2014-15 SPX Box Break

I really haven't been getting too much into cards this year. First of all, I've been focusing more on my autographed memorabilia collection, which I am chronicling on Not Pulled From Packs. Secondly, I was mostly a Panini guy up until they lost their NHL and NHLPA license, and I just haven't been as excited tis year with many of my favorite brands now off the market. Still, I have been picking up the occasional box, just to get used to An Upper-Deck-only card market, and most recently purchased 2014-15 SPX.

This brand is actually one of the Upper Deck brands I've picked up pretty consistently the past few years. I find that their base cards have a really cool design, the inserts are great, and you typically get some pretty cool hits.

Here's what this year's box got me:

Base Penguins: Marc-Andre Fleury
Typically, if I pull a Penguin, it's usually one of "Flower." Luckily, I am a fan of his, so all is good.

SPX Finite Rookies: Adam Clendening
These actually come individually wrapped as a box-topper. Clendening is now playing for the Vancouver Canucks, and has 1 goal and 3 assists for the year.

SPX Retro: Sidney Crosby, Carey Price, Blake Wheeler, Ty Rattie
These are all throwbacks to the 1997-98 SPX cards, complete with die-cuts and holograms, and look! I got a Crosby!

SPX Rookies Andrew Agozzino, Sam Carrick, Anton Forsberg, Oscar Klefbom
Most of the top rookies from this set come complete with autographs and jersey pieces, but these are a few who did not get the full treatment.

Evgeny Kuznetsov Rookie Inagural Materials
A white jersey swatch from the Capitals young center who is making quite an impact in his rookie season. So far, Kuznetsov has notched 10 goals and 21 assists in 72 games.

Seth Griffith Rookie Inaugural Materials Patch 51/99
Griffith may not have the same first year stats as Kuznetsov, but man, is that a great looking patch. You don't always get good pieces, especially with a relatively small window, but all three Bruins colors are clearly visible, making this quite a fantastic card.

Doug Harvey Winning Materials Dual Stick
A dual-relic card of a Hockey Hall-of-Famer. Both pieces are plain wood, but at least there are some differences in them, which makes it extra cool. 

Darnell Nurse Rookies 279/399
These are the typical rookie cards that are guaranteed one-per-box. each one contains an autograph, plus a large piece of fabric. They are great-looking cards, and I managed to pull a good one with Nurse. Despite not buying a whole lot of hockey cards this year, this is my second card of his I pulled, the first being a jersey card from SP Game Used.

I was definitely glad I purchased this box. The cards all look great, and although there wasn't anything earth-shattering, I ended up with some pretty decent hits. It's a product that's definitely worth a try.

2014-15 ITG Leaf Metal Box Break

I'm really not a prospector when it comes to my hockey card collecting, but I decided to roll the dice on a box of 2014-15 Leaf Metal. The product is an all-autograph set, and primarily features players from the CHL, including the NHL's next big rookie, Connor McDavid, who is projected to go No. 1 overall in the 2015 NHL Entry Draft. There are also a few autographs from current and retired NHL stars as well, and most five-card boxes seem to have a collation of 4 CHLers and one NHLer.

There are also plenty of parallels, but each one is pretty rare, as the highest numbered parallel is /25. Depending on where you live, there are USA and Canada Editions, with each having a parallel with a background representing that country.

Here are the cards that I pulled.

Ryan Kubic Base

Anthony Beauvillier Blue 12/25

Brendan Guhle Purple 3/15

Jeremy Roy Star is Born Die-Cut 14/25

Ray Bourque Canadian Pride Blue 3/10

Of course, the star of this box was the autographed Ray Bourque, numbered just to 10!!! Still, the others were pretty decent, too. Of the prospects, Beauvillier seems to have the biggest upside, scoring 42 goals and 52 assists this season for the Shawnigan Cataractes. It's always tough to tell this early, though, so only time will tell if any of the four are successful at the NHL level. Even if they are not, I still was able to walk away with an autographed card of an NHL hall-of-famer.