Tyler Seguin Autographed Puck

I'm mainly a Pittsburgh Penguins fan, of course, but due to growing up in Texas, I am also a Dallas Stars fan. That sometimes comes at odds with the fact that I now live in Minnesota, as there is still bad blood towards the franchise, despite having a team of our own again. Still, I am a fan, and like to get my hands on Stars items whenever the opportunities present themselves.

Recently, Stars center Tyler Seguin did a private signing with Your Sports Memorabilia Store.com, and I jumped at the chance to get something signed. There was an option to purchase from them an "autograph puck" for the signing, which is a puck with a small team logo in the center, which leaves lots of black space surrounding it for the signature. They're great if you want an inscription on the puck, but for me, it looks SO much better to get an official game puck with just the player's signature. In my opinion, it just looks like a more high-end item, and much nicer. Of course, this meant I had to spend extra money on the more expensive puck, and pay for postage to send it in, but at long last, the signing was complete, and I now have the puck in my hands.

As and extra touch, Seguin added his own "Seguin Authentic" hologram to the back, giving his own authenticity guarantee to it. I'm not planning on selling or trading it, so it's not necessary to me, but it's certainly a nice touch.

Seguin can be a tough get sometimes. He doesn't seem to do any TTM, and in person he can be tough to get to stop and sign, so I knew when this opportunity came up, I had to take it. It's a great new addition to my collection, and I'm glad to finally have a Seguin signature.

Cole Bjugson Autographs from 2/20/2015 Fargo Force Game

My wife, my girls, and I attended Friday night's Fargo Force game, as they hosted the Sioux Falls Stampede, and ugh, it was a rough one. Turnovers, bad mistakes, and a loss of composure led to a 5-0 loss for a team struggling to make the USHL playoffs. I did get the chance to meet defenseman Cole Bjugson after the game as the "Player Spotlight" that night, and he signed a puck, a card, and a game scorecard.

Chris Chelios TTM Return

I got another amazing TTM return this week, as three autographed Chris Chelios cards showed up in my mailbox.

I sent a total of four cards. The third one, a 1990-01 Upper Deck All-Star card got left behind, but I'm thrilled to have these three. Chelios is a Hockey Hall-of-Famer and one of the greatest American hockey players in NHL history. I sent the cards to the Detroit Red Wings, where Chelios is an Adviser to Hockey Operations, and received them back in just 8 days!

Brian Savage TTM Return

Here is a TTM return that started out with one item. I had a Phoenix Coyotes pucks laying around, and wanted to get it signed. Seeing as though I live all the way up in Minnesota, an IP signature just isn't an option, so I knew I wanted to get it signed through the mail. The only question was, who?

The puck was of their original logo (well, original after their move from Winnipeg), so it had to be of someone who played during that time period. Then, it was simply a matter of finding out who was a good TTM signer, and going from there. Brian Savage ended up being a guy who is very fan-friendly when it comes to signing, so I figured he would be a good try. It turned out well, as he returned the puck, as well as the three cards I sent to his home address, in just 8 days!

John Vanbiesbrouck TTM Return

I was very excited to get a quick TTM return from one of my all-time favorite goaltenders, John Vanbiesbrouck, who signed four hockey cards. I became kind of a Panthers fan for a little bit during the mid '90s, and on this team, they had Scott Mellanby, Brian Skrudland, and Ed Jovanovski, but Vanbiesbrouck was definitely the man. Not only that, but he had one of my all-time favorite goalie masks, with such a simple, yet distinct, design.

John was nice enough to sign these cards for me that were sent to him through the Muskegon Lumberjacks of the USHL, where he is the team's general manager. The cards were sent out Jan. 31st, and arrived just 14 days later.

Autographs from the 2/14/2015 Fargo Force Game

My wife & I went to the Fargo Force hockey game Saturday night & had a great time. Now, it may seem odd to some that we went and did something that I wanted to do on Valentine's Day, which is also her birrthday, but don't worry. We have a nice dinner, followed by the Fargo performance of the "So You Think You Can Dance" Season 11 Tour Stop, so she'll be getting hers.

We did have a lot of fun at the game, though, and a 3-2 win helped out with the festivities. They also had their annual "Purple-N-Pucks" fundraiser, which raises money for Embrace, which is Sanford Health's local cancer survivorship program. They wore special purple jerseys for the game, that would be auctioned off afterward, so of course, I stayed to try and get in on the action. I had a little bit of money to spend, but once I realized that the jerseys were going for $400+, I had to ducks out of that one.

Still, I was able to get a puck autographed by Force team captain Mike Babcock, who is the son of the Detroit Red Wings coach, and has committed to Merrimack College for his next hockey destination.

One fundraiser that I wasn't too poor to take part in was their Mystery Pucks. For just five bucks a piece, fans could purchase a puck signed by one of the Force players. The pucks were purple and contained the Purple-N-Pucks logo printed in white.

Most were signed in black, but if you pulled one signed in silver, you could meet the player after the game. I don't know if they were all this way, but all four of mine were signed on the plain surface of the back-side. Persomally, I think it looks better when the signature is on the logo-side, but I was still able to add four more autographed pucks to my collection. Here's who I got:

Victor Bergstrom:  Defenseman, 6 assists in 30 games

T.J. Roo: 9 goals and 8 assists in 46 games. Committed to Bemidji State University

Jack Jenkins: 11 goals & 17 assists in 43 games, including Saturday's game-winner.

Robbie Beydoun: 5-6-11 record in 13 games, with a 2.61 GGA & .931 SV%.

That's what I came away with this game. It was a great time & for a great cause, so what could be wrong with that!

Stephane Matteau Autographed Puck

While it's always great to have autographs of some of the game's most legendary players, I am also a big fan of those players who may not have had legendary careers, but were a part of some legendary moments. I got one such item recently, when Stephane Matteau was doing a private signing. Luckily, I already had a 1994 Stanley Cup Champions logo puck, so I figured he would be the perfect player to sign it.

Matteau had a 13-year career with six different teams, but is most known for his role in the New York Rangers' 1994 Stanley Cup victory. He actually scored two overtime goals in the conference finals against the New Jersey Devils, including the game 7 overtime clincher, which prompted Rangers radio play-by-play announcer Howie Rose's famed call:

"Fetisov for the Devils plays it cross-ice, into the far corner. Matteau swoops in to intercept. Matteau behind the net, swings it in front, HE SCORES! MATTEAU!! MATTEAU!! MATTEAU!! STEPHANE MATTEAU!! AND THE RANGERS HAVE ONE MORE HILL TO CLIMB, BABY! BUT IT'S MOUNT VANCOUVER! THE RANGERS ARE HEADED TO THE FINALS!!!"

Alex Chiasson Autographed Puck

While he is no longer with the Dallas Stars, I still wanted to pick up an autographed puck of Alex Chiasson, especially at the price I was able to get it at.

I always like Chiasson, and though that he would be a great part of Dallas's future. Things changed, however, when he was dealt to the Ottawa Senators as part of the deal that brought Jason Spezza to Dallas. So far this season, Chiasson has played in 44 games with the Senators, scoring 8 goals and 10 assists. It's pretty close to the pace he was at last season, so hopefully, he can keep up the good work.

Nino Niederreiter TTM Return

One thing I have really begun to get back into full-force is TTM autographs. I used to send a few out, but recently, I have found it to be a great way to get autographs of some of your favorite players, at the cost of a sheet of paper, two envelopes, two stamps, and a little bit of time. One website that has been instrumental in my TTMing over the past month is www.sportscollectors.net. It's basically an autograph-seeker's database, and what is really useful to me, is where they list each player, and their success rate, as well, as where those successful submissions were sent to, which show you where the best place to mail your items is.

My very first success was Nino Niederreiter, who signed four cards and had them back to my mailbox in two weeks, which is a pretty quick turnaround for an active player, especially one as good as he is. They were sent out 1/13/15 and I had them in hand 1/27/15.

I have a total of 15 out right now, with plenty more to follow. I know a few are long shots, but I was also sure to send out a few sure things. Now it's just a matter of playing the waiting game.

Autographed 8x10s of Pete Incaviglia and Terry Puhl

While I was on vacation in December, I missed out on pulling the trigger on a couple of signings hosted by my good friend Darrell at Halkman Sports, but luckily he had a few extra items that I was able to get my hands on from Pete Incaviglia and Terry Puhl.

The Puhl was a maybe for me, but Incaviglia was one that I had to have. When we lived in Granbury, Texas in 1990 & 1991, my dad took us to quite a few Texas Rangers games. Incaviglia was a big part of that team, and was a good home run hitter, but also great at striking out. In fact, when I was in Little League, and would get a little upset after striking out, my dad would console me by saying, "Don't get upset. Pete Incaviglia strikes out all the time and he's playing for the Rangers." It's absolutely perfect that this photo is of "Inky" mid-strike.

Terry Puhl wasn't someone I was too familiar with going in, but having grown up primarily in the Houston area, I'll take anything coming from the Astros. He was signed by the Astros in 1973 out of Melville, Saskatchewan, and made it up to the pro team in 1977. He played 15 years in the majors, finishing his career with a .280 batting average, 1,361 hits, and 435 runs batted in. After his retirement, Puhl was inducted into the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame in 1994, the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 1995, and the Texas Baseball Hall of Fame in 2006.

There still will be more to came, as Darrell has just finished a signing with Bret Boone, and has Todd Van Poppel, Aubrey Huff, Chuck Finley, and Fred Lynn scheduled within the next couple months. I'll be signing up for a few of those, and if any interest you, visit www.halkmansports.com.

Victor Bergstrom Autographs from the 2/6/15 Fargo Force Game

My work schedule has not left me available to much of any Fargo Force games, but I got an opportunity to attend one Friday, as the Force took on the Sioux City Musketeers. It was also Family Fun Night, which was great, because they had some fantastic ticket package deals, and Elsa, Anna, and Olaf from Frozen were there as special guests, which my daughters absolutely loved.

That was where the good times ended, though, as the Force found themselves on the way to a 5-2 home loss. The shot totals were close, but unfortunately, goaltender Mathias Israelsson, who is usually pretty solid, was way off his game, letting in 4 goals on 13 shots before getting yanked in the second period. The Force were able to score a couple goals, but simply were not able to overcome that goal explosion by the Musketeers.

I did, however, get the chance to meet defenseman Victor Bergstrom after the game. The Force makes one "Player Spotlight" player available to meet the fans, take pictures, and sign autographs after each home game, and this time it was the Swedish defenseman. I had him sign a puck, a line-up card, and a hockey card.

I haven't gotten near the amount of Force autographs this season as I did last, but the schedule is beginning to work more in my favor. With that, I hope to be attending many more games and bringing home the autographs that go along with it.

Darryl Sutter Autographed Puck

The nice thing about most hobby stores that put together autograph signings, is that they are usually willing to handle mail-order items for fans who are unable to make it, or simply live too far for it to even be a possibility. St. Louis Sports Collectors is such a company, which is good, because they have some amazing guests, like Darryl Sutter, who signed this hockey puck. 

Sutter is currently the coach of the Los Angeles Kings, and coached the team to their 2012 & 2014 Stanley Cup victories, so I knew that he was a great one to get, especially for just a $22 signing fee! Luckily, they also had plenty of hockey pucks available, which saved me the hassle of finding, purchasing, and mailing my own. It's a great looking puck that I am very happy to add to my collection.

Erik Haula Autographed Puck

AME Sports is a sports memorabilia and autograph store located in Roseville, MN, a suburb of Minneapolis. Their prices for already-signed memorabilia can be expensive, but when they bring in guests to sign in the store, it's actually very affordable, and I try and participate whenever I can.

Their most recent guest was Minnesota Wild center Erik Haula, and although the four-hour drive from Moorhead was a bit too far, I was able to mail them a puck, along with the autograph fee, and they got it signed and sent back.

Haula is Finnish by birth, but pretty much all of his American-based hockey has come from the state of Minnesota. He played the 2008-09 season with Shattuck-St. Mary's in Fairbult, MN, followed by three years of college hockey at the University of Minnesota, before being drafted by the Wild with the 182nd pick of the 2009 NHL Entry Draft. He played in 46 NHL games during the 2013-14 season, scoring six goals and nine assists. Haula really came alive during the 2014 playoffs, though, picking up four goals and three assists in 13 games.