THREE OF A KIND
Jason Markwart couldn’t believe his luck. e Edmonton-based collector hoped that his Washington Capitals spot in a Wests Sports Cards group break would land him something good of his favorite player, Alexander Ovechkin. You can imagine his reaction then when a supplemental break of 2014-15 Upper Deck Overtime packs earned him a Lords of the Rink Autograph of Ovechkin, serial numbered out of three.
“I was actually quite surprised to get anything out of Overtime, let alone an Ovi auto /3,” he said of the 2015 break.
e card assumed a special place in his collection, but it didn’t really cross his mind that there were two more like it
out there somewhere … until one of them showed up on eBay about three months later.
Markwart didn’t pick it up right away, but after three months of haggling with the owner he managed to put together a cash/trade deal to land the single. And with that, he began to wonder if it might be possible to corner the market.
“As soon as I picked up the second one, it became a mission to find the third,” he said.
Fortunately, Markwart is a patient man. It took more than four years, but in January, 2020 that elusive third card popped up on eBay as a Buy It Now.
“I couldn’t believe my eyes when I typed in the search and there it was,” he said. “I instantly hit the B.I.N. as I had just spent four years searching almost daily and wasn’t going to miss out on it.”
While the odds of pulling a 1/1 of your favorite player are long, the likelihood of acquiring each copy of a print run of three – even with the hobby more connected than ever thanks to social media – is almost incalculable. It’s a truly impressive feat.
Today, the cards rank among Markwart’s favorites, though he’s also proud to own both BGS 9.5 and PSA 10 Gem Mint copies of Ovechkin’s 2005-06 Upper Deck Young Guns RC. He says he’s always on the hunt for more cards of the Great 8.
“I just recently picked up another Ovi YG and am currently working out a deal for another,” he said. “Plus, (I’m looking for) some lower-end Ovi inserts and short prints.”
You can reach out to Jason at theoriginaljman77@gmail.com. Just don’t ask for his three-of-a-kind.