposito |
Group C: Combine to fall 1:2,834 packs (ratio is higher than B, but there are fewer subjects)
| 238 | Chris Drury |
| 241 | Jarome Iginla |
| 251 | Mike Bossy |
| 258 | Phil Kessel |
| 265 | Wayne Gretzky |
Group D: Combine to fall 1:945 packs
| 237 | Cam Neely |
| 240 | Jari Kurri |
| 242 | Alex Tanguay |
| 246 | Marcel Dionne |
| 256 | Peter Stastny |
| 260 | Ray Emery |
Group E: Combine to fall 1:472 packs
| 243 | Kris Versteeg |
| 244 | Larry Robinson |
| 245 | Luc Robitaille |
| 250 | Marty Turco |
| 255 | Peter Mueller |
2011-12 NHL SPx Winning Materials: Overall Ratio 1:18 packs
Group A: Combine to fall 1:3,440 packs
| WM-WG | Wayne Gretzky |
Group B: Combine to fall 1:350 packs
| WM-DS | Daniel Sedin |
| WM-MB | Martin Brodeur |
| WM-ML | Mario Lemieux |
| WM-MM | Mark Messier |
| WM-SC | Sidney Crosby |
| WM-SS | Steven Stamkos |
| WM-TH | Taylor Hall |
Group C: Combine to fall 1:137 packs
| WM-AO | Alexander Ovechkin |
| WM-BA | David Backes |
| WM-DB | Dustin Byfuglien |
| WM-DD | Drew Doughty |
| WM-DR | Derek Roy |
| WM-EM | Evgeni Malkin |
| WM-GL | Guillaume Latendresse |
| WM-HW | Jim Howard |
| WM-NL | Nicklas Lidstrom |
| WM-RK | Ryan Kesler |
Group D: Combine to fall 1:90 packs
| WM-HL | Henrik Lundqvist |
| WM-JE | Jordan Eberle |
| WM-JT | Jonathan Toews |
| WM-KE | Phil Kessel |
| WM-MG | Marian Gaborik |
| WM-MS | Martin St. Louis |
| WM-PK | Patrick Kane |
| WM-ST | Jordan Staal |
| WM-TA | John Tavares |
| WM-TM | Tyler Myers |
| WM-TS | Tyler Seguin |
Group E: Combine to fall 1:28 packs
| WM-AH | Ales Hemsky |
| WM-AK | Anze Kopitar |
| WM-CN | Cam Neely |
| WM-CS | Chris Stewart |
| WM-EL | Eric Lindros |
| WM-JC | Jeff Carter |
| WM-JI | Jarome Iginla |
| WM-MD | Matt Duchene |
| WM-MF | Marc-Andre Fleury |
| WM-MR | Mike Richards |
| WM-NB | Nicklas Backstrom |
| WM-NG | Nathan Gerbe |
| WM-PM | Patrick Marleau |
| WM-PR | Pekka Rinne |
| WM-RB | Ray Bourque |
| WM-RL | Roberto Luongo |
| WM-RM | Ryan Miller |
| WM-RN | Rick Nash |
| WM-SF | Drew Stafford |
| WM-TV | Thomas Vanek |
| WM-VL | Vincent Lecavalier |
2011-12 NHL SPx Winning Combos: Overall Ratio 1:18 packs
Group A: Combine to fall 1:5,624 packs
| WC-GM | Mark Messier/Wayne Gretzky |
| WC-RG | Luc Robitaille/Wayne Gretzky |
Group B: Combine to fall 1:860 packs
| WC-KG | Jari Kurri/Wayne Gretzky |
| WC-LM | Mario Lemieux/Evgeni Malkin |
| WC-RL | Patrick Roy/Roberto Luongo |
Group C: Combine to fall 1:289 packs
| WC-CF | Marc-Andre Fleury/Sidney Crosby |
| WC-CL | Mario Lemieux/Sidney Crosby |
| WC-KH | Ryan Kesler/Cody Hodgson |
| WC-OG | Alexander Ovechkin/Mike Green |
| WC-TK | Jonathan Toews/Patrick Kane |
Group D: Combine to fall 1:145 packs
| WC-AP | Andrei Markov/P.K. Subban |
| WC-BS | Patrice Bergeron/Eric Staal |
| WC-KD | Anze Kopitar/Drew Doughty |
| WC-OB | Alexander Ovechkin/Nicklas Backstrom |
| WC-PR | Patrick Roy/Ray Bourque |
| WC-TB | Joe Thornton/Patrice Bergeron |
| WC-TS | Joe Thornton/Eric Staal |
Group E: Combine to fall 1:22 packs
| WC-BH | Patrice Bergeron/Nathan Horton |
| WC-BJ | Brayden Schenn/Jared Cowen |
| WC-BK | Dustin Byfuglien/Evander Kane |
| WC-DC | David Backes/Chris Stewart |
| WC-DJ | Dan Cleary/Justin Abdelkader |
| WC-EH | Taylor Hall/Jordan Eberle |
| WC-FS | Marc-Andre Fleury/Jordan Staal |
| WC-GR | Ryan Getzlaf/Bobby Ryan |
| WC-GS | Marian Gaborik/Derek Stepan |
| WC-GV | Claude Giroux/James van Riemsdyk |
| WC-HK | Victor Hedman/Erik Karlsson |
| WC-HP | Ales Hemsky/Magnus Paajarvi |
| WC-HS | Henrik Lundqvist/Marc Staal |
| WC-IK | Jarome Iginla/Miikka Kiprusoff |
| WC-KP | Ilya Kovalchuk/Zach Parise |
| WC-LA | Simon Gagne/Mike Richards |
| WC-LD | Nicklas Lidstrom/Pavel Datsyuk |
| WC-LK | Roberto Luongo/Miikka Kiprusoff |
| WC-LS | Vincent Lecavalier/Martin St. Louis |
| WC-MK | Nikolai Kulemin/Clarke MacArthur |
| WC-MS | Ryan Miller/Drew Stafford |
| WC-NC | Michal Neuvirth/John Carlson |
| WC-RB | Patrick Roy/Martin Brodeur |
| WC-RH | Pekka Rinne/Patric Hornqvist |
| WC-RV | Derek Roy/Thomas Vanek |
| WC-SD | Matt Duchene/Paul Stastny |
| WC-SE | Drew Stafford/Tyler Ennis |
| WC-SS | Henrik Sedin/Daniel Sedin |
| WC-TM | Matt Moulson/John Tavares |
| WC-TR | Tuukka Rask/Tim Thomas |
| WC-VG | Jakub Voracek/Claude Giroux |
| WC-ZF | Henrik Zetterberg/Johan Franzen |
Additionally, there are some inserts in the set that were all produced at about the same level so while there are not groups for them, there are ratios on pulling them.
2011-12 NHL SPx Rookie Materials Level 1: Overall Ratio 1:37 packs
| RM-AL | Adam Larsson |
| RM-CE | Cody Eakin |
| RM-CS | Craig Smith |
| RM-EG | Erik Gudbranson |
| RM-JG | Jake Gardiner |
| RM-MF | Matt Frattin |
| RM-MR | Matt Read |
| RM-MS | Mark Scheifele |
| RM-MZ | Mika Zibanejad |
| RM-TH | Teemu Hartikainen |
| RM-ZK | Zack Kassian |
2011-12 NHL SPx Rookie Materials Level 2: Overall Ratio 1:252 packs
| RM-BC | Brett Connolly |
| RM-CH | Cody Hodgson |
| RM-GL | Gabriel Landeskog |
| RM-LL | Louis Leblanc |
| RM-RJ | Ryan Johansen |
| RM-RN | Ryan Nugent-Hopkins |
| RM-SC | Sean Couturier |
2011-12 NHL SPx Shadow Box: Overall Ratio 1:504 packs
| SB-1 | Wayne Gretzky |
| SB-2 | Mario Lemieux |
| SB-3 | Mark Messier |
| SB-4 | Ron Francis |
| SB-5 | Joe Sakic |
| SB-6 | Mike Gartner |
| SB-7 | Guy Lafleur |
| SB-8 | Brett Hull |
| SB-9 | Jaromir Jagr |
| SB-10 | Evgeni Malkin |
| SB-11 | Alexander Ovechkin |
| SB-12 | Alexander Semin |
| SB-13 | Rick Nash |
| SB-14 | Ryan Getzlaf |
| SB-15 | Drew Doughty |
| SB-16 | Patrick Kane |
| SB-17 | Zach Parise |
| SB-18 | Ilya Kovalchuk |
| SB-19 | Nicklas Lidstrom |
2011-12 NHL SPx Shadow Box Signatures: Overall Ratio 1:7,231 packs
| SB-20 | Steven Stamkos |
2011-12 NHL SPx Shadow Box Stoppers: Overall Ratio 1:1,064 packs
| SBS-1 | Martin Brodeur |
| SBS-2 | Tim Thomas |
| SBS-3 | Bernie Parent |
| SBS-4 | Ryan Miller |
| SBS-5 | Corey Crawford |
| SBS-6 | Ondrej Pavelec |
| SBS-7 | Bill Ranford |
| SBS-8 | Terry Sawchuk |
| SBS-9 | Georges Vezina |
2011-12 NHL SPx Shadow Box Stoppers Signatures: Overall Ratio 1:16,105 packs
| SBS-10 | Patrick Roy |
2011-12 NHL Shadow Box Programme of Excellence: Overall Ratio: 1:958 packs
| PE-1 | John Tavares |
| PE-2 | P.K. Subban |
| PE-3 | Taylor Hall |
| PE-4 | Jordan Eberle |
| PE-5 | Tyler Ennis |
| PE-6 | Sidney Crosby |
| PE-7 | Jonathan Toews |
| PE-8 | Carey Price |
| PE-9 | Mike Richards |
| PE-10 | Roberto Luongo |
2011-12 NHL Shadow Box Programme of Excellence Signatures PE-11: Overall Ratio: 1:7,231 packs
| PE-11 | Cody Hodgson |
2011-12 NHL Shadow Box Programme of Excellence Signatures PE-12: Overall Ratio: 1:16,105 packs
| PE-12 | Wayne Gretzky |
Popularity: 1% [?]
