12 Great Goalie Cards From 1994-95 O-Pee-Chee Premier

February 9, 2021 aaronstilley Uncategorized 0

I have recently received a couple of nice emails from readers of this here blog, which I appreciate a great deal since it helps alleviate the feeling that I’m communicating out into a void! One of these nice fellows also asked if I was interested in a trade for a large amount of 1990-91 O-Pee-Chee and 1994-95 O-Pee-Chee Premier, and I very much was. I received over 2,000 cards evenly divided between those two sets and have been having fun going through them.

Even though I did not play very much goal back in my roller hockey days, goalie cards hold an elevated element of nostalgia and enjoyment for me. I think it goes back to my earliest days of learning about hockey and being utterly mystified by the incredible helmets, pads, and various equipment loaded up on these mysterious players. I am now well versed in the names and explanations for all the goaltending accoutrement, but I still find goalies with their heavy gear and spontaneous contortions fascinating to look at and watch.

With that in mind, I’ve pulled out 12 of my favorite goalie cards from my new lot of 1994-95 O-Pee-Che Premier to feature:

Eddie the Eagle shows off his iconic mask while doing a squatting corkscrew.

In hand, the Rangers logo on the puck Stephane Fiset is stopping is crystal clear. His igloo wall mask is an all-time great.
In a lot of ways, I prefer the dull cardboard that made up every sports card for many decades, but I can’t deny the benefits that higher-quality paper stock and a little gloss can offer, especially when it comes to getting saturated colors, such as the deep blues, reds, and yellows seen on these two cards.
The photographer caught Darrin Madeley in a break in the action but still with a look of intense concentration.

Always cool when the puck is captured mid-air in a photo, and Ken Wregget’s leg wrapping over the design element is a nice touch.
Bill Ranford and Trevor Kidd show off some more saturated color loveliness while executing a couple of classic goalie poses.
Mike Richter and the mid-’90s Rangers occupy that rarified air of the team that taught me to love hockey, so any Richter card is a winner in my book. This one shows off the lady liberty helmet especially well.

Dominic Roussel catches some air while losing his stick.
How psyched do you think the photographer was when they got to see a print of this Ron Tugnutt photo and saw that they had captured the puck perfectly centered between the goalie’s eyes, which are dead-set on the puck?
Shot from an unexpected angle, Craig Billington peeks over his shoulder, assumedly at a puck that has eluded him one way or another.

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