If you’re a hockey fan, hockey cards might be a perfect hobby for you. I’m somewhat of a collector myself, just like many others who are also crazy about hockey cards.
As a collector, there are some cards out there where I just dream of pulling. For example, when I first got into hockey cards I really wanted a Quinn Hughes rookie card. Pretty much everyday after school, I would head to my local Walmart to get a few packs of hockey cards just hoping that one of them had a Quinn Hughes rookie card inside. And then, it happened. It was just a normal Saturday afternoon, I had just gotten back from running errands with my dad and he allowed me to get some hockey cards. When we got home, I immediately ripped open those packs. I wasn’t getting my hopes up, considering I was trying to pull that Quinn Hughes rookie for so long. I opened up the first pack, no luck, second pack, also no luck. But that third pack though, that was it. On the final card pull of my packs, I saw that young guns gloss that you just dream of seeing. At that moment, I was left speechless for a moment and then I let out a scream that probably shook the whole neighbourhood.
However, there are some cards that I have totally just accepted that I’ll never pull. They are close to impossible to actually pull. So what are some of these close to impossible cards to pull? Well, let’s look into it.
At the number ten spot, we got a 1980 O-Pee-Chee Wayne Gretzky card that sold for $60,400 in March of 2021. Gretzky’s 1980-81 O-Pee-Chee card, released during his second NHL season. It remains one of the more popular cards to pull. This card is actually rarer than his rookie cards from O-Pee-Chee and Topps, with only 2,177 of these 1980 O-Pee-Chee cards known to exist in PSA’s records.
Next on our list is a 1911-12 C55 Imperial Tobacco Georges Vezina. Vezina’s 1911-12 Imperial Tobacco card is his only recognized rookie card with only one card graded over PSA seven. He held a career goals against average of 3.28 and led the Montreal Canadiens to two Stanley Cups. This rookie card was sold for $61,200 in May of 2021.
At the number eight position,we got a 1951 Parkhurst Maurice Richard rookie card. Maurice Richard, an NHL legend, was the first to score 500 goals. He won the Stanley Cup eight times with the Montreal Canadiens. His 1951 Parkhurst rookie card is highly desired, with only a few receiving grades higher than eight. The NHL honours his legacy with the Maurice Richard Trophy for the highest goal scorer each year. The card was sold for $75,000 in July of 2021.
Number seven on our list is none other than Super Mario himself, Mario Lemieux. His 1985 O-Pee-Chee rookie card sold for $80,100 in January of 2021. Mario Lemieux was the first overall draft pick in the 1984 NHL draft. He played his entire seventeen-year NHL career with the Penguins. With 1,783 points in 915 games, Lemieux averaged an impressive 1.88 points per game, second only to Gretzky’s 1.92 points per game. Lemieux’s 1985 O-Pee-Chee rookie card is one of the most popular cards in existence, widely regarded as one of the most iconic hockey cards ever produced. Among its 4,433 PSA population, only forty-eight cards, roughly one percent, have earned a PSA grade of ten. One of these cards was sold for $91,200 in October of 2021.
The sixth entry on our list is the 1958 Topps Bobby Hull Rookie Card. Bobby Hull had an amazing 23-year hockey career in the NHL and WHA. Known as “The Golden Jet” for his speed and slap shot, he’s considered one of the greatest players ever. Collectors submitted 419 of his 1958 Topps rookie cards to PSA. Seven got a PSA grade of eight, with only two graded higher. The Bobby Hull rookie card was sold in July of 2021 for $87,000.
At the half-way point of our list, we got the 2006-07 Upper Deck The Cup Dual NHL Shields Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux. What a mouthful, am I right. A card that was sold for $91,200 in October of 2021. This card is a little unique as it’s the only card that’s on this list that features two players on the same card. Gretzky holds the NHL record for most goals in a season with ninety-two in the 1981-82 season, while Lemieux is third with eighty-five goals in the 1988-89 season. Wayne Gretzky also holds the record for most assists in a season with 163, with nine out of the top ten spots belonging to him. Mario Lemieux joins him in the top ten with 114 assists. This limited edition card is a one-of-one and showcases the iconic duo in NHL history.
In the fourth spot, it’s Mr McDaddy himself, Connor McDavid. His 2015 Upper Deck The Cup Connor McDavid rookie card was sold in June of 2020 for $135,811.20. McDavid was drafted first overall in the 2015 NHL Draft, and he quickly made his mark, winning numerous awards including two Hart Trophies, three Ted Lindsay Awards, and three Art Ross Trophies in his first seven NHL seasons. McDavid’s most valuable rookie card comes from the 2015-16 Upper Deck The Cup collection. Limited to just ninety-nine copies, his rookie patch autograph card is heavily desired among hockey card enthusiasts like myself. Numbered ninety-seven to match his Oilers jersey, only nine copies have been graded by PSA, with just three earning a higher grade than PSA nine.
Heading into the top three, Bobby Orr is placed third on this list with his card being sold for $276,000. While Gretzky is known as the greatest hockey player ever, Bobby Orr is hailed as probably the most dominant defenseman ever. He clinched eight consecutive James Norris Memorial Trophies, the most in NHL history, after finishing third in his rookie season, Bobby Orr’s 1966 Topps rookie card stands out with only two cards out of 276 earning a BVG ten grade.
Our first and second spot is owned by the same player, and it’s none other than the undisputed GOAT in the NHL, Wayne Gretzky. His topps rookie card is a tiny bit different from his O-Pee-Chee rookie card. Wayne Gretzky’s 1979-80 Topps rookie card is the second most expensive hockey card in the hockey card collecting hobby. Both cards look almost the same, but the O-Pee-Chee version has a little bit of French writing on the back, while the Topps one is just in plain old English. Just like his O-Pee-Chee rookie card, Gretzky’s 1979-80 Topps rookie card is extremely sensitive to condition, with only two PSA tens out of 7,146 copies. Despite minor appearance differences, there’s a $3 million price gap between The Great One’s most desired rookie cards. His topps rookie card sold for $720,000 in December of 2020.
Finally, the most valuable card in all of hockey card collecting is the O-Pee-Chee Wayne Gretzky rookie card. There have been numerous fakes made of this card and I may or may not have bought one for the purpose of pranking some of my friends. It was totally worth it. Although Wayne Gretzky’s O-Pee-Chee rookie card isn’t that hard to come by, with a total PSA population of 7,411, it stands out as one of the most sensitive cards to condition. Only two cards in existence have achieved a PSA ten grade.
Wayne Gretzky rookie card expected to become hockey's 1st to fetch $1M. 🤑 🐐 https://t.co/mTuG4ejfk6 pic.twitter.com/pOiAu6xYJe
— theScore (@theScore) December 7, 2020
If you’re a hockey fan, collecting hockey cards can be an exciting hobby. I’m a collector too, and it’s so exciting hunting down special cards, like Quinn Hughes’ young guns card. Some cards are really hard to find, but when you do, it’s like striking gold. If you want to try and become rich, collecting hockey cards may be a hobby for you. On paper, collecting hockey cards may not seem like it pays the bills, but man, when you pull a valuable card, it can make you a very rich person