r/90sand00scards

On April 29, 1997, Curtis Joseph changed my brain chemistry.

When he lunged across the crease to rob Joe Nieuwendyk in OT of Game 7 against the Dallas Stars, I was watching at home on ESPN. From that moment on, I was obsessed with NHL goalies, and "Cujo" was my number one guy.

That eventually led to a pretty insane goalie card collection, which I just began revisiting and selling off this spring.

I still adore the inserts of this era, particularly 1997-98, the season when I first began collecting.

Here are some of my Cujo faves:

• 1997-98 Donruss Preferred Color Guard: absolutely gorgeous die-cut design on a see-through acetate, with Cujo looking especially fearsome here in a paddle-down stance.
• 1997-98 Pinnacle Masks Die-Cut: there have been a lot of mask-themed sets over the years, but this is the definitive one to me.
• 1997-98 Pacific Crown Royale Freeze-Out Die-Cuts: insane, over-the-top Pacific goodness, looking like an electrified snowflake.
• 1997-98 Donruss Between The Pipes: this was the first goalie insert set I really chased, ripping countless packs of Donruss to fill it out. I love how the bright action photos pop against the dark background.
• 1997-98 Pacific In The Cage Laser-Cuts: these blew my mind back in the day, with elaborate die-cutting to simulate a net behind each goalie.
• 1997-98 Pacific Dynagon Stonewallers: psychedelic, shiny, and a little weird: absolute catnip to a young collector like me.
• 1997-98 Pacific Revolution Return to Sender: Pacific struck again with the gold-foil stamp design, featuring multiple action shots on the front.