Trade with Plaschke, Thy Sweater is Argyle

Greg from Plaschke, Thy Sweater is Argyle is one of my favorite trading partners in the blog world, but we don't really "trade" in the traditional sense. Most trades center around a predetermined card-for-card swap, while others take place over weeks of back-and-forth communication. Greg and I have a different kind of trading style. Basically, I send him a pile of junk, and whenever he gets a pile of junk together, he sends it my way. No e-mails, no negotiations, yet both of us always walk away happy with what we ended up with.

Anyway, here's the most recent "pile of junk" he sent my way.

2014 Stadium Series: Ducks vs. Kings Hockey Puck
Once I discovered that Greg was attending L.A.'s very first outdoor game to watch his Anaheim Ducks, I asked him to pick me up one of these. I figured it would be a cool souvenir of a special event, and pucks are usually pretty inexpensive. Of course, I promised to compensate him for it with cardboard, and now I have this really cool item to add to my hockey puck collection.

Of course, Greg also sent some really cool cards to go along with it:

2006-07 Victory Evgeni Malkin Rookie
Hey, it's Victory, but a Malkin rookie is still a Malkin rookie, and despite all the autographs and jersey cards I have of him, this card FINALLY gets a rookie of his in my collection. Sometimes when you start growing your collection with all sorts of different items, it's surprising to learn of some of the things you still don't have.

2007/08 Victory Jonathan Toews Rookie
Like Malkin, I was in great need of a Toews rookie, after finally getting an autograph of his last year as a redemption replacement, and pulling another one a couple weeks ago. He's a Blackhawk, a gold-medal-winning Olympian, and captained his team to two Stanley Cups, but more importantly (to me, anyway), he's a University of North Dakota alumnus, which will always make him cool in my book.

2006-07 SPX Travis Zajac Rookie Dual Jersey 1155/1299
Another UND guy here, but unlike Toews, I still had yet to get my hand on a hit of his. This one has a lot of different elements in one card: autograph, jersey pieces, and a rookie card. I'm glad that when I finally added a Zajac card to my UND Collection, I was able to make it a pretty major one. 

2006-07 SP Authentic Scott Gomez Sigh of the Times Auto
Like Zajac, Gomez is featured as a member of the New Jersey Devils, but that isn't why I collect either of them. Here's why I collect Gomez. In 2000, my parents, my brothers, and I were visiting my uncle & his family up in Anchorage, Alaska. As it turns out, this would be the summer after Gomez won a Stanley Cup with the Devils, and being from Anchorage, Gomez brought the Cup to his hometown. They had a small parade, which ended at, I think, a city park, where fans like me got the opportunity to get up close & personal to Lord Stanley's Cup.

As luck would have it, two of the items I packed with me on our trip were my Pittsburgh Penguins hockey jersey and hat, so I donned the black and gold and headed out to see the Cup. Anyway, while not everyone is a Gomez fan, he'll always be a special player to me for giving everyone in Anchorage that day the opportunity to be so close to such an amazing piece of hockey history.

2010-11 Crown Royale Eric Tangradi Rookie Auto 360/499
Man, I love the Crown Royale cards. Maybe it's just me, but the die-cutting of these cards, I think, is really cool, and it's the one set every year, where they can basically recycle the same design and no one really cares. That's when you know you have a great looking card. 

2011-12 Prime Brett Bulmer Auto Quad Jersey Rookie 67/199
While I picked up plenty of these auto/quad jersey rookie cards from 2012-13 Prime, this is actually my first one from 2011-12. Bulmer is still going with the Minnesota Wild organization, playing in five games with the NHL club so far this season. He has yet to score his first NHL goal, but hopefully that is right around the corner.

2006 Rookies & Stars Mario Williams Material Rookie 523/799
Lastly, I got this  rookie jersey card of Mario Williams. I remember back in 2006 when the Houston Texans had the number 1 overall pick, and the debate was between Williams, Reggie Bush, and Vince Young. Well, they decided to go with the defensive end, who is now playing for the Buffalo Bills. This year the Texans once again have the top draft pick, but only time will tell just how well that eventually works out for the team.

As always, another great trade with Greg. We both got some great cards, and I was able to add a few items to my collection that I was really lacking in.