Manon Rheaume Autograph from 2011-12 Panini Private Signings

I remember back in the early '90s, one of the biggest players in the hockey card market was actually a woman: Manon Rheaume. She made a big impact by becoming the first woman to play in an official NHL game, when she suited up with the Tampa Bay Lightning for an exhibition game against the St. Louis Blues in 1992, and again in 1993, for an exhibition game against the Boston Bruins. She played her first regular-season professional game in 1992, with the Atlanta Knights of the IHL.

For me, though, getting my hands on an autographed card of hers is more than just a novelty. I have two young daughters, and what she represents, to me at least, is the idea, that what your gender is shouldn't hold you back from accomplishing anything. With Rheaume making he pro men's league debut 20 years ago, and Hayley Wickenheiser and Angela Ruggiero being included as playable "Legends" in NHL 13, it's good to see positive female role models from the world of puck.

Of course, being a father, it is my job to impose my sports interests on my children, and I won't let the fact that they are girls hold me back in any way. If my wife has her way, though, the only way they are getting anywhere near a sheet of ice is if they are fully equipped with sequined-spandex and toe-picks on their skates