Player: Serge Savard
Position: Defense
Set: 1969-70 Topps / O-Pee-Chee
Card Number: 4
Why is These Cards are Must Have?: There were several other rookie cards from the 1968-69 set, but none of the level where I considered them must have for a hockey collection. Serge was probably one of the top 10 defensive man of all time. His numbers for a someone who was on defense were good, 106 goals and 333 assists for a total of 439 total points. His most outstanding statistic is his +/- of 460 for his career (6th all time). For those of you who do not understand what +/- means, it’s a measurement of goals scored +1 for his team and -1 for the other team scoring. To have a career mark that high is outstanding, because his position is usually the last stop before the player goes one on one with the goalie. It just goes to show you how effective he was at his position. He earned two awards during his career, the Conn Smythe Trophy (Stanley Cup MVP) and the Bill Masterton Trophy (Qualities of Perseverance and Sportsmanship). He was voted into the Hall of Fame in 1986.
On a Scale of 1 to 10, How Must Have Are These Cards?: An 7, there were other defensive men better than him, but only a few were as effective as he was at his position. You could name players better than him on one hand, he was that good. You can find these cards for about $30 for the O-Pee-Chee version or roughly $15 for the Topps version on eBay (more if graded).
I wish I could get in to hockey cards; I always find them so cheap. If I was at least a little bit into the sport (other than enjoying an very occasional live game) I’d be in to chasing cheap hits.
I have a couple good cards, I think. I have a couple cards of that woman goalie (Manon Rheaum, cleary spelled incorrectly) and a couple other rookies that I looked up in a Beckett once that were worth $20 or so. Nobody I’d heard of, so it wasn’t someone THAT big, but I got it in a lot of cards I purchased cheap, and it was in a screw down holder so I figured it must’ve been good.
I’m rambling… but keep up the great work! I love cheap hits!