HOCKEY CARD COLLECTING

My name is Robert Lindberg. I am a hockey card and autograph collector
living in Stockholm, Sweden. 

There are a three teams that makes my heart pound a littler harder:
Djurgårdens IF, Huddinge Hockey and Toronto Maple Leafs.
Plus Tre Kronor, of course, the Swedish national team.

The Djurgården team celebrates the Swedish Championship triumph in 2001.
Recognize #32, the goalie to the left? Yes, that's Mikael Tellqvist. The guy at the back,
in the middle? Daniel Tjärnqvist, who scored the clinching goal. And #17 and #7 to
the right of the trophy? Mathias Tjärnqvist and Niklas Kronwall. The guy with all
the medals around his neck is team captain Charles Berglund. 

 

I tend to start new ventures all the time but right now I think I have enough on my hands to keep me occupied for a while.

These are my main collections:

• One Rookie card, one Autograph card (pulled from a pack) and one Game-Used card of every player possible.
• One Rookie card of every Swedish player. If he has appeared in the NHL and has no recognized RC I want to have any other card or sticker. 
  An Autograph card, and a Game-Used card of every Swedish player with NHL experience. If any has been issued. 
  
• Trying to get a card of every player that ever played for Toronto Maple Leafs in the NHL or the Stanley Cup. Check link Players I collect, bottom half of the page, for more information about this collection. List of cards needed can be found at the bottom of my wantlist.
  
• Trying to get a card or sticker of every player that ever played for Djurgarden in the Swedish Elite League. Missing only four, Peter Lindgren, Hans Wallin, Peter Wallin and Mikael Westling, available only on stickers from the mid-1980's. Not counting the ones that never appeared on any card or sticker.
  
• Select cards of certain players. My wantlist for cards needed. Also link Players I collect for the progress of my collection.
  
• The occational set. 

I like to spice up my collection. That's why I try to get personal autographs. Some I manage to get when there are events in the Stockholm area, some by seeking up the player. I also use the mail. I have four main collections, read about those below.

1. My aim is to get one personal autograph from every Swedish player that has appeared in the NHL. A total of 207 players starting with Gus Forslund in 1932 to the end of the 2008/09 season. Six of them passed away before I started this quest, leaving 201 signatures for me to get. 
183 autographs in the binder, 18 to go.

Latest additions are Joakim Lindstrom and a sweet Bob Nystrom signature, received in the mail on October 22th, exactly 6 months after mailing out. Other recent additions are Andreas Lilja, Johan Franzén, Jonathan Ericsson and Patrik Berglund who all signed in person in Stockholm before the NHL games at Globen.  
Other newly added signatures include Magnus Johansson, Niklas Nordgren, Jonas Johansson, Jonas Nordquist, Andreas Dackell, Leif Svensson, Bo Berglund, Tommy Lehmann, Mathias Tjärnqvist, Björn Melin, Nicklas Bergfors all met eye-to-eye, Henrik Tallinder, Niclas Wallin, Hardy Åström, Thomas Steen, Alexander Edler, Peter Loob, Lars Zetterström, Bengt Lundholm, Kent-Erik Andersson, Tommy Westlund, Anders Steen, Roland Eriksson (received through the mail).

Anders Hedberg, Roland Eriksson and Kent-Erik Andersson

Anders Steen, Peter Helander and Mikael Lindholm

Björn Melin, Mathias Tjärnqvist and Tommy Westlund

2. I am trying to get a personal autograph from everyone that has played for Djurgården in the Swedish Elite League since the league was formed in 1975. 
That's 279 players in all, not including the 2009/10 season newcomers. 
Today I have a total of 233 signatures. 
Recent signatures obtained include Kyle Klubertanz, Arvid Strömberg (both newcomers 2009/10), Patric Cehlin, Marcus Krüger, Stefan Ridderwall, Niklas Andersson, Teemu Lassila, Tim Sandberg, Andreas Holmqvist, Kent Johansson, Patrik Lundh, Håkan Södergren, Åke Eksell, David Schneider, Alexander Urbom, Gustaf Wesslau (all signed when I met them in person), David Longstaff (thanks to Alan Robertson in the UK).
Latest signatures received through the mail include Orvar Stambert, Anders Myrvold, Tobias Lindström, Anders Rylin, Göran Hermansson, Tomas Strandberg, Juha Joenväärä, Dag Bredberg, Arne Andersén, Mathias Hällback, Stig Larsson, Michael Thelvén, Peter Gudmundsson, Kent Bengtsson, Mattias Andersson, Reino Sundberg. 


Joakim Lundberg, Tommy Mörth, Peder Nilsson

Joakim Musakka, Bo Larsson, Tord Nänsén

Mikael Magnusson, Folke Totte Bengtsson, Håkan Dahllöf

Bosse Berglund, Anders Huusko, Martin Linse

Per-Anton Lundström, David Schneider, Fredrik Lovén

Håkan Eriksson, Anders Kallur, Åke Eksell

3. My latest venture ... Since 1987 Tre Kronor have won five World Championships and two Olympic Gold medals. I am trying to get a personal autograph from everyone of those Gold medalists, one autograph for every Gold medal. 
That's 166 autographs from 115 different players. I am missing 44 signatures. 
The most recent ones to sign for this collection are Johan Franzén, Niklas Kronwall, Nicklas Lidström, Roger Hansson, Niklas Eriksson, Jan Viktorsson, Stefan Liv, Mats Näslund.
Recent through-the-mail successes include Lars Molin, Roger Johansson, Stefan Örnskog, Peter Ottosson, Mats Kihlström, Tommy Westlund and Håkan Algotsson. 

A few of my early through-the-mail successes:

  KENNY JÖNSSON. Sent request c/o the Islanders on Dec. 25th 2002, received 2-of-2 signed May 5th 2003.

  HAKAN LOOB. Sent request c/o Färjestad on Sep. 26th 2002, rec'd 2-of-2 signed Oct. 2nd, only six days later.

 KJELL SAMUELSSON, sent request c/o the Philadelphia Phantoms on Nov. 6th 2004,
received 2-of-2 signed Nov. 29th. 23 days turn-around between Sweden and the U.S. 

  JOSE THEODORE.
Sent request c/o Djurgården while Jose was playing in Sweden, mailed Feb. 22th 2005, rec'd 2-of-2 signed March 31st.

 

Some other successes during the sweet 2004/05 Swedish Elite League season (not a complete list, I received a few more), all requests were sent c/o the club:

Kristian Huselius, 2-of-2 signed and received in 4 days. Great!

Espen Knutsen, 2-of-2 signed and received in 5 months - what kept you Espen !?

Mattias Weinhandl, 2-of-2 signed and received in 36 days.

Pierre Hedin, 2-of-2 signed and received in 39 days.

Henrik Zetterberg, 1-of-1 signed and received in 42 days.

Dan Boyle, 1-of-1 signed and received in 10 days.

Per Gustafsson, 2-of-2 signed and received in 46 days.

Dick Tärnström, 2-of-2 signed and received in 16 days.

Finally got 1-of-1 signed by Peter Forsberg, took 51 weeks.

4. I'd like to get as many autographs as possible from players inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame! Before leaving for a fortnight's vacation in July 2005 I sent out requests to five Canadian Hall Of Famers. When I returned home I was overjoyed to find I had received signed cards from all of them. Sweden-Canada-Sweden in two weeks. I was pleasantly surprised. Here's the lot, from left to right, Jean Beliveau, Glenn Hall, Red Kelly, Marcel Pronovost, Norm Ullman:

The first HOF:er in my binder was Wayne Gretzky, I mailed out two cards on September 15, 2004, found them in my mailbox January 25, 2005. Most likely signed by autopen, but still ...

I have since received autographs from other HOF:ers. I usually send two cards and have had great luck so far: Jean Beliveau (took 18 days), Emile Butch Bouchard (20 days, he added a third!), Johnny Bower (11 days), Bobby Clarke (16 days), Paul Coffey (3 cards, 20 days), Alex Delvecchio (33 days), Dick Duff (10 days, added a signed photo of postcard size), Fern Flaman (9 days), Bob Gainey (traded for), Eddie Giacomin (11 days, personalized), Glenn Hall (20 days, added a signed postcard), Dale Hawerchuk (9 days), GORDIE HOWE (20 days), Harry Howell (15 days, personalized and added a signed postcard), Dave Keon (19 days), Elmer Lach (traded for), Igor Larionov (signed two in person September 2007), Ted Lindsay (30 days), Al MacInnis (18 days), Cam Neely (20 days), Henri Richard (traded for), Larry Robinson (45 days), Serge Savard (31 days), Darryl Sittler (24 days, personalized), Gump Worsley (24 days).
Yvon Cournoyer was a miss, got the cards back with a note that his autographs can be purchased through an agent.

September 30, 2008 I was lucky to catch Mario Lemieux, in Stockholm with the Penguins. He gave me one great autograph.

But nobody beats Guy Lafleur.
I mailed three cards on a Monday, received all three signed the following Monday, 7 days turnover Sweden-Canada-Sweden! And he had added two more cards, both signed. What a Guy!

Finally and naturally, I have four Börje Salming autographs, all signed in person in Stockholm on September 15, 2007.