Hiatus Over. Maybe.

Sure, I've said it before. After disappearing from this blog, I've come roaring back with high hopes and good intentions. Only to disappear once again. And there are reasons for this, of course, not least of which is the generic "life" that so many of us cite as the cause of our absenteeism. In this most recent disappearing act, not only was "life" to blame but so too was still the lingering sting of a lockout coupled with a new hobby that became a passion - vinyl record collecting. Yeah, so I won't go much into that other than to say the vinyl collection continues to grow, weekly, but I've managed to find both the time and the resources to jump back in to the wonderful world of hockey card collecting.

So on to what you're here for. Instead of the random sniping of cards that was my last re-entry to the hobby, I decided to start again with a little more purpose this time. Heading to the Beckett Marketplace (while being sure to comparison shop on The Bay), I snagged the following 1970-71 Red Wings:

1970-71 Topps No. 27 - Bruce MacGregor

Yeah, I'm not a huge fan of the aesthetics of this series (and that of the mirror O-Pee-Chee set), but I wanted to get my Red Wings collection in order by starting with a significant year. Unfortunately, from a collecting standpoint, this particular line-up includes the likes of Gordie Howe and Alex Delvecchio. So starting at the opposite end of the price-point bench is forward Bruce MacGregor. Bruce was in his 11th and final season with the Wings in 1970-71, ultimately being traded to the Rangers with Larry Brown for Tom Miller, Arnie Brown, and Mike Robitaille.

1970-71 O-Pee-Chee No. 154 - Gary Bergman

Bergman was quietly one of the Wings' staunchest blue-liners throughout the '60s and early '70s. He wasn't necessarily known for "rough" play or offensive output, but he certainly held his own against opposing skaters. The 1970-71 season was the Ontario native's 7th campaign with the Red Wings.  We lost Gary in December of 2000.

1970-71 O-Pee-Chee No. 158 - Nick Libett

Nick Libett was a rising star in the Red Wings organization during the 1970-71 season, his 4th with the parent team. Having scored 20 goals and 40 points in the previous campaign, Libett's production dropped a bit to 16-13-29 but he would ramp it up to 31 goals during the following season. Nick would spend 12 seasons in Detroit before finishing up his career after two years in Pittsburgh.