Another Penguins Dominion Patch Auto - Joe Vitale (One More To Go)

With the end closing in, I picked up number 3 of 4 for my Penguins rookie collection of 2011-12 Dominion autographed patch cards, with a Joe Vitale, serial numbered 112/199. The autograph leaves much to be desired, as it appears to be a scribbled "Joe 46" (or maybe "Vitale 46"), but the patch is pretty cool. It looks like it comes from the team logo, with two lines of embroidered stitching and three colors (there's some gold just barely peeking out of the bottom right corner).

Vitale was a rookie this year, but he was actually drafted in 2005 in the seventh round (195th overall), but continued on with his college career, playing four years at Northeastern University. In 2009, he signed a one-year entry-level contract with the team that drafted him four years earlier and spent the next three years with Wilkes-Barre Scranton of the AHL. Vitale made his NHL debut on February 10, 2011 against the Los Angeles Kings and scored his first NHL goal February 16, 2011 against Peter Budaj of the Colorado Avalanche. He only played in 9 NHL games that year, but the next season, he was on the roster full time, playing in 74 NHL games, scoring 4 goals and 10 assists. He signed a two-year contract extension earlier this year.