06/07 UD MVP, "The Monopoly" and "The Redemption Follies"

Well..... despite the fact that I felt a little dirty feeding the UD monopoly (I'll get to that in a bit.....) , I went out and purchased an MVP Blaster Box today. Decent looking product, 1 insert or rookie per pack, dual jerseys 1:24 packs, dual autos 1:288 packs. This blaster box had 12 packs, so I figured 6 rookies and 6 inserts, with a 1:2 chance for a jersey, and 1:24 chance for an auto. I don't think the numbered script variations are in the blasters, but I'm not completely sure.

I was going to do pack by pack, but I didn't think about it in time, so here's a quick recap. Nice clean looking cards, decent design. Got the 6 rookies as planned, but none are serious names. "Prospects" would be charitable. 4 defensemen though, and we know how valuable defensemen rookies are...... also 6 inserts. Also nice looking inserts, good photography, but a fair bit of foil, so if that's not your thing, then they might look kind of ugly I guess. I liked them though.

The topper was that I actually pulled a dual auto. The bad side of that is that it was Joffrey Lupul and Shawn Horcoff - from the Coilers. I HATE the Coilers. The good side is that I can likely sell it on eBay with no problem.

Would I buy it again? Probably. Decent value for the buck I think, the hobby version would also have the numbered cards, which would be even better. I'd recommend it over Victory, this year's Power Play (which by all accounts is garbage).... heck, I'd probably recommend it over regular UD this year, which has half the value of last year's, but the same price point. So I'd buy MVP, but begrudgingly. Why?

I've had it with Upper Deck. I've had it with their complete abuse of their monopoly. I've had it with their putrid bank-like customer service. I've had it with their abandonment of the hockey card collectors in favour of pure profit. Each of their products this year has less in it than last year, but is at or above the price of last year's. I understand that Crosby and Ovechkin aren't coming around every year, so they can't really be blamed for lower secondary value. But dropping the number of autos and memorabilia in the base UD when series 2 last year was already received as crap makes no sense when the price point is exactly the same. UD's response to me would be something like "Well, then don't buy it. We're not forcing you to." (Technically, Gary Bettman and his sock puppet assistants are, but.....) Fine. I won't buy it.

Redemptions. The stories from the past with UD is that if they were unable to provide the product to you within 12 weeks, you would receive riches. They were so upset with not being able to provide the cards to you that they would basically give you whatever you wanted so that you would continue to buy their cards. Now? Well....... I have two redemptions waiting. One for 6 months, one for 8 months. Both Shane Doans, which I bought on the secondary market to supplement my Doan collection. So really, that's what I want.

E-mail #1 to UD, at the 16 week mark, as they instruct, asking if there is any possible update to when or if I will get my cards. Response? "Unfortunately no, let us know if you want to exchange." No "Please accept our apologies for being short sighted" or anything. Not even "HAHAHAHHA We're Upper Deck, in terms of hockey, we answer to NO ONE!!!! HAHAHAHAHA". Just a "Your collection doesn't matter to us in the least. If you take something different, you'll stop bothering us and rejoin the rest of the blind doddering herd who are forced to eat our crap and like it." So instead of starting a war with morons and risk being pulled down to their level and being defeated by experience, I wait. I don't want exchanges. I bought these for a reason.

Then 06-07 Series 1 appears. It's the same thing as normal, of course, just less with it. And the same price as always. So I check eBay, and see a Signature Sensation card of Shane Doan with a sticker auto on it - like the stickers on the cards I apparently can't receive!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! My hair catches fire. I need cards with the sticker autos. They say I can't have them yet. They have NEW cards with stickers. I send an e-mail back to UD asking them what in the blue hell is going on. This is crazy.

Response? Wait for it...... "We can send you a replacement." Grr. Apparently I give them a list of 5 players - ones of equal or comparable Beckett value to the ones I'm getting. If they don't have one from those players, shipping just sends a random one of comparable Beckett value. I look at the e-mail and blink. For a long time. How EXACTLY is that customer service for a player collector? What use would I have for a Ryan Smyth auto jersey card - because with my luck, they'd send an Oiler card.

Not acceptable.

Next e-mail tells them so. I collect Doans, so unless you're sending me something of great value that I can sell on eBay and buy more Doans, I'm not biting and gambling on what you think is the same. I ask that they explain why this is the case - explain that there are new autos out when old ones go unfilled. The response is that it's contractual - players can be upset with their contract one year, love it the next, so they will sign all the cards from one year and not the other. The problem is that this is a sticker. Not a card. So take an 06-07 sticker, frikkin put it on my 05-06's and frikkin send them to me. If they still had no Doan stickers, I could place some blame on him, but they obviously have restocked.

So UD is basically telling me that it's not happening. So I ask.... any other Doans in stock? Well..... stock changes daily *of course*, so no idea. That's why we want your list of alternates, so we can screw you over and laugh, because hey..... we're the only game in town now! If you want to collect NHL player cards, you have no choice but to love us, no matter WHAT we do! Remember OPC prior to 1990? We're even worse! Anyway.......

So I've e-mailed them back. They've got me by the wedding tackle, obviously. Can they at LEAST send me a Doan auto card from this year as a "Sorry we've been such jackasses, here's something to at least consider buying more from us." gift? I'm expecting nothing, not even a response. However, if I don't get a response within a week, I'm calling them. I heard recently that calling in gets you a little more, because the reps have less room to dance around.

I can't stop collecting. The difference is that I won't be buying much in the way of packs or boxes until something gets resolved in this that restores my confidence. I frequent two card shops, and both are likely wondering where the hell I am. Well, I'm buying Doan singles off of eBay right now. So I'm still eating from the Upper Deck trough, but indirectly. I'll be spending 15-25% of the amount I normally spend on cards in a year - and I've spent a LOT of money in the past few year. And none of my money will go directly to Upper Deck. Like today, I'll buy a blaster here and there, but of a lower level product, because that's where the only realistic value is this year.... like every year.

I think the NHL and NHLPA will be getting e-mails from me on this monopoly. Likely won't make any difference, but I'd at least feel as though I tried.