Published Set: Icekings

Arguably the most attractive hockey set ever. I had always dreamed of owning this set in high grade. The first step in making the dream a reality was the purchase of a completely-graded set from Mastro Auctions in August 2005. That set had 34 PSA 8 and 26 PSA 7, including, naturally, most of the low-pop cards. My goal was to complete it in PSA 8. I knew it would be difficult, and not cheap, but I expected it to take longer than it did. It also ran into more expense than I dreamed of, but looking back, in light of the tremendous growth in interest in this set, that initial purchase was a bargain. My goal was reached in September 2007 with the final upgrade, the elusive Marcel Bonin. I even managed to pick up a couple of PSA 9 along the way. Ebay played a key role, of course, but the two toughest 'commons', Bonin and Bob Chrystal, took the help of a few private sellers. Thanks go to Dennis and Lori, and all the eBayers, that made it possible. All that's left now is the hunt for more 9s.