With just two exceptions, all of these signatures come from a COMC.com package. You'd almost think I was building the SPGU autograph set. There's actually a simple explanation for there being so many from that particular set. SPGU was sold via epack from Upper Deck. Box breakers quickly flipped those e-breaks to COMC, who has a partnership in place with UD. As always, some people want crazy prices, but some just want to unload unwanted cards as quickly as possible. When the market starts to become saturated, I jump and pick up the signatures I need usually for just $1-2 dollars. At that price its much cheaper and efficient to acquire a certified autograph than write to a player.
I organized this mail post a little different because most of the new autographs here are all from guys who made their NHL debuts during the 2015/16 season. I thus grouped them all together.
36 New NHL player autographs raises the grand total of unique signatures to 5,461 for 73% of everyone to ever play in the league.
Steve Yzerman
It might seem odd that I've gone this long without picking up a Stevie Y signature. The longtime Red Wings captain is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and won numerous awards during his career. He's such a fan favorite that his autographs never sell cheap. His signature was simply never a priority because there are lots out there but they're never cheap. Next up is Patrick Roy then my certified autograph wantlist will be complete.
Erik Andersson
Swedish forward Erik Anderson spent 4 years at the University of Denver before signing with the Flames. He played 12 games in the NHL with the 1997/98 Flames, scoring 2 goals and 3 points.
This is one of the two cards I didn't acquire via COMC but did come with the package. Another feature I very much like about COMC is the mailbox, which allows me to send ebay wins to "my" COMC mailbox at a US address. Shipping this card to Canada would have cost me five times more than the actual card, without the mailbox I simply would not have bought it. I can't stress how much I like this service.
Andrew Murray
This is just the 2nd card of the post not purchased on COMC. This comes all the way from Russia and is one of the many SoReal KHL autographs I've acquired. From 2007 to 2013 Andrew Murray played 221 games in the NHL, scoring 24 goals and 40 points. He spent most of that time with the Columbus Blue Jackets but also dressed with the San Jose Sharks and St. Louis Blues.
14/15 debuts:
Andre Burakovsky
Austria born, Swedish raised Andre Burakovsky was drafted 23rd overall by the Capitals in 2013. His father, Robert, also played in the NHL. Andre has scored 95 points in 196 regular season NHL games with the Capitals. Internationally he represented Sweden at the 2016 World Championships.
Anton Forsberg
Swedish goalie Anton Forsberg has appeared in 10 NHL games over 3 seasons with the Columbus Blue Jackets. Drafted in the 7th round in 2011, he won Gold at the 2012 World Juniors with Sweden.
Sam Reinhart
Sam Reinhart was drafted 2nd overall in 2014 by the Sabres. He's scored 40 goals and 90 points in 167 NHL games so far. Internationally, he won Gold at the 2015 World Juniors and Gold at the 2016 World Championships. From a hockey family, his father, Paul, was an NHL All-Star and his brothers, Max and Griffin, have both also played in the NHL.
15/16 debuts:
Pontus Aberg
Swedish forward Pontus Aberg made his NHL debut in the 2016 playoffs with Nashville. So far he's actually played in more career postseason games and in 2017 helped Nashville reach the Stanley Cup finals. He was drafted in the 2nd round by Nashville in 2012.
Chris Bigras
Defenceman Chris Bigras was drafted 32nd overall by the Avalanche in 2013. He played 31 games in the NHL with Colorado in 2015/16. Internationally, he represented Canada at the 2014 World Juniors
Christoph Bertschy
Swiss forward Christoph Bertschy was drafted by the Wild in the 6th round of the 2012 draft. He's played in 8 NHL games with Minnesota.
Oliver Bjorkstrand
Denmark native Oliver Bjorkstrand has scored 10 goals and 21 points in 38 NHL games with the Columbus Blue Jackets. He represented Denmark at the 2015 Men's World Championships.
Connor Brown
Taken in the 6th round of the 2012 draft, Connor Brown scored 20 goals as a rookie with the 2016/17 Maple Leafs. As a junior he was a linemate of Connor McDavid's with the Erie Otters.
Daniel Carr
Daniel Carr was signed by the Canadiens as a free agent in 2014 after 4 years at Union College. He's since played in 56 NHL games with Montreal, scoring 8 goals and 18 points.
Chase De Leo
Center Chase De Leo played in 2 NHL games with the 2015/16 Winnipeg Jets. Internationally, he represented USA at the 2015 World Juniors.
Joonas Donskoi
Finn Joonas Donskoi was drafted by the Florida Panthers in 2010 but opted to stay in Europe and not sign with the club. In 2015 he signed with the San Jose Sharks as a free agent and soon thereafter made his North American debut. He's played 2 full seasons in San Jose and in 2016 helped the team reach the Stanley Cup finals. Internationally, he's represented Finland at the World Juniors, World Championships and World Cup.
Hudson Fasching
University of Minnesota alumni Hudson Fasching was drafted by the LA Kings in 2013 but was traded to the Buffalo Sabres in 2014. He's played 17 NHL games with the Sabres. Internationally, he played on America's World Junior teams in 2014 and 2015 and in 2016 played on the Men's World Championship team.
Kasperi Kapanen
Kasperi Kapanen was drafted in the first round, 22nd overall, by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2014. He was acquired by Toronto in the Phil Kessel trade and has since played 17 NHL games with the Maple Leafs. Internationally, he helped Finland win Gold at the 2016 World Juniors. His father is long time NHLer Sami Kapanen.
Joonas Kemppainen
Joonas Kemppainen has spent most of his career in Europe. He came to North America for one season, playing 44 games with the 2015/16 Boston Bruins as a 27 year old rookie. Internationally, he represented Finland at the 2015 and 2017 World Championships.
Tanner Kero
Tanner Kero was an undrafted Michigan Tech alumni when he was signed by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2015. He made his NHL debut with the 2015/16 Hawks and has since played 64 games in the NHL.
Jujhar Khaira
Jujhar Khaira is notable for being only the 3rd player of Punjabi descent to suit up in the NHL. He's played 25 games in the NHL with the Edmonton Oilers since 2015/16.
Tom Kuhnhackl
German Tom Kuhnhackls was drafted by the Penguins in 2010. He was a member of the 2016 and 2017 Penguins Stanley Cup championships.
Michael Matheson
Defenceman Michael Matheson was a first round pick of the Florida Panthers in 2012. He attended Boston College for three seasons before signing with Florida. He established himself as a full time NHLer in 2016/17, playing 81 games. Internationally, he helped Canada win Gold at the 2016 World Championships and Silver at the 2017 Worlds.
Mark McNeill
Forward Mark McNeill was drafted 18th overall by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2011. He played in just 1 game for Chicago in 2015/16. He was traded to the Dallas Stars and played 1 game for the team in 2016/17. Internationally, he represented Canada at the 2013 World Juniors.
Sonny Milano
The Columbus Blue Jackets drafted Sonny Milano 16th overall in 2014. Milano has played in 7 NHL games with the Blue Jackets. He played for the USA at the 2015 World Juniors.
Nic Petan
Nicolas Petan was a 2nd round pick of the Winnipeg Jets in 2013. He's played 80 NHL games for the club since 2015/16. He won Gold with Canada at the 2015 World Juniors.
Tyler Randell
Forward Tyler Randell was drafted in the 6th round by the Boston Bruins in 2009. He scored 6 goals in 27 career NHL games with the 2015/16 Bruins.
Mike Reilly
Defenceman Mike Reilly was drafted by the Columbus Blues Jackets in 2011 but spent three seasons at the University of Minnesota and never signed with Columbus. In 2015 the Wild signed him as a free agent and he's since played 46 NHL games with the club. Internationally, he won Gold with USA at the 2013 World Juniors and a Bronze at the 2015 Men's World Championships.
Evan Rodrigues
The Buffalo Sabres signed Evan Rodrigues as an undrafted free agent in 2015. He had just finished a successful college career at Boston University and was Jack Eichel's linemate. Rodrigues has played in 32 NHL games with the Sabres, scoring 5 goals and 8 points.
Steven Santini
Defenceman Steven Santini was drafted in the 2nd round by New Jersey in 2013. He spent 3 seasons at Boston College before turning pro with the 2015/16 Devils. Santini has played 29 NHL games with New Jersey. Internationally, he represented US at the 2014 World Juniors and 2016 World Championships.
Devin Shore
A 2012 2nd round pick, Devin Shore played all 82 games with the 2016/17 Dallas Stars. He's a University of Maine alumni.
Dominik Simon
Czech forward Dominik Simon has played 5 NHL games with the Penguins over two seasons. Internationally, he represented his country at the 2015 World Championships.
Brady Skjei
Defenceman Brady Skjei was drafted in the 1st round of the 2012 NHL draft by the New York Rangers. The University of Minnesota product spent the whole 2016/17 season in the NHL with the Rangers, scoring 39 points in 80 games. He was selected to play for USA at the 2016 and 2017 Men's World Championships.
Daniel Sprong
A product of the Netherlands, Daniel Sprong was drafted 46th overall by Pittsburgh in 2015 and a couple months later made his surprise NHL debut, playing 18 games with Pittsburgh before being sent back to junior.
Oskar Sundqvist
Swedish forward Oskar Sundqvist played a couple playoff games for the Stanley Cup winning Penguins in 2016. It was enough to hoist the Trophy but he never got his name engraved. Sundqvist has played 28 games for the Pens over two seasons. Internationally, he won a Silver at the 2014 World Juniors.
Jake Virtanen
The Vancouver Canucks drafted Jake Virtanen 6th overall in 2014. He's played in 65 NHL games with the Canucks but has not reached his potential. Internationally, Virtanen won Gold with Canada at the 2015 World Juniors.
Miles Wood
Miles Wood was drafted by the New Jersey Devils while playing high school hockey. He spent 1 year at Boston College before turning pro and has played 61 NHL games with the Devils. Internationally, Miles represented US at the 2015 World Juniors and 2016 World Championships. His father, Randy Wood, was a long time NHL player.
Pavel Zacha
Czech forward Pavel Zacha was drafted 6th overall by the Devils in 2015. He's scored 26 points in 71 NHL games with New Jersey so far.
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Ending the mail post in the usual fashion with "other" hockey autographs. 2 for the NHL backups only binder and 2 for the women of hockey binder.
Alexey Volkov
Alexey Volkov made an emergency backup appearance in the NHL with the 1998/99 Los Angles Kings. The Kings were facing a string a goalie injuries that forced them to recall the 18 year old Volkov from the Halifax Mooseheads. Volkov only played 1 year of pro hockey in North America, spending most of his career in Europe.
Daniel Altschuller has appeared in 6 NHL games over two seasons as backup with the Carolina Hurricanes. The Oshawa Generals product was drafted in the 3rd round of the 2012 draft.
Meghan Mikkelson
Defeceman Meghan Mikkelson won Olympic Gold with Canada at the 2010 and 2014 Olympics. Meghan is from a hockey family with her father, Bill, and brother, Brendan, having both played in the NHL.
Defenceman Tara Watchorn is most notable for winning Gold with Canada at the 2014 Olympics in Sochi. She's also won Silver at the Women's World Championships in 2011, 2015 and 2016.
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