In 2005, I started to get the collecting itch again after purging most of my collection in 2002 to assist with the purchase of my first house. With $10 burning a hole in my pocket at a flea market in Ohio, I purchased a lot of 50 hockey rookie cards from an older lady selling mostly knitted dolls. She wouldn't let me look inside the small box, but she said her son had collected up until a few years ago and these were his "leftovers." I figured most of the cards were commons and I remember when I got back to my house, I had heard of a few of the guys, but some of the cards were from players in the 1970's. Not all are in the best shape, but for $10, what do you want? After a while, I decided just to put the box in the corner of my closet, and I simply forgot about it. So, 14 years later, I decided I would take out a card from the box at random and write a small post about the player. I'll count down from 50. Here goes:
45. 1991/92 7th Inning Sketch WHL Ashley Buckberger RC #193
Ashley Buckberger was born on February 19, 1975, in Esterhazy, Saskatchewan. At age 15, Buckberger would start his junior hockey career with the Swift Current Broncos of the WHL. Playing in 10 games that season, he would score 5 points (2 goals, 3 assists). The next season (1991/92), Buckberger would play 67 games scoring 45 points (23 goals, 22 assists). This would earn him the Daryl K. (Doc) Seaman Trophy as the top scholastic player in the WHL and also the Jim Piggott Memorial Trophy which is awarded to the most proficient player in his first full year of competition. The year that followed saw his point total creep up yet again. This time, he would post 67 points (23 goals, 44 assists). The Quebec Nordiques took notice and would select Buckberger in the 2nd Round of the 1993 NHL Entry Draft at 49th overall. The 1993/94 season would be Buckberger's best. In 67 games, he would post his only 40+ goal season in his WHL career with 42 and amass 87 points total. After attending training camp in Quebec and not making the team, he was sent back to junior hockey to play another season for Swift Current in 1994/95. However, before the trade deadline expired, he was sent to the Kamloops Blazers along with defenseman Keith McCambridge for center Cam Severson, defenseman Jeff Henkleman and a player on Kamloops protected list and a 4th Round Pick in the WHL Bantam Draft. Buckberger would play his final 21 games in the WHL with Kamloops and post 22 points. Kamloops made a long run in the playoffs but would be beaten in the WHL Championship 4 games to 2 by the Brandon Wheat Kings.
Once his junior hockey career ended, Buckberger found himself in the AHL playing for the Carolina Monarchs in 1995/96, which was the AHL affiliate of the Florida Panthers. After playing for the Monarchs for 2 seasons (95/96 and 96/97) only scoring a total of 35 points in 136 games. Buckberger then played for the New Haven Beast of the AHL in 1997/98 which was an affiliate of the Carolina Hurricanes and Florida Panthers. His point total also stayed pretty much the same as his 2 previous seasons in pro hockey with only 17 points in 66 games. The 1998/99 season is where Buckberger would play on 3 teams. He played internationally with the Canadian National Team for 35 games (6 goals, 5 assists) and then the Gand Rapids Griffins in the IHL for 11 games (1 goal, 2 assists) before ending the season with the Las Vegas Thunder (24 games, 8 points). In 1999/00, Buckberger took his talents to Tacoma and signed in the West Coast Hockey League for the Tacoma Sabercats who had just come off a championship win in the previous season. Buckberger would find his scoring touch again by posting his best season as a pro with 20 goals and 40 assists in 70 games. The next season, he played with the Sabercats again, but his scoring was down (31 points in 60 games). This would be Ashley Buckberger's last year in professional hockey. He would go back to school and attent the University of Saskatchewan and receive a Master of Professional Accounting. Buckberger now is co-owner of his own CPA firm called Buckberger, Baerg & Partners LLC. The former pro hockey player who would crunch players against the boards is now crunching numbers.
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