It's been a while

So I haven't given up collecting, but it's certainly a little more sparse. Upper Deck is again flooding the market, and using almost the same things as last year with different designs. Still overpriced. I've been collecting O-Pee-Chee (the bastardized UD version, of course) because it's relatively cheap, and the buyback cards are cool - they bought cards from previous O-Pee-Chee releases back to..... well, who knows when, but I've pulled a couple from the 80's, including one that was autographed! Nice product, very recommended for the price point. My local dealer actually refuses to let me buy several of the UD products. They are THAT bad.

But I'm a collector, and I like to try new things. 2007-08 Fleer Hot Prospects hockey just came out. Nice looking set, and it seems like there are a lot of hits. I have a blaster retail box sitting here (10 packs plus 1 BONUS pack!!! Why they can't just say 11 packs I don't know.....), and those that collect know the drill on these. You might hit a long shot, you might get nothing. Thankfully, you don't pay much.

HP's major attraction every year are autographed rookie patch cards and a load of memorabilia and inserts. One might call it a poor man's SPx, but one would be generous in saying that. It's one of those sets that has its fans, but many ignore it completely. I like the set myself - but again, like other UD offerings, it's too expensive for what you get.

Anyway, time for the pack by pack. Will I get gold, or golden bladder water? We'll find out.

(First thing I notice on opening the box? Packs in these are usually pretty unruffled and evenly set. Not this one. Looks like it was packed by a monkey. Anyway.......)

Pack 1 - Satan, Naslund, Koivu, Hasek
A friend of mine is a Naslund collector. He'll have a new card. Kind of disconcerting for the first card to be the player whose last name is the same as..... well, you know.

Pack 2 - Kariya, Parise, Getzlaf, Phaneuf
Nice clean design on the cards. Limited use of foil, done very well. 3 good young players in the pack. Could be worse. And if I was a betting man, I would say there WILL be worse.

Pack 3 - Hemsky, Carter, Roloson, Jokinen
Wow. Already. If I were a betting man, I would be rich. With these 4 cards INCLUDING two Edmonton Coiler players, this is the bottom of the barrel for me.

Pack 4 - Shanahan, Williams, Weight, Gaborik
Shanahan, Weight, and Gaborik would probably be a devastating line.
They are also provide devastatingly low value for this pack.

Pack 5 - Nash, Jarret Stoll 2 colour Hot Materials jersey, Gionta
.........ok. Clearly someone is playing collecting tricks on me. I HATE the Edmonton Oilers almost as much as I like any other sports team. But if I am to pull an autograph or game used memorabilia card, there is seriously a 50% chance it's an Oiler. Stoll is from my old home town, and eventually he will leave Edmonton for a place that doesn't suck so badly, so I'll let this one slide. Nice looking card anyway.

Pack 6 - Khabibulin, Mason, Vyborny, Arnott
Huh.

Pack 7 - Hossa, Guerin, Cheechoo, Tanguay
No Shane Doan or Dallas Star cards yet. That would make me upset.

Pack 8 - Sakic, Miller, Ovechkin, Gagne
Ovechkin is cool.

Pack 9 - Daniel Sedin, Gionta, Pronger, Savard
A double (Gionta) already???????? Upper Deck still has no idea how to collate cards.

Pack 10 - Mikko Koivu, SHAAAAAAAANE DOAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!!, DiPietro, Samsonov
A Shane Doan card that I don't have redeems almost any box. At least that's what I tell myself.

Pack 11 - Cheechoo Hot Commodities insert #841/999, Drury, Kiprusoff, Pitkanen
Wow, even gone to cheap dot matrix style inkjet printing of serial numbers rather than gold foil. Shame shame, UD.

So what is there to say? 10% of the box was Oilers, which sucks most of all. 1 jersey, 1 insert, and one Doan. No Dallas Stars. No rookies. I would call it a dud, but then again, there's no odds on the box, which probably means that I struck....... oh crap, I didn't even think of this........ oil! I did strike Oil, didn't I. Hardeeharhar. Anyway, when UD puts no odds on the box this year, it means "good luck finding anything in here". Since jerseys/patches in the hobby box version are 1:5 packs, this is probably somewhere, oh I don't know, 1:144 or something. The UD series 2 blaster, instead of hobby's 1:12 pack jersey run, was 1:240!!!! I'm hoping that's a typo......

Anyway, certainly not the worst box I've ever had. Considering that a hobby box of this is running $65 on eBay - which with shipping is about 2 or 3 of these blasters.... - I would be better off spending the extra cash and getting that instead of another one of these. In fact, I just might. Then again, the new UD Ice looks nice...... but that sucked last time. I'm not that bright nor perceptive though.

I do have a retro box coming my way which should be fun to open........