Nonsense Newsletter No. 178: Trevor Time in the NHL? Gamestop and much more!
Welcome to the first official summertime edition ‘25 of the Nonsense Newsletter, where the content is as hot as it’s been here in the Motor City this past week (and that’s hot, trust me). In this week’s sizzling edition, John Dudley takes a look at GameStop’s place in the hobby. Meanwhile, I examine one of the hockey hobby’s most interesting cats, Trevor Zegras. And, of course, the Quick Hits are cool on a hot summer day! So, sit back, cool down and enjoy another wonderful edition of the Nonsense Newsletter!
By John Dudley
wing up, my hometown of Hattiesburg, MS, had a population of 40,000 and supported not one, not two, but three local card stores. That’s not even accounting for the fact that cards were sold at practically every single store a kid might walk into.
The retail side of things is beginning to look like the 1980s with cards returning to a lot of different stores. Want some cards with your pancakes? Cracker Barrel has you covered. Need a blaster to go with a new grill? Try Ace. Every week, it seems there is another retailer jumping into the card game.
The local card store scene, though, is still rough, and with Fanatics at the helm, it seems unlikely that smaller stores that might serve a city the size of the one I live in will appear.
None of my local stores survived the great wave of doom for local card stores that swept the nation in the early 2000s. I’ve seen estimates that 90% of card stores at the peak of the card store boom closed by this time, and I believe it. I’ve been without a local store since.
While I doubt Fanatics will suddenly start supporting small stores, there is one potential replacement for the local store experience that I had completely overlooked: GameStop.
By John McTaggart
Hockey season has officially wrapped up the 2024-25 season, and there are few things I love more than this time of year.
Not only are NHL general managers shuffling about to position themselves for the best deal, but they’re also crunching numbers in the effort to put enough space in the ledger for their own free agents as well as some from other squads looking for a change of scenery.
We’ve already seen Edmonton’s Evander Kane get dealt to Vancouver.
We’ve already watched Mason Marchment pack his bags and head to Seattle, and Buffalo’s J.J. Peterka got dealt to Utah as well this week.
What does this do in terms of hobby love for these players… probably nada.
All three of the aforementioned are fine players, very fine in some cases, but within the hobby, there is little love for any of them in reality.
The other trade of note, however, is the deal that sent Ducks center Trevor Zegras to the Flyers for a fourth-line center (Ryan Poehling) and some picks.
Unlike Kane, Peterka (who had a moment in the hobby spotlight), and Marchment, Zegras was, and some would argue still is, a hobby darling.
Zegras’ 2021 Upper Deck base Young Guns sold for as high as $274 back in 2022, and has slid to somewhere under $10 for a raw copy (around $70 for a PSA 10.)
In reality, Zegras did show some promise, racking up 65 and 61 points in the 21-22 and 22-23 seasons respectively.
Since those days, however, it’s been tough sledding for the former ninth overall pick.
Plagued by injuries, he has only played 88 games in the past two seasons and the numbers are reflective of this, not to mention some tension between Zegras and Ducks management and coaches, a position change (from center to wing) and questions about his dedication and work ethic.
So, needless to say, there are few guys in the league that needed a change of scenery more than Zegras.
He could also benefit from a move back to the center position, something the Flyers would be crazy not to do. Couple this with being reunited with close friends Jamie Drysdale and Cam York and you have all the ingredients needed for a comeback/breakout season.
That said, Zegras is certainly worth a look if you’re compiling lists of guys who could be a great value to buy during the offseason and stash for a while to see how it goes.
I have a sneaky suspicion Zegras could turn in a season more worthy of his potential now that he’s a Flyer.
Quick Hits
Hobby News- Topps is showcasing the potential of Topps Now this week. There are the normal baseball offerings for sure, but WWE, Marvel, the UEFA Euro U-21 tourney, pro softball, and the NBA draft also have cards available. Topps has hit on a magic formula of reasonable prices, cards highlighting specific events, and the occasional auto/relic thrown in to make Topps Now a very profitable part of the Topps lineup. I’d expect to see the line continue to expand into more sports and IP.
Vintage- Every so often I like to take a break from stories about people (other than myself) finding $1 million worth of vintage cards in a shoebox in the attic of a house they just bought to bring you all a feel-good story about the hobby. This piece on Sports Collectors Daily is one of these… check it out here.
Hobby News- 2022 Topps Sapphire was a fairly awful product at its initial price point (understatement). With so few boxes opened, singles can be a bit hard to find compared to other Sapphire releases. That might change soon as the unloved product is part of a popular trading card bundle at Costco. While I’d argue the product is still fairly weak for the price, it’s a much more palatable purchase today in the Costco bundle, meaning that a heavy supply of Sapphire Witt and J.Rod rookies might finally be incoming.
The Sports Card Nonsense newsletters reflect the opinions of only the authors and contributors. They are for informational purposes only and are not a recommendation for purchases or of an investment strategy or to buy or sell any assets.