Bob Mason played in 145 career NHL games, played in the Olympics and was a member of Team USA for the 1987 Canada Cup. Yet he has a total of 2 NHL cards. Those cards are from the 2004-05 ITG Franchise set, almost 14 years after his last NHL game. Bob Mason couldn't even crack the 1990-91 Pro Set edition. So we'll right those wrongs and present to you the 1984-85 OPC Bob Mason rookie card. Bob Mason is best known for his spread eagle stance after allowing the series winning goal in quadruple overtime in Game 7 versus the New York Islander in 1987. Sport is cruel, as there is always a loser, no matter how well they played. Today Mr Mason is in his 10th year as the goaltending coach for the Minnesota Wild. He has helped the Wild win a William Jennings trophy and a Wild goalie has led the league in save percentage twice during his tenure. ____________________________
Update: July 27, 2020
Mason played several years in the NHL without a card, so I thought I would revisit this post and make a few more cards for Mason - to fill in the blanks. First thing I needed to do was update the 84-85 OPC with a more appropriate picture. It's fairly obvious based on the gear and helmet, that this was a more timely picture for his 84-85 card. For three seasons, starting in 83-84, Mason bounced between the NHL and AHL, spending most of his time in the AHL. The 1986-87 season was his first full season in the NHL. He bounced around the league for his final five seasons, with a different team each year. He only played a handful of games with the Vancouver Canucks in 1990-91, but I wasn't able to find a decent picture to use for a card. So I am still on the lookout for that.
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| 1984-85 OPC Bob Mason (RC) |
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| 1987-88 OPC Bob Mason |
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| 1988-89 OPC Bob Mason |
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| 1989-90 OPC Bob Mason |
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| 1990-91 Pro Set Bob Mason |
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Update October 9, 2021
I finally stumbled across a picture of Bob Mason as a Vancouver Canuck that is usable for a card... although just barely. There was some debate over who this was. In the end it was easy to tell as Bob Mason catches with his right hand, which is a rarity for Vancouver Canucks goalies who wore #31 during the era that the Canucks wore those jerseys. So now the Bob Mason, the original Lost card on this blog, collection is complete.
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| 1991-92 OPC Bob Mason |
I did a double-take on this. The back of the card is amazing. The font and background texture look great. The front of the card looks awesome too, though I think "Bob Mason" is a bit too tall (I'll have to check my PSD file when I get home and see what font I used).
ReplyDeleteMan, I'd love to work on a collaboratin with you.
I got this custom card signed through ttm. Check it out below
ReplyDeletehttp://jblarghcards.blogspot.com/2012/06/ttm-bob-mason.html
The seasons should be adjusted I believe.. after the game 7 loss to the islanders, Mason joined the blackhawks for the 1987-88 season replacing a departed bob sauve (to new jersey).. 1988-89 saw Mason with the Quebec nordiques, splitting duties with Mario Gosselin and a rookie ron tugnutt.. 1989-90 Mason returned to Washington following the departure of pete peeters (to Philadelphia) but a mid-season trade to bring in mike liut (from hartford) would force him to move once again, this time to the Canucks for the 1990-91 season where he paired with kirk McLean until the emergence of Troy gamble
ReplyDeleteOPC would release hockey cards the following season. Thus the 88-89 Set would depict players from 87-88. They may airbrush over a picture with a players new jersey if that trade was made before the season began and before the final card was proofed. There were also no update sets in 80s to show traded players or hot rookies.
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ReplyDeleteAre these custom cards for purchase somewhere? Great job. Keep it up.
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