What happens when the No. 1 overall draft pick takes the ice and scores a record four goals in his first game?
Dollar signs — and that might as well be Auston Matthews’ name right now. While the Toronto Maple Leafs center didn’t touch the overall single-game record of seven from back in 1920, he did set a new record for a debut.
And all this means big things for his Rookie Cards — or at least the redemptions for his first NHL cards. The 2016-17 Artifacts card above for example? It will cost you.
So far he has fewer than 10 cards and most are from the recent Upper Deck World Cup of Hockey promotional packs — a standard card and four printing plates. The rest are redemptions and they are hot — the 2016-17 Upper Deck MVP card above sold for $700.01.
He also has redemptions in Upper Deck Portfolio and even the Tim Hortons promotional packs. There’s plenty of interest there — with or without ink.
The 19-year-old from Scottsdale, Ariz., hasn’t just impressed collectors.
“I’ve never seen anything like it,” Leafs coach Mike Babcock told The Associated Press. “He’s a good player. You see that second goal he scored, not many guys do that.”
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