2022 trade package #23: Sports Cards From the Dollar Store

It's October which means it's cooling off rapidly and we're heading full speed into hockey season (pro and college!). What better time to show off a package from Canadian buddy of the blog Doug of Sports Cards From the Dollar Store?

Don't let his blog's name fool you, though--Doug's no cheapskate. Not only does he send great cards my way every time, but he also packages them with a level of care that goes above and beyond despite the extra cost. Seriously, for at least the second package in a row I think about 75% of the weight was made up by toploaders.

But I don't want to give the quality aspect short shrift either--time after time he sends some absolute gems my way. Here's what came in last month's salvo from across the border:

The baseball section starts things off on a great note. In terms of base and inserts the Larkin looks great (and is new to me!) and the rest are current and recent-ish Tigers.

And then things really get cooking with a trio of great autographs. The first two star the latest member of my Michigan Baseball hits collection (#33 overall), pitcher Steven Hajjar, the #61 overall pick last year (second round) by the Twins who was flipped to the Reds in a deal for Tyler Mahle at the deadline this season. As usual I love Panini's Elite Extra Edition set and its various versions like the ones you see here.

Meanwhile, Franklin Perez was pretty much considered the headliner of the deal that sent above players JV to Houston and Cameron to Detroit, but he's become the least accomplished of the trio (for various reasons). He hasn't turned 25 yet, though, so who knows what could happen? And in that case why shouldn't I enjoy an acetate auto like the 2018 Bowman High Tek card you see above?

Next, there was a whole mess of Red Wings, many of them recent players I don't know as well since I haven't followed the team as much since the days of Datsyuk and Zetterberg. But there's some great stuff in here with plenty of stars, and you know I got excited seeing a pair of Yzermans. That Octopus foil Mascot insert from 21-22 UD MVP is awesome, and the old school stars from Parkhurst are outstanding as well. And that is indeed an IP or TTM auto of former Wings C Mike Sillinger, a former first-rounded who spent parts of five seasons in Motown during his nearly two decades in the NHL. Sweet!

The basketball portion was relatively tiny at just two items which is fine since that's my least favorite of the four major sports anyway. Jordan Poole features on a sticker that probably won't be hanging around goon/former Spartan Draymond Green's locker anytime soon. And THJ has a slightly legible signature on a Prizm autograph, surprisingly my fourth signed card of his. Is he really about to go into his 10th NBA season?! Now I feel old.

Heading over to the gridiron, you can't go wrong starting off with the GOAT in Tom Brady. How often do you get to see kickers on cards like Feely? Big Mo Hurst has announced he'll be there in-person for this weekend's huge matchup against Penn State, and I hope the DL is as hungry for rushing the QB as he was! Speaking of hungry guys rushing off the edge, big thanks to Doug for my first two cards of #2 overall pick Aidan Hutchinson, who's unfortunately languishing a bit with the garbage Lions, but will likely break out before long. I love this pair of Panini Chronicles cards that come from the Phoenix and Recon subsets, especially because they offer college action photos.

And even more football! Paye is from last year's Phoenix. Rawls has been out of the league for a few years but surprised me by appearing in 35 NFL games over for seasons. It's so great to have Shoelace back on the sidelines blaring his megawatt smile while selling recruits on the sport's greatest historical program. Toomer gets to enjoy a typically shiny Pacific design. Woodson surely loves what he's seen this season, including the guys that play his former position. And that Funchess patch/auto is sick! Game- or player-worn doesn't make much difference to me when a card is autographed and sometimes it's just nice to get a great looking patch whether or not it came from a game jersey. That's hit #21 of him further bolstering my bunches of Funchess!

And now we hit the ice, possibly in time for tonight's season openers in New York and LA. The last few years of Upper Deck's base set featured heavily in this package and that's great because I needed many of them, plus you'll see repeat appearances of a few other products. Of these players, Cogliano is with Colorado (having won the Cup with them last season), Connor is still with the Jets, Copp will soon be making his Red Wings debut, former Wing Glendenning is still with the pictured Stars, and rising star Quinn Hughes will be in his fifth season in Vancouver.

This scan is a good reminder of the firepower Michigan has sent the NHL over the past few decades. Larkin the WolverWing is of course my favorite and I really like how UD occasionally brings back Fleer favorites like Metal sometimes. From this group Hyman, Larkin, and Norris will all appear for their pictured teams. Morrison, of course, has been out of the league for a decade but was a quality regular for a long time after a legendary college career. Meanwhile, Motte will join Norris with Doug's beloved Sens and elder statesman Patch will suit up for Carolina in his 15th NHL season!

After a couple more cards of Max this scan moves on to defenseman Greg Pateryn, who I'm slightly surprise has spent as long in the league as he has. I think he's still in Anaheim's system but don't know if he'll be with them (his sixth team) for a second consecutive season. Stewart is a fellow native of Doug's hometown of Kitchener. Turco remains one of my all-time favorites from the program's history. And former #8 overall pick (one of many first-rounders from the program's history) Werenski will be appearing in his seventh season in (hold on, I need to hold my nose while I say this) Columbus.

Doug included two very cool hits from this sport as well. One is a swatch of a banner from the 2019 NHL Heritage Classic, and outdoor match that saw the Jets defeat the Flames 2-1 in Saskatchewan. The guy pictured on the card, Kyle Connor, had an assist on the OT game-winner, a notable feat in a notable game. I like that you can tell which part of the banner the gigantic swatch came from. If you gave me a choice between an event-worn jersey and something like this I can't say I'd be mad either way, especially with how nice this card looks. It's just my third hit (all relics) of Connor.

And the other relic stars Werenski, whom we just saw a couple cards to the left. It's a swatch from a rookie photoshoot, and it joins one I already had from the 12-card set of...Kyle Connor! How cool is that? If my Connor PC is small then the pile of Werenskis I have is even more diminutive at just two relics, but as always I appreciate having someone like Doug helping me out with my lesser appreciated collections like this.

Doug, as always, thanks for a fantastic pile of cards. I hope you had a nice Canadian Thanksgiving and that you enjoy a happy hockey new year! May your Sens bring you more joy than pain in '22-'23. And may I continue have luck slowly piling up more cards to send you in our ongoing high quality back-and-forth that I've enjoyed for going on a decade!

I expect to be back with more TCDB trade recaps for the next few posts while I wait for other things to arrive and because I skipped this month's show. Maybe I won't go weeks between posts again, who knows? Until then, good luck to your favorite MLB playoff teams and NHL franchises (and NFL too, I guess) as I continue to focus on the 6-0 Wolverines.