Joe Paterson: Q&A

  First post in a long time, but I have a very good reason for returning to the blog.  Former NHLer Joe Paterson reached out to me after reading my post about him.  On a past post, I highlighted Joe Paterson's career, and made up a rookie card of him as a Los Angeles King.  I mentioned in the post I didn't make a Red Wings card since I couldn't find any Red Wings pictures of him.  He contacted me and offered to send a few pictures.  I did up a few Red Wings cards for him and he was also gracious enough to answer some questions, and sent some pictures for the Blog.  


Cardboard & Me: What is your earliest hockey memory?

Joe Paterson: We played pond hockey , on the street with skates on and at the school all out door hockey.

C&M: Growing up, who was your favorite team or player? 

Joe Paterson: Toronto Maple Leafs was favorite team & #8 Jim Dorey favorite player (LD) for the Leafs

A young Joe Paterson on the left

C&M Did you collect Hockey cards when you a child or teenager?  Did you have a favorite set or card?  If you didn't collect hockey cards, was there something else you collected?

Joe Paterson: Yes, we collected hockey cards and would make trades and put them on our bikes to make noise with the spokes! (and I wish I still had them)  My favorite cards were action cards and not the head shots unless it was a Gordie Howe card. 

C&M: You were drafted in the 5th round by the Red Wings in 1979.  Draft day was a lot different back then.  What were your expectations heading into the draft?

Joe Paterson: Not even sure I would get drafted.

C&M: How did you find out you were drafted?

Joe Paterson: Teams would call you the next day after the draft!

C&M: How was your that first game?  Any memories that really stick out?

Joe Paterson: Can’t remember first game but I remember first NHL training camp was so fast and a blur! 

C&M: What was it like playing for Mike Keenan?   Did he have any influence on your coaching style?

Joe Paterson: Mike Keenan was tough but I enjoyed playing for him! He really held his players accountable, if you didn’t have a good first shift or not ready to play! He sat you! Star players had a little longer leash. 

C&M: Points wise, you had the most success run of your NHL career playing on a line with Marcel Dionne and Dave Taylor.  What has it like getting a chance to be on a line with two future HHOfers? 

Joe Paterson:  Playing with Taylor & Dionne was the best, both first class guys who treated me real well!  I liked that Dionne always talked to me on the ice on the bench & we roomed together on the road!  He would tell me to let him carry the puck from the d-zone and through the neutral zone 

& go to the net with my stick on the ice ! He’s underrated and at the time just the one team in the west !

C&M: You made an appearance on the sitcom "Who's the Boss", how did that opportunity come about?

Joe Paterson: 😂 That was fun ! Tony Danza was a huge hockey fan and played baseball with player agent Ron Salcer -so Ron asked us as the show was about hockey . Fun time to be on the set for a week!

C&M: Compared to your first NHL game, how were the nerves taping the show?  

Joe Paterson: The show is done twice - in front of a live audience at the end of the week on a Friday - they record both shows then splice and put the best one together! We really didn’t have a lot of lines & Tony Danza is a real character.  Great person who made us laugh. One episode takes a week to do produce!

  (The Who's the Boss episode was S4E3, and titled "There Goes the Bride".  Joe Paterson and Dave Taylor are part of the scene starting at 10:00 mark. It was previously available online but has since been taken down)

Joe, Moana, and Dave

C&M: Who are some players you played with or against that are underrated and deserves more recognition?   Any minor leaguers that you were surprised they didn't become a NHL regular?

Joe Paterson: Marcel Dionne. He deserves more!! What a great player & a small guy playing in a big league  (in terms of the size of players) and now you can’t hook and hold and box guys out like back when he played, it's a penalty. 

C&M: After your playing career, you have been a coach and also a scout.   At what point in your career, did you start thinking about being a coach?  How was the transition to being behind the bench?

Joe Paterson: Toward the end of my career as an older player in the minors I enjoyed sharing experience with the young guys ! 

C&M: Out of all the jerseys, you wore in the NHL and minors, or also coached, which ones stick out as the best and worst?

Joe Paterson: All the sweaters are great , but my first sweater with the Detroit red Wings, being original 6 team and the history ! It was such an honor to put the sweater on.

Joe Paterson wearing the Red Wings Jersey.

C&M: You never had an official NHL rookie card.  Was this something you were aware of, or looked for, while playing?

Joe Paterson: Yes I knew I never had a card & always wanted one!

C&M: Did you keep any memorabilia from your career?  if so, what are some of the items you kept?

Joe Paterson: I still have a puck collection from when I was a kid & would add to it 100 -150 pucks. And a Gretzky stick ! Most of my sweaters from the teams I played with! 

C&M: Do you get many requests for autographs through the mail?  An approximate number per month or year?  What are some of the memorable items fans have mailed you? 

Joe Paterson: I maybe get one or two cards a month in the mail to sign or a puck! 

_____

Currently, Joe is an assistant coach for the Adirondack Junior Thunder in the Eastern Hockey League Premier.  Outside of the rink, he keeps busy by playing pond hockey and painting.  

I am always pleasantly surprised when I see one of my custom cards pop up in a Facebook group or when someone actually comment show they enjoyed the blog on one of those posts. Although to have an ex-NHLer reach out is real honour.  Thank you Mr. Paterson.

Lost Rookies: 1986-87 OPC Mark LaForest

  Mark "Trees" LaForest played in parts of six NHL seasons, but yet only had a single NHL card.  A bit of a late bloomer, not only was Mark undrafted by the NHL, he didn't make the OHL until he was 19 years old.  After playing his overage season in the OHL with the North Bay Centennials, Mark was signed as a free agent by the Detroit Red Wings in 1983.

  Mark bounced around the minors for two seasons before putting up solid numbers with the Adirondack Red Wings of the AHL in 1985-86.  He was called up to Detroit in December of 1985 and made a huge impression in his first NHL game, beating the heavily favoured Philadelphia Flyers, 4-1.  LaForest made 35 saves in the upset.  On January 28, 1986, Mark notched his first career shutout, stopping 26 shots in a 7-0 victory over the Washington Capitals.   Otherwise, there were very few highlights in Mark's rookie NHL season.  He finished 4-21-0, .845, and 4.96 GAA with one shutout.  For the goalie fight fans, there was one highlight as LaForest fought Clint Malarchuk, and the two went at it, "like a couple of hippos, all padding and blubber."

  On a bright note, Laforest was sent down to play in the 1986 AHL playoffs and backstopped the Red Wings to an AHL Calder Cup Championship.  The following season, LaForest spent the majority of the season in the AHL, winning the "Baz" Bastien Trophy as the league's top goalie.  He did spend 5 games in the NHL, going 2-1-0, .892, and 3.30.  During Detroit's surprising play-off run, LaForest was called upon to be the back-up.  During the second round against the Toronto Maple Leafs, he gave a pair of tickets to a Wings play-off home game to some friends who were living across the boarder, and river, in Windsor.  The friends showed their appreciation, and loyalty, by going to the game with faces painted blue and white in support for the Leafs.   On an unrelated note, LaForest never did play another game with the Red Wings.

1987-88 OPC Mark Laforest.

  The Red Wings traded LaForest to the Philadelphia Flyers for a 2nd round pick during the 1987 off-season.  LaForest went 5-9-2, .874, 3.72, with a shutout in 1987-88.  He saw his first career play-off action in the 1988 play-offs.  With the Flyers losing 4-1 in game Four against the Washington Capitals, LaForest replaced starter Ron Hextall between the pipes early in the third period.  The goalie change invigorated the Flyers as they roared with three 3rd period goals and then Murray Craven potted the game winner in overtime.  The win gave the Flyers a 3-1 series lead in the best of 7.  The Flyers tried the same recipe in Game 5 as LaForest entered the game in the 3rd period with the team again down 4 to 1.  They didn't get the same result as the previous game as the Flyers lost 5-2 and Laforest was kicked from the game for being the third man in a fight.  Hextall played the rest of the series as the Flyers went on to lose three straight games, including game 7 in overtime, and the series.  

1988-89 OPC Mark LaForest

  Mark played another season as Hextall's back-up for the Flyers, going 5-7-2, .871 and 4.12.  He lost his back-up gig when the Flyers traded for Ken Wregget of the Toronto Maple Leafs at the 1989 trade deadline.  He finished the season with the Hershey Bears of the AHL.

1989-90 OPC Mark LaForest

  In a neat twist, the Flyers traded LaForest the the Maple Leafs in September of 1989, for a pair of late round draft picks.  An early season injury to Jeff Reese, opened the door for LaForest.  After winning his first game as a Maple Leaf, a 8-4 victory over the Washington Capitals, LaForest endeared himself to the Leafs fans by dropping the blocker and fighting New Jersey Devils goalie Sean Burke.  Laforest became part of a 1A-1B goalie timeshare with Allan Bester, which ended in January when LaForest injured his knee when he fell on the ice... while walking in front of his house.  This reopened the door for Jeff Reese to regain the net and Laforest was the odd man out when the play-offs began.

  Laforest set a career high with nine wins during the 1989-90 season and with the junk wax boom of 1990, he finally got a rookie card.  His one and only NHL card was from the 1990-91 Upper Deck set.  He was shutout of all the other sets.  

1990-91 OPC Mark Laforest

  Laforest was traded to the New York Rangers in the 1990 off-season along with another feisty player, Tie Domi for Greg Johnston.  Buried in the Rangers depth chart behind former Vezina winner, John Vanbiesbrouck, and future star, Mike Richter, LaForest never played a game for the New York Rangers.  He spent the entire 1990-91 season with the Binghamton Rangers of the AHL, where he won his second career "Baz" Bastien Trophy as the AHL's top goalie.  He is one of only two goalies to win the "Baz" Bastien Trophy multiple times. LaForest played two seasons playing for Binghamton in the AHL.

  Mark was left unprotected by the Rangers in the 1992 NHL Expansion Draft.  He was drafted by the Ottawa Senators as the 4th, and final, goalie of the draft.  LaForest never made the team.  He spent the majority of his two seasons as a Senator in the AHL.  He did not make his debut as an Ottawa Senator until March 4th, 1994.  Like all Senators goalies during the early 90s, he didn't fare too well, posting a 0-2-0, .823 and 5.59 in five games.  

  LaForest never had a card as a Senator.  I was not much of a hockey card collector in the mid-90s and I am not much of a fan of any of the sets.  This was when foil became popular and foil is difficult to replicate in photoshop.  Not a design I can be proud of, font issues again, but I felt I should post a Senators card of LaForest.  

1994-95 Upper Deck Mark LaForest

  LaForest was without a NHL contract following thr 1993-94 season and spent the rest of his career playing in the minors.  He retired from professional hockey in 1997.  He is still active in NHL Alumni games and has played in Alumni Outdoor Classics for the Flyers and Maple Leafs.

  

1986-87 OPC #278 Mark LaForest (RC)

1986-87 OPC #278 Mark LaForest (RC)

Lost Cards: 1990-91 OPC Bob Froese

  The tale of  Bob Froese is a Tale of  Two Cities.  In Philadelphia, he was one of the best goalies in the NHL.  In New York, he was a middling back-up.  In both cities, he played in the shadows of former Vezina winners.

  Froese was originally drafted in the 10th round of the 1978 NHL draft by the St. Louis Blues.  Froese never signed a contract with the Blues.  Instead he played three seasons with the Saginaw Generals in the IHL, culminating with the league championship, the Turner Cup in 1981.

  The Philadelphia Flyers signed Froese to a contract during the 1981 offseason.  Bob was sent to play with the Maine Mariners and to back-up International star Pelle Lindbergh.  Lindbergh was called up to the NHL late in the 1981-82 season and Froese followed him with a midseason call-up during the 1982-83 season.

  Lindbergh was injured during an mid-season exhibition game against the Soviet Union on January 6th, 1983.  Froese was recalled and made an immediate impact.  He set a record, since broken*, by winning his first 8 career starts.  He began his career with a 13 game unbeaten streak, which included 3 shutouts.  He was named player of the week for January 23, 1983 and co-player of the Month.  Once Lindbergh was full healthy, Froese was regulated to back-up goalie.  Froese was 9th in Calder voting, while Pelle finished 5th.  Froese finished his rookie season going 17-4-2, .896 and 2.52.  His 2.52 GAA was second best in league.  Both Lindbergh and Froese had rookie cards in the 1983-84 OPC set.  It's the only year they both made the OPC set.

  Froese outplayed Pelle during the 1983-84 season.  Froese's number slipped a bit but he still finished top 5 in GAA, 3.15, and Wins, 28. as well as top ten in save percentage, .887.  Froese started the play-offs, but the Flyers were swept in three game by the Washington Capitals.  It was the third consecutive year the Flyer lost in the 1st round of play-offs, going a combined 1-9 in those years.

  Froese found him playing back-up with the 1984-85 season began.  Although Froese played great, it was Lindbergh who got the majority of the starts.  Froese was played sparingly and against the lesser teams.  Before getting injured in December, Froese was 7-1-0, .920 and 2.09.  A knee injury against the Winnipeg Jets cost Froese two months of the season.  Lindbergh started 28 out of the next 29 games before Froese returned to the crease.  Froese played back-up the rest of the season, finishing with a 13-2-0, .909, and 2.39 GAA.  His Save Percentage and GAA would have led the league if had played enough games.  Lindbergh won the Vezina trophy that season, on the strength of wining 40 games.  The Flyers finished first overall during the NHL regular season and finally made it out of the first round.  The Flyer, with Lindbergh between the pipes, went to the Stanley Cup Finals, but lost to the Edmonton Oilers.  His only start was the Flyer's last game in the play-offs, after Pelle was injured in Game four.  The Flyers lost 8-3 in Game Five of the Finals.  Froese gave up all eight goals.

  Froese did not get a card in the 1985-86 set.  With OPC cutting back its set from 396 cards to 264, as well as Lindbergh's breakout season, Froese was a easy choice for the cutting room, floor.  Originally was going to use a different picture for this card, but how could I pass up a Brad Marsh cameo.

1985-86 OPC Bob Froese

  The Flyers regular season success continued early on during the 1985-86 season.  To start the season Lindbergh was 6-2, while Froese went 5-0.  Tragedy struck the team in the early morning of November 10, 1985.  The evening before, the Flyers were having a team party.  Pelle Lindbergh had a few too many drinks and drove his Porsche into a pole.  He was hospitalized and taken off life support on November 11th.  One of the first things Bobby Flyers GM had to do was cancel a pending trade.  There was already a deal in place to trade Bob Froese to the Los Angeles Kings for defenceman Jay Wells.  

  Froese was to start the next game, but suffered a groin injury during practice when a shot broke his protective cup.  He returned a week later to post a 3-0 shutout against the Hartford Whalers.  Froese had a career year in 1985-86.  He led the league in wins, 31, GAA, 2.55, Save Percentage, .909 and shutouts, 5.  Froese, and teammate, Darren Jensen, won the William Kennings trophy.  He finished 2nd in Vezina voting, by 2 points to winner John Vanbiesbrouck, and was voted 2nd Team All-Star.  While Froese had another great regular season, the Flyers lost in the first round of the play-offs against John Vanbiesbrouck and the New York Rangers.  Froese was outplayed by Vanbiesbrouck and took the brunt of the blame for the early play-off exit.

  Even as the runner-up for the Vezina trophy, Froese found himself starting the season as the back-up goalie for the Flyers, to rookie Ron Hextall.  Hextall got off to a blistering start and Froese only played in three games, and winning all three, before the Flyers traded him to the New York Rangers for Kjell Samuelsson and a 2nd round draft pick on December 18, 1986.  Frustrated by lack of playing time, and tension with Mike Keenan, Froese had requested to be traded.  The prior season, Froese was the runner-up to Vanbiesbrouck in the Vezina voting, now he was runner-up to him in the Ranger's depth chart.  Hextall went on to win the Vezina trophy, while Froese finished 5th, one spot ahead of Vanbiesbrouck.  The Flyer and Rangers had a first round rematch.  This time the heavily favored Flyers won in 6 games.  Froese started two games, winning one and losing one, but Vanbiesbrouck was still the #1 goalie with the Rangers, as he started four games.  Froese finished the season 17-11-0, .885, and 3.64.  It was his last winning season in the NHL.

  Froese spent the next three seasons playing behind John Vanbiesbrouck.  He went 22-32-8, .874, and 3.59 during those three seasons.  One of the almost highlights came on November 29, 1987 when Froese was credited with scoring a NHL goal.  He was, temporally, the second goalie in history to score a goal.   Temporarily, since after video review, the goal was later changed to David Shaw.  OPC gave him a card during the 1987-88 set, but he was left out of subsequent sets.   

1988-89 OPC Bob Froese

 So I made up a 1988-89 OPC, as well as a 1989-90 OPC.  

1989-90 OPC Bob Froese

  Froese entered the 1989-90 season again as the back-up but found himself as the odd man out by January.  Rookie Mike Richter was recalled due to an injury to John Vanbiesbrouck.  Richter, who was also Froese's new roommate and student,  quickly jumped over Froese and began to challenge Vanbiesbrouck for the starting job.  Froese played his last NHL game on January 25, 1990.  He was saddled with the loss, after coming in of relief of Richter in a 8-5 loss to the Calgary Flames.  

  Froese reaggravated a shoulder injury during the 1990 Rangers training camp and he would eventually be forced to retire due to the injury.  Froese became a goalie coach for the Rangers and later the New York Islanders before answering the call of a higher power.  Froese became a pastor.  When he informed Islanders GM Mike Milbury of his decision, Milbury asked how much the church was offering him.  Froese always felt a calling to cloth.  Although he put it aside to play hockey, it became stronger after Lindbergh's death, and inevitable once he was retired.

  Froese never did get a card after the 1987-88 OPC set.  With the emergence of Mike Richter, Froese was bumped down the depth chart and wasn't included in the 1990 Junk Wax boom.  So here is a 1990-91 OPC career capper of Froese.

1990-91 OPC #532 Bob Froese

1990-91 OPC #532 Bob Froese

  Bonus:  Froese did kinda have a card made of him.  Upper Deck used to make commentative sheets for hockey.  From what I can gather, these were giveaways at the game.   A version of a Bob Froese Upper Deck made one of those sheets.  What is interesting is that Froese was featured on a sheet released in February 18, 1991, although he had not played a single game that season.   So although I couldn't find the same picture, I mocked up a 1990-91 Upper Deck Bob Froese. 

1990-91 Upper Deck Bob Froese

* Froese's record of 8 straight career wins to begin a career was bested by Ray Emery of the Ottawa Senators.  A big difference is that Froese won his eight games in 8 starts appearances over a three week span.  It took Emery 3 season, plus a lockout, and 12 games, including three in relief, to win his first 9 career decisions.  

The Lost Cards: 1988-89 Ed Hospodar

  Ed "Boxcar" Hospodar played 9 seasons in the NHL.  He racked up 1314 PIM in 450 games plus and additional 206 PIM in 46 play-off games.  He earned the nickname Boxcar due to his bodychecks.  It was like being hit by a Boxcar, and it rhymed with his last name.  It was in the play-offs that his more memorable moments occurred, the good and the infamous.
  Hospodar was drafted 34th overall by the New York Rangers in the 1979 Entry Draft, sandwiched between goalies Pat Riggin (Lost Cards), and Pelle Lindbergh, (Lost Cards).  Hospodar made his NHL debut on November 21, 1979.  It was a good debut as he notched an assist, and was a +3 in a 6-4 loss.  For the season, he played 20 games, had one assist, and 76 PIM.  Ed scored his first play-off goal against the Atlanta Flames in Game 4 of the first round.  It was the game-winning goal in the Atlanta Flames last game in Atlanta.  The team relocated during the summer.  Ed likes to joke that he knocked the Flames out of Atlanta.  He received a rookie with OPC in the 1980-81 set.
  The 1980-81 season was Ed's best season.  He scored his first NHL regular season goal against Ron Grahame of the Los Angeles Kings in a 6-3 loss on November 2, 1980.  Ed finished the season setting career highs in goals, 5, assists, 14, points, 19, a plus 10 and 219 PIM.  He set a single period play-off record on April 9th, 1981 with 39 PIM in the first period against the Los Angeles Kings.  At the end of the first period a brawl broke out as the teams were leaving the ice.  As seen in the video, he escalates the brawl by fighting Marcel Dionne and later on takes on Dionne and goalie Mario Lessard at the same time.  As part of his 39 PIM, Hospodar received two game misconducts.  Hospodar set a Rangers play-offs record with 93 PIM in 1981.
  Hospodar continued to mix things up in the 1981-82 season, but added to Clark Gillies reputation as the leagues best fighter when Gillies broke Hospodar's jaw.  Hospodar missed almost 2 months.  When he returned, he mixed it up less and played some of his best hockey, notching 6 points in 11 games.
  The Rangers traded Hospodar in the offseason to the Harford Whalers for Kent-Erik Andersson.  Hospodar played two seasons with the Whalers.  He scored one goal, ten points and 362 PIM in 131 games as a Whaler.  Hospodar never had a Topps card and his last OPC card was in the 1981-82 set.  I wanted to feature Hospodar in the 83-84 OPC design but the Whalers wore the Cooperalls that season and I couldn't find a good picture of Ed in them.  So instead, he gets the 84-85 treatment.

1984-85 OPC Ed Hospodar

  Hospodar was released by the Whalers in the 1984 offseason.  He signed with the Philadelphia Flyers.  Hospodar fit in well with the Broad Street Bullies.  He played in the 1985 Stanley Cup Finals against the Edmonton Oilers, a series the Flyers lost in five games.  In the 1985-86 season, Hospodar exploded, by his standards, for four points in a five game stretch.  Immediately afterwards he was dealt to the Minnesota North Stars in a four player deal, Hospodar, and Todd Bergen (Lost Rookie) in exchange for Dave Richter (Lost Rookie) and Bo Berglund.  Hospodar played out the season in Minnesota before being released in the offseason.
  Hospodar re-signed with the Philadelphia Flyers during the 1986 offseason.  He had another Hospodarian season, 45 games, 4 points and 136 PIM.  He was used sparingly in the 1987 play-offs, playing only 5 games in first three rounds.  Although he was a scratch for the Wales Conference Finals Game 6 against the Montreal Canadiens, he played a major role in inciting a rule changing brawl.
  Shayne Corson and Claude Lemieux of the Montreal Canadiens had made a ritual out of staying on the ice during pre-game warm-up until the other team had vacated.  They then played a game of pass and shot the puck into the opponents empty net.  The Flyers felt this was disrespectful and warned Lemieux and Corson not to do it.  For the Game 6 warms-ups Hospodar and Chico Resch (Lost Cards), stayed on the ice until Corson and Lemieux left, without shooting the puck into the Flyers net.  It was a ruse.  As the two Flyers left the ice, Corson and Lemieux, who had been hiding in the hall, skated back on the ice and shoot the puck into the flyers net before Hospodar and Resch could stop them.  Hospodar was able to grab Lemieux and started wailing on him as Claude turtled.  Resch held off Corson.  It wasn't long until the players from both dressing rooms, in various states of undress, streamed onto the ice.  Doug Crossman, from the Flyers, was on the ice in his flip-flops.  The brawl went on for about 10 minutes.  At one point it was petering out until Corson jumped a Flyer and it started up again.  Eventually the players wore themselves out and the officials took the ice to facilitate the players returning to their dressing rooms.  One player who was notably missing in fracas was goalie Ron Hextall.  According to Keenan, he locked Hextall in the equipment cage once the brawl started.  The Flyers went on to win the game, and the series.  They lost in the Stanley Cup Finals in seven games against the Edmonton Oilers.

  Hospodar was suspended for the remainder of the play-offs.  In the off-season the NHL drafted new rules regarding leaving the bench and the number of players who can dress for pre-game warm-ups.  Mike Keenan, the Flyers coach had dressed 24 skaters, 6 more than needed, for the warm-ups.

1987-88 OPC Ed Hospodar

  The Flyers left Hospodar unprotected in the 1987 waiver draft and he  was selected by the Buffalo Sabres.  In 1987-88, his final NHL season, Hospodar had one point and 98 PIM in 42 games.  He started the 1988-89 season in the AHL, but retired after playing five games.

1988-89 OPC #272 Ed Hospodar 

1988-89 OPC #273 Ed Hospodar

Lost Rookies: 1985-86 OPC Todd Bergen

  Todd Bergen burst onto the scene with the Philadelphia Flyers in 1985, but a combination of an abdominal injury, and a combustible relationship with head coach Mike Keenan, had Bergen out of the league by the following season.
  After going undrafted in 1981, Bergen was drafted in the 5th round, 98th overall, by the Philadelphia Flyers.  Bergen's tier 2 junior team, the Prince Albert Raiders, had won the Centennial Cup two seasons in a row and was promoted to the WHL as an expansion team for the 1982-83 season.  Bergen broke out in the 83-84 season, scoring 57 goals in 43 games for the Raiders.  He started the following season with the Hershey bears of the AHL.  After scoring 39 points in 38 games, the Flyers called Bergen up.
  In Bergen's first career game, January 8, 1985, he scored two goals, including the game winner.  The following game, he injured his abdominal muscles and missed the next 25 games.  Upon his return on March 10th, Bergen had a goal and two assists in a 11-4 victory against the Pittsburgh Penguins.  Bergen finished the season with 11 goals and 5 assists in 14 games.  Bergen started the play-offs hot, netting 10 points in his first 7 games, but cooled off dramatically, with only 3 points in his final 10 games.  
  Bergen refused to report to the Flyers 1986 training camp and was suspended from the team.  Originally the story was Bergen refused to report due to personal reasons and planned on retiring to play professional golf.  Rumours swirled about that Bergen wanted a better contract and refused to play for Flyers coach Mike Keenan.  In November of 1985, Bergen was traded in a four player trade to the Minnesota North Stars.  Upon being traded, Bergen told reporters he left the Flyers due to refusing to play for Mike Keenan.  Bergen was upset at the way Keenan treated him in the press, his usage under Keenan, and also how the team, particularly Keenan, treated his injury, as if he was faking it.
  Bergen's injury trouble followed him to Minnesota.  He showed up in Minnesota with a pulled abdominal muscles and wouldn't accept convention treatment.  He missed the entire 85-86 season and a large part of the 86-87 season.  Bergen played in the AHL in 86-87, scoring 23 points in 27 games with the Springfield Indians of the IHL.
  Bergen once again refused to report a training camp, as he held out of the North Stars camp in 1987.   Bergen claimed he was owed $130k backpay.  The North Stars claimed the Flyers owed it.  Before a ruling was held, Bergen decided to retire for good from professional hockey and once again try professional golf.  I can't find any results on his golf career.
  Bergen was quoted in The Hockey in 2004 as claiming "I didn't disappear, I got disappeared."  While Bergen was a very gifted player, and also 6'2', many questioned his desire to play and decisions he made during his short NHL career. As such, he never had a NHL card, or even a team issued card.  If OPC was aggressive as today's card companies, this is what a Todd Bergen rookie card may have looked like.

1985-86 OPC #274 Todd Bergen (RC)

1985-86 OPC #274 Todd Bergen (RC)

Lost Cards: 2000-01 UD Vintage Zarley Zalapski

  Zarley Zalapski was drafted 4th overall in the 1986 NHl entry draft.  What is particular interesting is that he never played college or major junior hockey.  He was drafted from the Canada National team.  Prior to 1988, professionals were not allowed to compete at the Olympics.  The lure of the 1988 Olympics on home soil was enough for a few top prospects to join Team Canada.  There was also coach Dave King who was beginning to make a name for himself.  Three players from the Canadian National team were drafted in the 1st round in 1986.
  While 1988, was the first year professionals were allowed to participate in the Olympics, the NHL did not schedule a break in thier schedule, so few NHLers were able to join.  The roster for the Olympics was a mixture of amateurs, prospects, ex-NHLers, NHL hold-outs and a few players who were granted leave by thier teams.  Hopes were high for Team Canada, who had performed well in tournaments prior to the Olympics.  Unfortunatley, the last-minute influx of a few NHL players, did not boolster the team as expected.  Team Canada finished in 4th place.

1988-89 OPC Olympians - Zarley Zalapksi

  After the Olympics came to an end, several of the amateur players, including Zalapski, made the jump to the NHL.  Zalapski had an assist in each of his first two NHL games and had a 4 point night, including his first career goal against Ron Hextall and the Philadelphia Flyers.  Zarley finished the season with 11 points in 15 games.  In 1988-89, Zarley scored 45 points in 58 games and was selected to the All-Rookie team.  It was enough to get Zarley his first OPC card in the 89-90 set.  I wasn't very impressed by it so I created a 88-89 OPC rookie for Zarley.

  After another injury shortened season in 89-90, Zalapski was finally healthy, but the addition of Larry Murphy to a blueline that already included Paul Coffey, made Zalapski expendable.  The Penguins had an excess of offence but a lack of grit on the backend.  Zalapski was part of the blockbuster deal at the trade deadline with the Hartford Whalers, than sent Ron Francis and Ulf Samuelsson to the Penguins and helped propel the Pens to two back-to-back Stanley Cup Championship.  Zalapski would have his best offensive season while with the Whalers, scoring 20 goals in 92-91 and 65 points in 92-93.  Zalapski was traded to the Calgary Flames at the 1994 trade deadline.  Zarley would slide down the depth charts with the Flames, before a knee injury caused him to miss almost the entire 1996-97 season.  Zalapski continued to struggle during the 97-98 season and was traded to the Montreal Canadiens to finish the year.  Zarley signed as a free agent with the New York Rangers in 1998 off-season, but failed to make the team out of training camp.  Although Upper Deck thought it would get a head start and included Zarley as Ranger in their 1998-99 set.
  Zarley went overseas in 1999 but returned to North America to play in the IHL.  During the season, the injury bug bite the Philadelphia Flyer's blueline and Zalapski was signed to fill in the gaps.  Zalapski began his Flyers career like he did his NHl career, notching assists in his first two games.  After that, Zalapski failed to score a point in ten more games.  As players returned from injury, Zalapksi's ice time disappeared.  While Zalapski would not play in the NHL again, he would continue to play pro hockey, either in North America or Europe, until 2008.
  In 2017, Zalapksi passed away due to a heart disease.
  Zarley's brief stint with the Philadelphia Flyers did not warrant a cart from any of the major card companies, so I decided to create one.  It was an easy choice as to which design to use.  The 2000-01 UD Vintage set was my favourite design from that season.  This was before retro or vintage sets were popular.

Lost Cards: 1987-88 OPC Glenn Resch

  The best New York Islanders goalie in the 70s was not Billy Smith, but Glenn "Chico" Resch.  Chico consistently outplayed Billy in the regular season, but was part of a few disappointing early exits for the Islanders as the decade came to a close.  Which is why one is in the HHOF and the other is one of the most underrated goalies of the 70s/80s.
  Resch was property of the Montereal Canadiens, as one of the last players under the old sponsorship program.  Feeling his chances of making the NHL were not a guarantee, he opted to get educated and accepted a scholarship with at the University of Minnesota-Duluth.  Resch guided the university to it's first ever post-season win in 1971, and was selected to the WCHA 2nd All-Star team.  He attended the 1971 Montreal Canadiens training camp but the team was engorged with young goaltender talent, including rookie Ken Dryden, whom had led them to a Stanley Cup the previous spring.  Resch also found himself behind his idol Rogie Vachon, Phil Myre, Wayne Thomas and Michel Plasse.  The Canadiens had six goalies under contract who we all between the ages of 22 and 26.
  Resch was sent to the Muskegon Mohawks of the IHL to play the 1971-72 season.  Resch won multiple awards including top goalie and rookie of the year.  His play, and the voice of junior coach Bob Turner, drew the attention of New York Islanders GM Bill Torrey.  The Isles and Habs swung a trade that saw four players, including Resch and veteran goalie Denis Dejordy, head to the Island in exchange for a 2nd round draft pick, whom the Habs used to select Glen Goldup.
  Resch would spend two more seasons in the minors, including a brief call-up in 1973-74, before making the NHL for good in 1974-75 season.  Resch was in the back-up role for the regular season, but was given the starters gig in the play-offs.  Then he lost it to Smith, then Smith lost it to Resch.  Resch led the Islanders to an improbable run that included a 3-0 comeback against the Pittsburgh Penguins in the quarter-finals, and then almost duplicating the feat in the semi-finials, pushing the eventual Stanley Cup Champions, the Philadelphia Flyers, to seven games.  The Islanders lost in the Stanley Cup semi-finals in four out of five years from 1975 to 1979.

1974-75 OPC Glen Resch Variant (RC)

  In the six seasons leading upto the Islanders 1980 Stanley Cup victory, Glenn and Billy Smith posted remarkable similar regular season numbers.  Although Resch was twice selected as a 2nd Team All-Star.

Query Results Table

Rk	Player	Tm	From	To	Active	GP	W	L	T/O	GA	SA	SV	SV%	GAA	GA%-	SO	MIN	GPS
1	Glenn Resch	NYI	1974	1980	6	248	138	61	42	600	6938	6338	.914	2.49	77	22	14450	57.3
2	Billy Smith*	NYI	1974	1980	6	248	121	66	51	648	6871	6223	.906	2.74	84	13	14213	51.5

Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 7/23/2019.

  It was the play-offs, in particular the failings, that has Smith in the HHOF and Resch traded into wasteland of the Colorado/New Jersey franchise.  Looking at the five post-season runs leading up to the 1980 Cup win, Smith had been outplayed by Resch overall.

Query Results Table

Rk	Player	Tm	Pos	From	To	Active	GP	W	L	GA	SA	SV	SV%	GAA	GA%-	SO	PIM	MIN
1	Billy Smith*	NYI	G	1974	1979	5	30	16	11	82	863	781	.905	2.88	94	1	38	1705
2	Glenn Resch	NYI	G	1974	1979	5	34	17	15	74	932	858	.921	2.37	80	2	4	1874

Provided by Hockey-Reference.com: View Original Table
Generated 7/23/2019.

  After the play-off success of 1974, the inability to reach the Stanley Cup final the next four seasons were viewed as disappointments.  In particular was the 1978 play-offs, in which the Islanders didn't win a round.  Resch started all seven games against the Toronto Maple Leafs.  He allowed four in the first period of game 6 before being pulled, and then allowed the overtime series winning goal to Lanny McDonald, at home, in game 7 to complete the upset.
  The following post-season, Smith and Resch split starts.  Although their play was similar, Resch lost three games to Smith's one and was in between the pipes in the game six loss to the New York Rangers.  It was another shocking upset and yet another season the Islanders failed to advance to the Stanley Cup finals.
  The 1980 playoffs started off like the previous season, with Smith and Resch alternating starts.  Smith and the Islanders easily beat the Los Angles Kings 8-1 in the series opener.  Resch struggled in game two, allowing 6 goals in 20 minutes of play as the Islanders lost 6-3.  Resch would be benched as Smith started all but one of the remaining games in the Islanders play-off championship run.  The other game Resch started was a 2-0 loss to the Buffalo Sabres.

1980-81 OPC Glenn Resch Variant

  The following season, the Islanders, convinced they would go with Smith in play-offs, and encouraged by the play of rookie Roland Melanson, traded Resch to the Colorado Rockies.  Billy Smith and Islanders would go onto win the Stanley Cup three more times.  Resch and the Rockies would move to New Jersey to become the Devils.  Resch played in the heyday of the Mickey Mouse Organization.  Resch went on to lead the league in losses twice, once as a Rockie and once as a Devil. His GAA with the Rockies/Devils would be 4.10.

1981-82 OPC Original and Reboot

  Glenn was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers late in the 1985-86 season.  In a season and a bit with the Flyers, in limited play, he posted a GAA of 2.97.  He still had it.

  In Resch's last NHL season, he backed-up Calder winner, Ron Hextall, and accompanied the team to the 1987 Stanley Cup finals.  Along the way, Resch played an integral part of play-offs pre-game brawl that would change NHL rules.  The Flyers lost the Finals in seven games to the Edmonton Oilers.

  Resch would get a sorry looking airburshed job in the 1986-87 OPC set.  As a Resch fan, it was not justice.  So created a career capping Lost Card of Glenn Resch for the 1987-88 OPC set.

1987-88 OPC #269 Glenn Resch

1987-88 OPC #269 Glenn Resch