Nothing But Netminders

The hockey goaltender must be the most conspicuous position in any of the four major sports.  Only the baseball catcher even comes close and that's only for half the game.  The goalie has his oar of a stick held by the blocker glove, the outsized catcher glove on the opposite hand, the huge pads and everyone's favorite, the personalized mask.  Add that all of the scoring and often the lack of, happens in his immediate vicinity and it's no wonder that he holds our fascination.  Here are all of the men in net from this year's Upper Deck Series One set.  They are in numerical order.

 

 

 

George!

The father of our country George Washington was born on this date in 1732.

Arbitrary Quartet #1-- Psycho, Bats, Mo and Number Four

I have a lot of cards lying around and though I would love to write an epic post every day given my energy and talent that just ain't gonna happen.  I hope you'll forgive me and take a look anyway.  These four cards were loose in the same box.

I like the strange (psycho?) look and what's with the color in the background?  Is this a paste job?  There's a distinct black line around Steve's jersey that seems to cut in front just to the right of the "N" in "Boston".  Maybe I'm psycho.

This is Steve Lyon's Topps rookie card.  Controversial (insensitive?) as a broadcaster, Steve was "quirky" as a player, earning him the nickname "Psycho".  He's most famous for this:

The Topps writer was not a prophet this time.  Good for Jose who became superstar, "Joey Bats", 300 miles north in Toronto.

I like this concept and you can't have too many Bobby Orr cards.  Gary Suter had a long and successful career, winning the Calder Trophy and a Stanley Cup.  He's in the US Hockey HOF.

https://youtu.be/ef2IJ05ZgBQ

Ice Brothers Autographs Part 2

Yesterday it was the Hull's, both whom played with the Blackhawks.  Today it's another pair of brothers who wore the Indian.  However, in one of the worst trades in Chicago history, or maybe better known as one of the best trades in Boston history, older brother Phil became a Bruin (along with Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield) and the rest is Stanley Cup Championship history.  Little brother never won a Cup with the Blackhawks but he did become one of the best goaltenders in the history of the game.  They were inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1984 and 1988 respectively.

 

Ice Brothers Autographs Part 1

My perception is that there have always been more brothers in the NHL than in any of the other major sports.  Here's my favorite pair of siblings both of whom have nice signatures.

Here's a great video featuring Bobby showing off his devastating shot.  I was only 7 at the time but I know all those guys names, particularly the Blackhawks but most of the Leafs as well.

Tomorrow I'll have another set of brothers, both Hall of Famers.