7 CARDS THAT DEFINE THE DECADE
These are the cards that best exemplify the era and belong in every serious collection.
1979-80 O-Pee-Chee #18 Wayne Gretzky
It’s the one card every hockey hobbyist dreams of owning, and the one that fans of other sports are most likely to have as part of their collections. No doubt about it – The Great One’s Rookie Card is the single most important hockey card of not just this decade, but all-time. With the presence of counterfeits polluting the market, it’s become a favorite of graders, even as its infamously rough-cut borders make it a challenge to accurately assess.
1971-72 O-Pee-Chee #111 Checklist
Collectors did one of two things with these cards when they were pulled from packs: We checked ‘em or we chunked ‘em. Those two factors help explain why this lowly checklist is the most in-demand card from a set that includes the RCs of Dryden, Lafleur and others, with prices soaring into the four-figure range for high-grade examples. Set builders, who drive the demand for ‘70s product, often have this card on top of their want list.
1972-73 O-Pee-Chee Team Canada #NNO Paul Henderson
It wasn’t exactly a miracle, but it was definitely miracle-adjacent. After falling behind 1-3-1 through the first five games of the epic 1972 Summit Series, the heavily favored Canadians needed to win the final three contests in Moscow to defeat the hated Russians. They did exactly that, with Henderson scoring the winner in each. His series-clinching tally with 34 seconds remaining in Game 8 made him a national icon and ensured this card would be revered forever.
1972-73 O-Pee-Chee #336 Bobby Hull
The defection of the Chicago superstar to the upstart World Hockey Association sent shockwaves through the sporting realm and gave the new league a sturdy leg to stand on. Full marks then to OPC for recognizing that kids would still want to collect The Golden Jet no matter what jersey he was wearing. Their decision to include Hull and many of his new league mates as part of an epic fourth series ensured that a generation of collectors would take the WHA seriously.
1971-72 O-Pee-Chee #45 Ken Dryden
It’s worth remembering that Dryden already was a legend by the time this card was released in the fall of 1971. The young netminder had already won a Stanley Cup and the Conn Smythe Trophy as playo MVP and was idolized through much of Canada. Over the next seven seasons, he captured the Calder Trophy, five Vezinas and five more Stanley Cups, making him the most decorated player, per season, in NHL history. No wonder his RC is a must-have.
1971-72 O-Pee-Chee #148 Guy Lafleur
Like Dryden, Lafleur was a cornerstone player for the Canadiens during one of the greatest runs of success in NHL history. The flashy winger wasn’t an immediate sensation, but by the time he got his legs under him he’d become the first player to score 50 goals and 100 points in six consecutive seasons. With five Stanley Cups, three scoring titles and two MVPs he became a hero to a generation, ensuring his RC would be the foundation of countless collections.
1976-77 O-Pee-Chee #213 Bobby Orr
To this day, there’s something about this card that reeks of blasphemy. No matter that Orr was misled by his agent, Alan Eagleson, and gifted to his friend Bill Wirtz and the Blackhawks, it still felt like a betrayal that he would wear anything but the black and gold of the Bruins. The crude airbrushing of this image seems fitting. It reinforces that something wasn’t right about No. 4 in that jersey.