Growing up, my mom loved to entertain. She would have all sorts of weird parties, and when she had these parties, my brother, dad and I would most times just leave the house and find other things to do. One year my mom had a home interiors party on the same day as the 1995 NHL Draft. The '95 Draft was held on Saturday, July 8, 1995, in Edmonton, Alberta. This was also the day after my brother turned 15. My dad, making sure he was home for my brother's big day had to go back out to work the next day, so he was not home for my mother's festivities. My brother decided he was going to hang out with his friends, and they came to pick him up around 10am to go to the guitar store about 40 minutes away. That left me at home with my mom and her gang of 40-something cronies mostly for the entire day. My mom had gotten up early that morning to start prepping food for the party. When I entered the kitchen after I woke up, I got the "fend for yourself" speech and the "stay downstairs in the basement and find something on tv to watch so you don't bother us." Real nice.
When I went down to the basement, I turned on ESPN 2 and found out that the NHL Draft was that day. Staying downstairs didn't seem so bad after all. Around noon the ladies started to arrive at my house. I greeted a lot of them at the door when my mom appeared to be too busy. Some of them I knew, others were complete strangers to me. I started smelling some great food. One lady I think her name was Tracy asked me when I opened the door if I liked buffalo chicken dip. I was a big fan of spicy food and anything hot wing related, so I said, "I've never had it before, but it sounds delicious!"
For the life of me I cannot remember what time the draft actually started, all I did know was I didn't want to miss a single pick of that first round. I interviewed my mom last Friday about this day, and even asked her who Tracy was, what time the party started and how much crap she actually bought at this party. Just to add more detail: 1. Tracy was a co-worker who always made good food and my mom said “She made you that St. Louis Blues birthday cake when you were 11.” Ahh yes, the Blues cake with raspberry filling that I wasn’t a fan of. Pretty sure it was my 12th birthday mom, but whatever. 2. My mom has “no damn clue” what time that draft started and “why do you need to know that anyways?” And my personal favorite: 3. “Your dad was away, so I probably spent over $100.” My dad looked over at me and rolled his eyes and said, “now the truth comes out!” Moving on back to my memories of 1995….
Before the first pick was selected, I remember having a Root Beer to drink. I'm pretty sure it was Barq's which is mildly upsetting, but that is always what my dad bought while I lived there. Later on in life I did tell him how terrible that stuff was compared to other Root Beer brands out there and he agreed. It was probably cheap if I had to guess.
With the draft starting in a few minutes, I heard my name upstairs, so I creeped a little closer to the staircase of my parents split entry home to find out what was being said about me. My mom was just telling her friends about my first season on the freshman team in ice hockey. I figured that might be my queue to go up for some food. I started up the steps and I heard my mom's friend Sandy say, "Well, I think I hear someone coming up the stairs." When I emerged the ladies were all looking at some wall portrait of an old mailbox with a wooden wheel with some birds on it. It looked absolutely hideous. I asked them all if they would mind if I made a quick plate and went back downstairs. They all were totally fine with it, and I remember making all of them laugh with something I was saying. The spread of food looked unreal. My mom broke out her nice blue tablecloth and everyone was actually using our silverware instead of plastic cutlery. After grabbing my plate, the first thing I grabbed was a heaping pile of that buffalo chicken dip, some crackers, some clam dip, carrots and broccoli and a meatball sandwich. I was good to go. Now it was time to head back into the basement, but before I did that, I thanked all of the ladies and told them all to have a blast.
Back to draft time. The Islanders were about to select the first selection of the draft. Everyone on the panel covering the draft pretty much knew who it was going to be, so the element of surprise was pretty much lost. Well, the Isles brass is headed to the podium. With the 1st selection in the 1995 NHL Draft, the New York Islanders selected....
After the Berard selection, I dug into the meatball sandwich. It was "ok". I could tell my mom used store bought meatballs instead of the ones she usually made for our family. My mom made pretty darn good meatballs growing up, however, I do believe the ones I make now as an adult are far superior. I totally understand why my mom put out the cheapo meatballs though. With 15 or 16 mouths to feed, it’s totally different than feeding only 4 (most nights 3 due to my dad being away 4 days a week most weeks). The clam dip was phenomenal though. As is tradition. My mom usually made this beer bread with it, but this time, it was just served with crackers. I took a sip of the root beer, the sting in the back of my throat from the Barq's Root Beer wasn't pleasant. On to pick #2...
I am really trying hard to remember what the commentator's thought about this pick. For some strange reason, I thought they were thinking the Sens were going to select a forward. Maybe it was the Kings I'm thinking of, either way, Wade Redden was the pick by the Sens. In my collection, I didn't have any Wade Redden. If you're reading this, I hope you continue on because I had to buy a lot of cards of these guys to get this story out there. This post will end up costing me $28.77. It stinks because I had given away all of my Redden stuff to a young kid who had concussion issues while I was still dating my wife, so probably 11 years ago. Hey kid, if you're out there, can you at least give me back my Paul Gillis nosebleed Pro Set card? Thanks. Wade Redden was decent until he signed a huge contract with the New York Rangers. I remember Redden's name always on the trade block back then. They just could not get rid of the guy. Eventually, they buried him in the AHL to rot the rest of his hockey career making millions to play in the minor leagues. Crazy, but true.
Before the Kings were on the clock, I had polished off the clam dip and the meatball sandwich. “How the hell do you remember this crap, Bryan?” says my wife. Well, because the next thing that happened would change my life forever just like these kids' lives changed during the same time. I took a cracker; I plowed through the middle of the pile of buffalo chicken dip and got myself a nice helping of it (seriously though, why does everyone go and dip right in the middle of a pile of dip...it's never the sides or the back, nope, the middle..anyways). Now the Los Angeles Kings were on the clock.
Crunch. WHAT WAS THIS? Oh my! My tastebuds were having a party. This was the first time I ever had buffalo chicken dip. Man, oh man, was it fantastic! The Kings brass made their way to the podium. They probably thanked Edmonton and yadda yadda yadda.
With the 3rd selection in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Los Angeles Kings select....
Aki-Petteri Berg!
1995/96 Score Summit Aki-Petteri Berg Artist's Proof RC
This guy's name should have come with an AKA. I swear I never heard a single person refer to him as Aki-Petteri Berg other than the Kings staff that selected him. He was always Aki Berg. Aki was a decent defenseman during his NHL career. Don't quote me on this, but I'm pretty sure I remember the commentators of the draft saying this was the first time 3 defenseman were selected with the first 3 picks of a draft. If I'm wrong, sue me, you won't get much. Berg played his entire NHL career which consisted of 10 seasons with the Kings and Maple Leafs. He was mostly a stay-at-home defenseman that would dish out some decent hits from time to time. I actually have a Kings signed puck of Aki Berg. My buddy in California gave it to me for helping him move one time, so there's that. Other than this Score Summit card, that's all the Berg crap I own. I also purchased this card for this blog over at Sportlots. It cost me a whopping $1.39 shipped. It was a card I was familiar with as I had this exact card in my collection back in 1996 or 1997.
So, after a few bites of this buffalo chicken dip, I decided to go upstairs to make sure my mom got the recipe from this Tracy lady for this stuff. My mom who enjoys anything spicy like myself had already been one step ahead of me and had it written down. Score! For years afterwards, my mom would always make this dip in her mini-crock pot anytime there was a gathering, so this day started it all! Ok guys, I'm sure you're sick of reading all this crap, but if you made it this far, thank you. Remember what I said, this post actually cost me money to make, so if you read it all, my $28.77 made it all worth it.
The Anaheim Mighty Ducks were on the board next. I'm really trying to remember who they thought they were selecting and for some reason I think they thought Daymond Langkow was going next, but they were wrong. It did end up being a forward only he was from the OHL instead of the WHL like Langkow and he played a softer game. With the 4th selection in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Anaheim Mighty Ducks select....
Chad Kilger!
1996/97 Donruss Press Proofs Chad Kilger /2000
I'll admit it, I didn't have a single Chad Kilger card. This was purchased for $1 from Burbank Sportscards. Shoutout to those guys over at Burbank. The first card they sent to me had a huge ding in the upper right-hand corner and I messaged them to let them know and they got me a new one out no questions asked. Top notch guys there, so thanks again Burbank! I used to have a cool OPC Kilger card that was /100, but I traded it about 8 years ago to a Maple Leafs fan. I didn't even keep the scan of the card. Way to go Bryan! Kilger ended up being a journeyman who suited up for 6 teams during his 15 seasons in the NHL. Cool fun fact is that his slap shot was once clocked at 106.6 MPH. This would be the unofficial hardest shot in hockey.
After the Ducks had picked Kilger, I remember going over to our basement fridge and grabbing a piece of my brother's leftover birthday cake from the night before and plopping it down right where my meatball sandwich had once rested. Although it kind of sucked since it was a chocolate cake, it was still sugar and it kept me from going back upstairs and interrupting the party. While eating the cake, it started to thunderstorm outside. When a bolt hit near the house, it startled me since our blinds were up in the window in the basement and I could not see outside. Speaking of lightning, they were currently on the clock. I thought that was a weird coincidence.
I used the bathroom while the Lightning were on the clock and while in there, the lights flickered a bit. After I came out of the bathroom, the Lightning were still on the clock (my bathroom trip was only a #1, come on guys!). The Barq’s root beer went right through me. I then sat back down on the couch and a half a minute later, the Lightning had made their pick. With the 5th selection in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Tampa Bay Lightning select....
Daymond Langkow!
1996/97 Select Certified Artists Proof Daymond Langkow /500
This Langkow card cost me a whole $.61 at COMC. Langkow turned out to be a pretty decent pro. He had played his junior hockey with another draft pick in the 1st round of this draft with the Tri-City Americans in the Western Hockey League. In his pro career, he would wear 4 different NHL sweaters (Lightning, Flames, Flyers and Coyotes) and play 1,090 games and end up with 672 points. Fun fact is that his brother Scott (a goalie) saw time in the NHL playing 20 games for the Jets, Coyotes and Thrashers.
Immediately after Langkow was picked, the ladies upstairs were laughing hysterically at something. I hate the feeling when something is funny, and you hear people laugh and you are dying to know what they were laughing at. I remember looking at the screen and they were showing Langkow taking photos with the Lightning front office. Knowing that I probably had a few minutes before the Edmonton Oilers would select, I decided to put on my shoes and ventured out of our basement door to check out the storm. The sky was pretty dark, and I saw some lightning out in the distance. I was just hoping the electricity wouldn't go out so I could keep watching the draft.
Once the Oilers were ready to pick, I am pretty sure the commentators were saying they were looking for someone with a lot of speed and they bet the selection would be Steve Kelly from the Prince Albert Raiders of the WHL. Well, let's just see about that. With the 6th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Edmonton Oilers select....
Steve Kelly!
1997/98 Donruss Canadian Ice Steve Kelly Dominion Series /130
The thing I remember most about the Steve Kelly pick was that they interviewed his younger brother and sister, and they probably gave the dumbest interview I have ever seen (at least from what I remember). Another card I had to buy (I hope you guys appreciate this weird post!). This one cost me a few bucks. Steve Kelly never really had the success he had when he played junior hockey. Kelly was a fast skater, but he couldn't really put it together. He had a short NHL career of 149 games and only scored 9 career goals. This definitely wasn't what the Oilers were looking for with the 6th pick of the draft. A cool thing I learned about Steve Kelly is that he is currently a police officer in Calgary.
The Winnipeg Jets were now on the clock. The commentators I remember 100% they got this one right on who they thought the Jets were picking. Shortly after the Jets were announced to be on the clock, their front office was already on the stage ready to draft their player. It was almost like they were relieved the Oilers picked Kelly, because they had outsmarted them with their pick (totally true by the way). With the 7th selection in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Winnipeg Jets select....
Shane Doan!
1995/96 Bowman's Best Shane Doan Refractor RC
Before I get to Doaner, I actually pulled this card you see here. It was from the only pack of Bowman's Best hockey that I purchased that year. I put it in my PC and it's been there since 1997.
What a great pick by the Jets! Shane Doan was a true power forward that didn't take crap from anyone who could also bury the puck any time he needed to. I have also heard that he never used swear words. That is quite a feat, especially in pro-sports. Doan really never got a chance to sniff getting close to the Stanley Cup and that probably is because he played for the same crappy team his entire career. That really sucks. He was a great player. Shane Doan spent his 21-year career playing only for the Jets and then the Arizona Coyotes (technically the same franchise depending on who you talk to since the Jets became the expansion Coyotes). He ended his career with 1,540 games played and 972 points, made the All-Star game twice and now serves as chief of hockey development for the Coyotes. Would Doan's career had been the same if he was drafted by the Oilers this draft (who had been pretty awful at developing their young talent in the early-mid 90's)?
Right before the next selection, the power in my house went out. I have no idea what transpired before the actual selection. My power came right back on a minute or so later. My tv took another minute or so to fire back on. Of course, since it was 1995, my tv would go back to channel 3 anytime it had been reset, so I had to go back to the channel I was on (ESPN 2 was channel 28). My mom's friend from work ventured downstairs and asked if it was ok to use the bathroom (we only had 2 in the house - split entry, remember?). I obliged and left the room and gave her some privacy since the bathroom is right next to the couch/living area. I ended up going back upstairs to see if any of the buffalo chicken dip was left (I was a pudgy 13-year-old growing boy). There was a little bit of the buffalo chicken dip left, so I asked the ladies if they were going to indulge any more, or if they were done. They all told me to eat it. Especially Tracy. She was happy I liked it. So, I made a small plate of veggies and buffalo chicken dip this time instead of crackers and headed back down to the cave below. By the time I got back my mom's co-worker had finished using our facilities and she was actually standing in the living area of our basement watching the draft. She asked me if the Penguins had picked yet, and I informed her that they had pick #24 and if she needed me to, I would let her know who they selected. She thanked me, but said it wasn't necessary and headed back upstairs.
It looked like Montreal was about to pick, and I swear the commentators thought they were going to select Radek Dvorak. Well, let's just see about that. With the 8th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Montreal Canadiens select...
Terry Ryan!
1996/97 Leaf Preferred Terry Ryan RC
I clearly remember someone on the broadcast saying how terrible of a skater Terry Ryan was and also that he was from Newfoundland. Terry Ryan had a pretty lackluster career, and he is considered a first round bust not only by every hockey fan and member of the media, but also by Ryan himself! He wrote a book about his career called, "Tales of a First Round Nothing." Trust me, this book is worth the read. I own it and have read it twice. It's beyond hilarious!
Tales of a First Round Nothing
I will note that the card above really bothered the crap out of me when I was younger. Look at how he is cross-checking that player near him. Look at his skates. Just seeing this made me think this guy wasn't very good when I was a kid, and I was right! Anyways, Terry Ryan was a bust, but has now become somewhat of a celebrity with a podcast, some cameos in movies and also starring in a Letterkenny spinoff called "Shoresy." He plays the part of a hockey player named Ted Hitchcock.
Sometimes my memory gets a little foggy, and this is one of those times, so I apologize. My brother and his buddy eventually came home from the guitar shop, and it was either during this pick or the next pick. All I know is his friend Chris put me in a pretzel wrestling move as soon as he arrived at my house, and I punched him in the back. My brother's friends were always picking on me. My brother came home with a used guitar with his birthday money from the guitar shop. It wasn't anything special, just a red Squier Stratocaster. Those two took a seat on the couch, and started playing their guitars together which was a little bit distracting, but I just tried to ignore them. I eventually ate the rest of my vegetables and dip and waited in anticipation for the Bruins to pick the next player. The Bruins front office made their way up to the podium. With the 9th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Boston Bruins select....
Kyle McLaren
1995/96 Stadium Club Kyle McLaren Members Only Parallel RC
I don't have much to say about McLaren. He was a steady defenseman, that played his entire 12-year NHL career with 2 franchises (Boston and San Jose). He was a large guy (6'4", 220lbs) that would throw around the body when he could. You loved him if he was on your team and hated to play against him. He was that kind of player.
The Florida Panthers were now on the clock. Around this time, I kinda remember the lightning outside starting to sound like it was further away, so it seemed like maybe it had passed, so that was good. Hopefully no more power outages. My mom did end up coming down the steps while they were on the clock to say "Hi" to my brother's friend Chris (my parents were in a bowling league with his parents), and also to ask my brother if he ate while he was out. He said that they had stopped and gotten fast food, so they were good. When she went upstairs, I had to tell my brother about the buffalo chicken dip. He seemed like he didn't care, or maybe he had tried it at a friend's house, I can’t remember.
The broadcasters I think called this pick. They kept saying how every team was taking this guy when they got to the podium and it didn't happen, so I figured at some point they would get it right. Here we go! With the 10th selection in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Florida Panthers select....
Radek Dvorak!
1995/96 Pinnacle Zenith Rookie Roll Call Radek Dvorak
DUFEX! I did have some crappy Score base card of Dvorak, but I realized no one wants to see that crap, especially me, so I bought this for everyone's viewing pleasure. I love these cards. I may have to do this set. This bad boy cost me $5.25, and it would have been a steal at that price if it didn't have a ding in the bottom right corner when it arrived. I really try to put cards in decent condition on this blog as a reference, but this is a time where I failed. Sorry guys! Dvorak was supposed to be some offensive dynamo, but he only had one season where he scored 30 or more goals (2000-01). Dvorak was a "decent" forward though. I remember him being a part of my NHL '96 team for the Super Nintendo when I won the Stanley Cup. Dvorak had a long career. 18 years in the NHL to be exact, and he played in 1,260 games! To go along with his long career, he also suited up for 8 NHL franchises (Florida, New York, Edmonton, St. Louis, Atlanta, Dallas, Anaheim and retiring with Carolina). All-in-all a decent first round selection!
Now I could lie to you guys and say that I was around for the next selection, but sadly I wasn’t. The doorbell rang and I answered it. It was a co-worker of my mom's (Donna) that I knew, and she had a beagle dog that would wander around their office. If I was sick or off school for whatever reason, my mom usually just let me chill with her at work. When I was there, I’d always pet her dog and it would cheer me up. Anyways, she was telling me how her dog had gotten sick, and she had to take her to the vet and that is why she was late for the party. That dog would end up passing away a few weeks later from cancer. For the life of me, I do not remember the name of this dog, and for the accuracy of this story, I reached out to my mom, and she thought it was Lady, but that didn’t ring a bell with me, so I’m not putting that in stone here. Sorry to sidetrack you on this, back to the draft. After I got done talking with Donna, I walked her upstairs so she could join the party. By the time I was back downstairs for some NHL Draft action, the Dallas Stars had already selected. This selection ended up producing the only Hall of Fame player in this draft class, and I missed it. Damn you Home Interiors! Just for uniformity of this blog post, here you go: With the 11th pick of the 1995 NHL Draft, the Dallas Stars select…
Jarome Iginla!
1995/96 SP Jarome Iginla RC
About Jarome Iginla…where do I start? I have sat around thinking about what all I can say about this guy. I absolutely loved how he played. He was a power forward, but also had some finesse to his game. Iginla could beat the pants off of you in a fight, and then dangle you the next shift he had and bury one. The crazy part is, Dallas ended up trading him before he ever set foot on the ice for them. With Joe Nieuwendyk in a contract dispute with Calgary, the Flames dangled him in a trade to Dallas for Iginla and Corey Millen, and the Stars accepted it. I guess a decent move for both teams since Nieuwendyk helped Dallas win a Stanley Cup in 1999, and Iginla ended up being one of the most decorated Calgary Flames in their team's history. Iggy holds the Flames record for goals and points. When Calgary began to rebuild in 2013, he was dealt at the deadline to my hometown Penguins for some draft picks. He only ended up playing a half a season here before moving on after the Pens were swept in the playoffs by the Boston Bruins (I was so angry during this series). Who did he sign with in the off-season of 2013? The stupid Boston Bruins (which angered me even more). Eventually though, I got over it. Iggy continued his career for 4 more seasons after suiting up for Boston by playing for the Colorado Avalanche and finishing his career with the Los Angeles Kings. During his NHL career Iginla played in 1,554 games, became the 20th player in history to score 600 goals (625) and amassed a total of 1,040 points. Sadly, he wouldn’t ever raise the Stanley Cup. He did however win 2 Rocket Richard trophies (most goals in the league), an Art Ross trophy (most points) and a Lester B. Pearson award (most outstanding player as voted by NHLPA). Not bad for a guy who got passed over 10 times in his draft year! In 2020, Iginla was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame!
After the Stars selected the focus soon shifted to the San Jose Sharks. I think it was Bob McKenzie on the broadcast saying something about the Sharks always picking guys that were off the board. My brother and Chris raided the basement fridge, and both had a huge helping of my brother's birthday cake. There we were, 3 teenagers watching the NHL Draft with birthday cake and root beers, life was good! The Sharks front office made their way to the podium for the selection. With the 12th selection in the 1995 NHL Draft, the San Jose Sharks select…
Teemu Riihijarvi!
1995/96 UD Collector’s Choice World Junior Championship Platinum Player’s Club Teemu Riihijarvi RC
I actually pulled this Riihijärvi card you see here. When I was 14, I would walk in a path behind my house that led to my great grandmother's house. Then, from there I would take the main road all the way to our local Rite Aid. This Rite Aid sold cards. Mostly Collector’s Choice, Pinnacle, Fleer, Stadium Club, Score, and one time they had Flair! On one particular afternoon, my neighbor Jimmy and I ventured to Rite Aid for some candy and a few packs of hockey cards. I bought 2 packs of Collector’s Choice this time and in the 2nd pack I pulled this Riihijärvi. I remembered him being the Sharks 1st rounder from the draft I had watched a few months earlier and held on to this thing. That year I ended up pulling 3 Platinum Player’s Club cards from this Rite Aid (Nikolai Borchevsky, Derek Plante, and Riihijarvi). Sorry, I just had to take you back to the origins of this card. Back to the Sharks selection! The entire broadcast seemed flabbergasted by this selection. One of the commentators said something like “it was from left field”. Not what you want to hear when you’re selecting a first-round draft choice. Since this was almost 28 years ago and my memory isn’t as sharp as it once was, I am pretty sure this guy was just tall and someone saying he was basically a “hot head”. Riihijarvi never ended up playing a single game in the NHL and spent his playing career in Finland and Sweden bouncing in between their various professional leagues until his retirement in 2006.
Before the next pick happened, my brother's friend Jim came over. I never liked this asshat. He was always a total jerk to me, and my brother never stuck up for me. When I turned 16, I punched him right in the face after he kept running his mouth to me. He fell down and his nose gushed with blood. Well, he never once was mean to me ever again. If you ever read this Jim, dude, you suck. When Jim finally settled in, he grabbed the remote and put on MTV (I told you he was a jerk). I grabbed it back and said to my brother and his friends that I really wanted to watch the draft and if they didn’t like it to leave. Well, they did just that! Chris asked them all if they wanted to go play guitar in his garage with his new amplifier and they all seemed pumped to do so. Good riddance! With the Hartford Whalers on the clock, I decided to break out some of my hockey cards. After sorting a little bit, the broadcast was mentioning the Whalers were about to select. With the 13th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Hartford Whalers select…
Jean-Sebastien Giguere!
1997/98 Donruss Rated Rookies Jean-Sebastien Giguere
Ok, I paid for this card. The Giguere cards I currently have are boring in my opinion. This card came via COMC for 67 cents! “Giggy” had a pretty darn good career. He played very limited time for the Whalers, however. After Hartford had relocated to Carolina to become the Caroline Hurricanes, Giguere was dealt to Calgary along with Andrew Cassels for another goalie who was a 1st round draft pick in Trevor Kidd and the main piece which was Gary Roberts. Giggy's career never really took off until he was traded to the Anaheim Mighty Ducks on June 10, 2000, for a 2nd round draft pick. This was a steal for the Ducks who rode Giguere who was the hot hand all the way to the Stanley Cup Final in 2003. However, he would eventually lose in 7 games to the New Jersey Devils. Giguere ended up winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs and become only the fifth player to receive the trophy as part of the losing team. Giggy stuck around with Anaheim for 6 more seasons and battled injry and inconsistency and eventually lost his job a few times to Ilya Bryzgalov and Jonas Hiller. He would later be traded in 2010 to Toronto and play there for 2 seasons and then finish his career in Colorado 5 years later. In his last NHL start which would be against Anaheim, Giguere shared a victory lap after the game with former teammate Teemu Selanne. After seasons end, both players retired. Pretty cool tidbit there (thanks for making me remember that internet!).
Immediately after Giguere was selected my buddy John rang the doorbell. He and I usually rode our bikes to each other's houses in the summertime (roughly 1.23 miles - I GPS'd this for accuracy this past week), and we would normally sleep over if it was a Saturday and then just go home with our parents the next day when we would see them at church. It was kinda our thing. Of course, my house was the place to be back then because if my dad was away for a weekend, we could play hockey in my dad's detached garage since his truck bay would be vacant. John just loved to play goalie and I could pepper him with plenty of shots, so he was awesome to have as a friend. When he came downstairs, he noticed the draft was on and he was pumped. I remember him asking, "What is going on upstairs? Do you realize there are cars parked all the way up your driveway?" I told him about my mom's Home Interiors party and then I had to tell him about buffalo chicken dip. His response was, "Dude, of course I know what buffalo chicken dip is, my uncle makes it all the time!" How was I the only one who never had this stuff before?
Back to the draft. The Buffalo Sabres began walking to the podium. I remember John yelling at the TV for them to take a goalie. Haha, not this pick buddy. With the 14th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Buffalo Sabres select...
Jay McKee!
1996/97 Fleer Ultra Jay McKee In-Person Auto
So, what I can remember about the analysts talking about McKee was that he played his junior hockey pretty close to Buffalo and that he could drive 10 minutes up the road to the rink and I found that pretty cool for the guy. Anything else they said about him was pretty foggy to me, so I won't embarass myself with anything else. Let's talk about the card I have pictured instead! I bought this card. I had only one Jay McKee card and it was some crappy base card that had a terrible photo. Most of the McKee cards I looked at I hated. Found this for $3 shipped, so it lands on this blog post. I don't have much else to chime in on about McKee. He played for 3 teams in his career (Buffalo Sabres, St. Louis Blues and Pittsburgh Penguins). When he played here for the Penguins, he was just a guy on defense. You didn't notice him until he made a mistake. He was mostly a defensive defenseman. He would occasionally chip in an assist or something, but for the life of me, I don't recall him scoring more than 1 goal for the Penguins. That is without even looking at hockeydb or anything else online and I'm not going to even fact check it, I'll stand by it. Anyways, McKee was kind of boring for a first-round selection if you ask me, but he did have a long career (14 years), so his selection is justifiable.
During McKee's interview, we decided to play mini-sticks and I remember this because I had a white Pittsburgh Penguins mini-stick that was signed by Peter Ahola and while we were playing, it broke because I flexed too hard on the shaft of it. If it was autographed by any other player, I probably would have really been mad. Also, I did have another Ahola signature on a Penguins license plate, so it was "ok" with me to have to throw away the mini stick. Toronto was on the clock next, and John asked if we could check out some of my hockey cards. John and I headed upstairs, and he came up and said "Hi" and introduced himself to my mom's friends and grabbed a meatball sub with some chips and I grabbed my black British Knights shoe box which had most of the hockey cards and football cards I wanted to trade, and we went back downstairs. When we got downstairs the Maple Leafs front office was literally announcing the pick. With the 15th selection in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Toronto Maple Leafs select...
Jeff Ware!
1994/95 Select World Junior Championships Team Canada
Fun fact, I had this card, so I didn't have to purchase it at all. When my cousin Alan, who I have talked about on this blog a few times turned 16 and eventually got his driver's license, that day he took me to the card shop. The blog post about it was
here. I bought a pack of Select hockey cards and this was one of the cards that was in the pack. Thanks cousin Alan! I don't really know much about Jeff Ware, so I had to use Wikipedia as a source. Ware played on an Oshawa Generals team that won an OHL league championship back in 1997. He also won a gold medal with Team Canada in the 1997 World Junior tournament. Ware's professional hockey career however, was not the greatest. Jeff had 5 knee surgeries and it looks like this is what caused him to retire after only playing 21 games in the NHL for the Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers scoring only 1 point, an assist.
The two of us continued to go through my cards. A few cards were catching his eye and he was putting them in a pile. We frequently traded sports cards, and there was 1 trade in particular that will live in my memory forever (that will be a separate post one day). After Ware and the Leafs management team left the podium, the Sabres were back on the clock. Of course, once again John was calling for the Sabres to take a goalie. Well, John would be in luck. With the 16th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Buffalo Sabres select...
Martin Biron!
1999/00 Stadium Club Martin Biron One of a Kind Parallel /100
The Marty Biron cards I had were pretty dull. I snagged this puppy from Burbank Sports Cards again. It was a little bit pricier than the other cards I grabbed from them. This put me back $6. I did want it for my collection though as it's a nice shiny piece, so it was the price I had to pay. The commentators at the draft were talking about Biron sporting the #00 during his junior career. That's pretty much all I can remember about what they said about the guy. Biron had a pretty solid NHL career and is now a studio analyst for the Buffalo Sabres before previously being an analyst for TSN and NHL Network. In his 16-year NHL career, Biron suited up for the Sabres, Flyers, Rangers, and Islanders. He retired in 2014 with 230 wins. Fun fact, his brother Mathieu played in the NHL as well!
John had a nice stack set aside before the next pick. He and I talked about the Capitals and what position they might pick, and we both figured it might be defense. Well, why don't we see who they actually selected. With the 17th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Washington Capitals select...
Brad Church!
1995/96 Signature Rookie Draft Day Brad Church Auto /4500
The crappy thing about this card is, I had it at one point in time. My wife bought me one of those weird re-pack things probably 10 years ago now and my auto was...you guessed it, this exact card. I think I gave it to my nephew. So, I had to re-purchase this card for this blog. It cost me roughly $2 via Sportlots. Church didn't really make an impact at all with the Capitals. He played 2 games in the NHL (all for the Caps). He was known for his big frame, and I do remember him being known as somewhat of an enforcer when he was selected. From looking at his junior hockey totals, it looked like he would be a great pick, but he never panned out. Church doesn't even have a real licensed NHL card. However, he did end up having somewhat of an impact on the game of hockey as he is the current COO for the AHL's Portland Pirates. So, you learned something today from this blog of mine.
Before the next pick, we decided to venture out to my garage so I could show him my new Easton Aluminum stick that I had purchased that week. It's still kicking around somewhere (possibly at my brother's house). It was this awesome blue color (sort of looked like the color of the Silver Hawks Blue Grass figure back in the 80's). That's the best I can describe it. I broke the blade on that thing probably 4 games after I purchased it. My mom ended up finding someone she worked with whose son quit playing hockey early on and had 2 extra Titan replacement blades with the glue still on them, so I got them for free! John and I ended up taking my stick inside and we started to tape the blade up with some black tape. By this time, New Jersey was ready to select. I wonder who they would take? With the 18th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the New Jersey Devils select...
Petr Sykora!
2007/08 Ultra Ice Medallion Petr Sykora /100
I didn't have a Sykora card in his Devils uniform, but I did have this parallel numbered to 100. I had a common of him in a Penguins uniform, but the left corner looked like I dropped it on a hard floor. I like to give you guys decent examples of cards when I post them, so you get this instead. Sykora was an awesome pick. He had such a great career scoring 323 goals and 721 total points. I loved watching him when he was here with the Penguins, and he even got to raise the Stanley Cup with them in 2009. I watched that last game where they won it with my buddy and 2 girls, we had no interest in at Buffalo Wild Wings about 10 minutes away from my old condo. I don't know why you needed to know that, but it's here and now posted on the internet. Sorry Shannon, I wasn't interested in you, but thanks for inviting me out to watch the game with your friend Ahsley (who my friend was not interested in). Anyways, Sykora played in the Stanley Cup finals 6 times! However, he would only win twice. Once with New Jersey in 2000, and as I said earlier, with the Penguins in 2009. This is a player the Capitals probably should have taken instead of Church. Heck, a lot of teams that picked before the Devils should have taken him!
After the Devils selection, I remember getting yelled at by my mom. I grabbed a puck from my hockey equipment bag, and I was shooting wrist shots at the back of the couch. Since it was a pull-out couch with a bed, the springs in the bed were making a noise and my mom snuck away from her party to tell me to stop. This is a reoccurring problem with me. I shot so many damn pucks at the back of the couch through the years. John thought it was hilarious when she would yell at me for stupid crap I did. Shortly after she went back upstairs, I began sifting through all of the cards in the pile John had set on the table in front of the couch in the basement. It didn't take long before the Blackhawks were ready to select. With the 19th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Chicago Blackhawks select...
Dmitri Nabokov!
2000/01 Topps Silver Foil Dmitri Nabokov Parallel /100
This is the only Nabokov I own. I found it in a 25-cent bin back in 2015 at a card show. Sadly, it was the only hockey card I purchased that day. It was mostly vintage baseball and newer basketball cards and was at a church about 20 minutes away. I went with a friend of mine who actually told me it was going to be fun. Well, it wasn't. $3 admission fee and I think I came home with 4 cards and spent $6-$7. Ugh. Nabokov lit up the WHL the year after he was drafted for the Regina Pats, but the analysts referred to him at the draft as a project. I remember reading about him in some publication as being a prolific scorer. He would only play in 55 total NHL games though (with the Islanders and Blackhawks) and compiled 24 points. After a stint in the AHL with the Lowell Lock Monsters and not really gaining any traction on another call up to the NHL, he went back to Russia and played 13 more seasons between different leagues in Russia, Austria and Finland. He finally retired in 2011. Sadly, Nabokov passed away from "an illness" on April 14, 2019. RIP Dmitri.
John really had a heaping pile of cards set out, and it was mostly all my good stuff I had for trade. I remember he had set aside a bunch of Rick Mirer rookies that I had compiled, and eventually I would trade them to him that summer for an official Roller Hockey International puck. I played so much with that puck that whatever else I threw in on that deal, I still ended up on top. I shattered 2 nets with that thing taking wicked wristers and slap shots. Man, I loved that stupid puck! After going through the stuff, he had set aside, I would visualize his collection and figure out what he could or could not trade for. You see, his collection wasn't as good as some of my other friend's collections, so I had to temper some expectations on what I would be receiving back. We traded so frequently, and a lot of times I would hook him up. He would sometimes trade me some sort of sports equipment instead of sports cards, and most times it was better than getting something from Play It Again Sports. We chatted for a bit about stuff he had for trade and then the Calgary Flames were selecting. With the 20th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Calgary Flames select...
Denis Gauthier!
1999/00 Be A Player Millenium Signature Series Ruby Denis Gauthier /200
This was a card I had in my collection since around 2008 or 2009. I had bought a crapload of 50 cent cards from a guy on Sports Card Forum who was lightening his load. This was one of the cards I purchased. I just saw it was numbered and decided to buy. Gauthier had a 10 year NHL career for the Flames, Kings, Flyers and Coyotes. He was mainly a stay-at-home defenseman with a bit of mean streak. Fun facts about Gauthier are that his dad was a professional wrestler and his mom was the sister of 3 professional wrestlers! Also, his nephew is Julien Gauthier who currently plays in the NHL for the Ottawa Senators (for the time being).
During the Flames interviews after the pick, there was laughter erupting, so John and I decided to see what was so funny. Well, my mom's friend made some stupid joke about some earrings and the ladies all thought it was hilarious. John and I failed to see the amusement, but while we were upstairs, John grabbed some pretzels, and we went back downstairs. We were chomping on some pretzels and drinking more crappy Root Beer because that's what teenagers do, and the Bruins made their selection. With the 21st pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Boston Bruins select...
Sean Brown!
1997/98 Donruss Sean Brown In-Person Auto
I will admit I bought this card. It cost me a few bucks and the guy who had it listed on eBay had several Sean Brown autographs on this card in particular. He even still has some listed. Some are blank ink, some a blue ink. He has to be a relative of him or something. Sean Brown was dealt a year after being drafted by the Bruins to the Edmonton Oilers. However, Brown would eventually make his way back to the Bruins in 2001 for some playoff depth, but the Bruins never made it past the 2nd round losing to Montreal 4 games to 2. Brown played parts of 9 seasons in the NHL. He was pretty much a hard-hitting goon from what I remember of him. There was one time in particular where he beat the snot out of Jeff Odgers. I watched that game and I'm pretty sure Odgers was bloody. Well, that was who Sean Brown was.
Guys, you almost made it through this thing. Keep pushing, just a handful of picks left. After the Bruins selection and we had our gullets full of pretzels and poison soda, we saw who was picking next and we decided that we didn't care who those jerks picked (the Flyers were picking next). We took my Easton Aluminum stick back to the garage that we had taped up. While in the garage, we noticed my dad's mouse trap had caught a fresh one. John and I just looked at it for a minute or two before I picked up the trap, threw the dead mouse over the hill and reset it. We went back inside and saw that a pick had already gone by, but for the sake of this blog, here you go. With the 22nd pick in the 1995 NHL Draft the Philadelphia Flyers select...
Brian Boucher!
2000/01 Stadium Club Glove Save Brian Boucher Die Cut
Oh my, what a cool card! I had a Boucher card from his days with the Coyotes, but when searching through Burbank's inventory, I had to have this one. My eBay purchase history says I paid $1.50 for this. Honestly, money well spent because this card looks awesome! You probably know Boucher from his time as a studio analyst with ABC, NBCSN, and ESPN. He is actually really good at his job. He also was a pretty good goaltender. Boucher bounced around playing for the Flyers, Hurricanes, Coyotes, Sharks, Flames, Blackhawks and Blue Jackets. His win loss totals don't really tell the story on how good he was. He had a win loss record of 120-139-30. In his defense though, he also played for some pretty crappy teams. In 1999/00 he had his best season and led the league in Goals Against Average with 1.91. I remember him as Team USA's goalie in the World Junior Tournament in 1996 and again in 1997.
We both looked at the tv and saw Washington was on the clock again. John HATED Washington. Almost as much as he hated the Flyers. John hated Washington because some kid used to say he looked like Kevin Hatcher. Man did that piss him off, even though he was no longer a Capital at the time, I just think it stewed enough for him to start hating the entire franchise. Fun fact is that I never once traded that kid a Washington Capitals card. Not Olaf Kolzig, Peter Bondra, or Kevin Hatcher. Now, on to the pick. With the 23rd pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Washington Capitals select...
Miika Elomo!
1995/96 UD Collector’s Choice World Junior Championship Platinum Player’s Club Miika Elomo RC
One of the analysts when Elomo was selected said that Miika was a funny guy. He told some story about what he said about one of the prospects and I remember it not being funny at all. John surely was not amused by it. I do remember what John said once Elomo was selected. He turned to me and said, "Dude, I bet he never even plays for them and just goes back to Finland." Well John, you were wrong. Elomo played 2 games for the Capitals. I was able to see one of them on tv too. It was against the Anaheim Mighty Ducks, and I think Elomo got his only NHL point in that contest. I'm pretty sure anyways. I 100% watched that game with my dad and remember Elomo from watching the draft a few years earlier with John and remember telling my dad that he was a first-round draft pick a few years back. My dad would say something like, "Oh ok." He always thought I had a weird mind when it came to sports. Hockeydb tells me Elomo spent only 2 seasons in North America before heading back to Finland to finish off his career.
Now we were really pumped. The next pick would be our hometown team's selection, the Pittsburgh Penguins were on the clock. We kept looking at the best available picks when they came up on the screen and we would listen to the analysts on who they thought we would pick. I'm pretty sure one of them was spot on with the pick, but I could be wrong. John wanted them to pick a goalie (of course). I remember hoping the pick was either Morozov or Jan Hlavac. Well, let's see who my team selected. With the 24th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Pittsburgh Penguins select...
Alexei Morozov!
1997/98 SP Authentic Future Watch Alexei Morozov
We both liked the pick and after seeing all the highlights they showed of Morozov after he was selected, I thought we had another Jagr on our hands. Sadly, he was super inconsistent. There were times when he looked like the best player on the ice, but most nights he would just be unnoticeable. I just wanted him to become a superstar so bad! He had great hands, a pretty decent shot, but he could never elevate his game like a star could in the NHL. His best season in the NHL was in 2001/02 when he scored 20 goals and had 29 assists. Alexei didn't even top 50 points in a season. I guess he was a disappointment, but I still like the guy. Morozov has a ton of accomplishments in his hockey career, but none of them were from his time in the NHL. He's been the leading scorer in the Russian Super League, a silver medalist with Russia at the Olympics in 1998, and a 2-time Gagarin Cup winner. The most impressive thing to note about Morozov though is that he is the current President of the KHL! Pretty wild! This card came from a birthday gift from my brother in 1999. He bought me a bunch of Penguins cards from a friend of his and put them all in top loaders and wrapped them for me. Sometimes he was nice to me, but it was a rarity.
The next pick was pretty wild, and I'll never forget it. The Quebec Nordiques were relocating their franchise which would become the Coloardo Avalanche. However, at the draft, they hadn't selected their name yet. So, when the analysts and commentators would talk about their team, they would say the Coloardo franchise, or just refer to them as Colorado. Also, their logo was the NHL logo. John and I were talking about how crazy it was that they couldn't get that figured out before the draft. The Colorado franchise's front office started walking towards the stage and they were holding a jersey with the NHL logo on it and I felt bad for the guy who had to wear that thing and get his draft picture taken in it. Let's so who the unlucky guy was. With the 25th pick in the 1995 NHL draft, the Colorado franchise selects...
Marc Denis!
2000/01 Upper Deck Marc Denis UD Exclusives /100
When I figured I would complete this blog post, I knew the exact Marc Denis card I wanted for it. I owned this card a while back, but I traded it to a Blue Jackets fan. So, I paid $2.04 for this one on COMC, but it's well worth it. I remember when I pulled it, at first, I thought he was playing golf. Then it hit me, he was playing street hockey with some kids while wearing a polo shirt and some khaki shorts. Ok then! It might not be your cup of tea, but I dug it. Marc Denis has a losing record. I don't think he was a bad goalie though. His win loss totals are 112-179-28, so you be the judge. Sometimes numbers don't tell the whole story though. The Blue Jackets teams he played on were dreadful and hung him out to dry plenty of times. Denis played parts of 11 seasons in the NHL for 4 different teams (Blue Jackets, Lightning, Avalanche and Canadiens). I still feel bad for your Mr. Denis. It sucks your draft photo wasn't taken in an Avalanche jersey. Blame it on Bettman, because, why not!
Well folks, the last pick is upon us. For some strange reason, I feel like Marc Moro is who the analysts thought was going to be the pick, or am I just imagining this? When I looked at the selections and I saw his name, it sounded familiar to me. John and I were going through some of my Penguins cards before the next pick and both of us were wondering when my mom's party was going to end. John said he was probably going to have to move his bike, so no one would run over a tire or something pulling out of the driveway because a lot of them would have to try to back out of my parents ridiculously long driveway. Back then, there weren't back up cameras. So, John went out to put his bike in the garage. It was a minute or two before he came back in and the selection was made. With the 26th pick in the 1995 NHL Draft, the Detroit Red Wings select...
Maxim Kuznetsov!
2000/01 Be A Player Memorabilia Maxim Kuznetsov Ruby /200
The analysts seem to keep saying how tall this guy was. That's pretty much all I remember about him. I don't remember him in the NHL and from his stats, there is a reason why. In the 136 games he played, he scored a whopping total of 2 goals and 8 assists. He was pretty much just a guy. Kuznetsov stood at 6'5" and 240lbs, so he was a big boy. I'm guessing he was a player in the mold of Kyle McLaren only worse at hockey. When the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup in 2002, Kuznetsov's name was left off the Cup due to only playing in 39 regular season games and 0 games in the playoffs. Had he played 2 more games that season, he would have qualified to be a Stanley Cup champion. Man, that has to suck. Surprisingly I owned this Kuznetsov card. I have no idea how I obtained it, but it's here and it's mine.
Before I close this thing out, I just wanted to mention an elite player in this draft who was selected at pick #91 by the New York Rangers...Marc Savard. I am mentioning him because I loved Marc Savard. He was AWESOME! He was a 2-time All-Star and even won the Stanley Cup in 2011 (even though he didn't play in the playoffs due to post-concussion syndrome). He's also the Oshawa Generals all-time leading scorer. Concussion issues derailed his great career and that really sucks. Well, enjoy my favorite Savard card from my collection:
2010/11 Black Diamond Marc Savard Double Diamond Gold Parallel /10
Ok, let's take you back to 1995.
So, about 10 or 15 minutes after the draft was over, my mom's party started to end. The ladies upstairs were all leaving through the front door and I could hear each of their cars and minivans starting. I figured I'd go upstairs to see what my mom had purchased. So, I get to the top of the steps and see my mom putting chairs back in the dining room and I look to the right of me and what do I see?
Yep. My mom bought that stupid portrait of an old mailbox with a wooden wheel with some birds on it, or at least I thought she bought it. I had to ask my mom about this thing. Yes, she still has it "somewhere under the steps". She also said that it was a gift from the lady running the show. She said it was "old stock" and that my mom could have it. So, thankfully my mom did not pay for this thing, but it hung up downstairs in our basement from 1995-2008. True story!
I want you all to know I had this entry pending completion for 4 years, 11 months and 17 days. It was bugging me to the point where I would work on this every spare minute I had until it’s eventual completion. Enjoy!
