Miracle on Ice Autographs #2 & #3: Steve Christoff & Eric Strobel

I picked up card numbers 2 and 3 for my Miracle On Ice autograph collection from In the Game Decades: 1980s. In 2011, In the Game tracked down all 20 players from the 1980 USA Olympic Hockey Team and inserted on-card autographs into packs of Decades: 1980s. These two in particular are of Steve Christoff and Eric Strobel.

Steve Christoff played college hockey at the University of Minnesota, where he won an NCAA championship in 1979, leading his team with 77 points in the regular season. He was picked 24th overall by the Minnesota North Stars in the 1978 NHL Entry Draft and played in the Stanley Cup finals in 1981, losing to the New York Islanders. Christoff was traded to the Calgary Flames for the 82-83 season and played his final year in 83-84 with the Los Angeles Kings.

Eric Strobel, like Steve Christoff, was an NCAA champion with the University of Minnesota in 1979 before winning Olympic gold. He was drafted 133rd overall by the Buffalo Sabres in 1978, but his pro career was a short one, as he retired after breaking his ankle in a 1980 AHL playoff game.

So far, I have 3 out of 20, but I am getting closer, as I am expecting to add Buzz Schneider to my collection as soon as it arrives in the mail.