The 1950’s were a confusing time for hockey card collectors. There were Parkhurst sets in Canada but in the U.S. it was sort of hit and miss. Topps launched its inaugural set in 1954-55 but then took a couple of years off. Finally, in the fall of 1957, they were back. This week we have one of the key rookie cards from that set in our eBay auctions: The Topps debut card of goalie Glen Hall, one of the NHL’s all-time greats. Hall was a steady player who was a bit of an innovator. He used the ‘butterfly style’ of goal keeping and was such a tactician he earned the nickname ‘Mr. Goalie’. Hall won the Vezina Trophy three times and rarely sat out due to injury. Hall played during the ‘50s, ‘60s and finally called it quits after the 1970-71 season when he was 40 years old. Four years later, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Hall won two Stanley Cup titles as a player and added a third when he served as goaltending coach with the Calgary Flames. The ’57-58 Topps hockey set included French and English on the backs of the 66-card set but only players on U.S.-based teams were included. The small size makes it a very attractive set to piece together. The Hall card is one of four major rookie cards in the set, which also includes Gordie Howe. The Hall rookie card we’re offering is among the better examples you’ll find, carrying an SGC 84 (7) label. The set can be a challenge when it comes to centering but this one is not bad at all. Overall, it’s just a very pleasing example. If you have vintage hockey cards in good shape that you’d like to sell, give us a call or drop us a note. Just Collect isn’t just baseball. We buy and auction cards from all of the major sports—even vintage non-sports cards and we have collectors who are always looking for them.
