2012-13 OPC Hockey Box Break Cardboard Review

Hey kids! It's that time of year again! That's right, football is in full swing and the smell of another NHL lockout is in the air. Let's have a big round of applause for Gary Bettman and Jeremy Jacobs who year after year, try to do their best to ruin my damn game. Idiots.

Anyways.... oh yeah! Cards! Even though there are still four? five? sets of 2011-12 product yet to hit the shelves... the first of the 2012-13 product has arrived.

Don't try and figure it out. Just go with it.

May I present the 2012-13 version of O-Pee-Chee hockey. No Gordie, Bobby, or Wayne this year.

Jonathan Toews makes an appearance.

500 base cards, 100 SP's, 32 packs, 8 cards per pack for $63. You can get these online for around $59 for those of you without a shop nearby.

I asked for a box and my buddy reached blindly and grabbed one off of the shelf. I flipped it over to see who was on the bottom.

 He asked if I wanted a different one. Seeing as he grabbed me the Carey Price one without looking, I saw it as a good omen and kept the one I had.

Good call.

The wrapper..... as usual, a lot like the box.

 The base cards are quite a bit different than past efforts. Gone is the monstrously huge O-Pee-Chee logo. It only took 8 years of whining. The picture is also bigger.

 I like the changes. Although the border confuses me. It's still a white border..... but they took a pastel yellow and airbrushed it close to the edge. Why I have no idea. The jury is still out on that move.

When I am elected Grand High Poo-Bah, I will decree that the Kings must wear these uni's full time.

 The backs are kind of a miss for me. Upper Deck switched to brown cardboard from grey. The result is a dark mess on the back of the card. Has no one at UD ever looked at an old OPC card? They were always coloured! Not natural grey or brown.

 The use of vital statistics and career stats is a big plus...... if you could read them. But for those that haven't had long careers........

 UD failed to do anything to use up the blank space. No little write up, not even a cartoon. Remember those?

 As mentioned, after the 500 base cards are 100 SP's. These are divided up into 50 Legends and 50 rookies. Or are they?

The Legend cards are brightly coloured, but the picture has been altered to a sepia like tone. Again, why I have no idea.

 The backs are cool as again, full career stats. This is great for those of you who haven't necessarily heard of or researched some of these older players. It's a chance to look at his career and go, Whoa! Alex was good! And he was.

The "50" rookies are still a photoshopped nightmare.

Look at all of those craptastic graphics on the bottom.

 With the backs, they did a little write up and how the rookie was acquired. Cool. Why couldn't they do that with the base set as well?

 And you may have noticed I put the 50 in quotation marks. The reason is this year there are not 50 rookies in the set. Not true rookies anyways.

Last I checked, Super Mario's RC was in '85/86 OPC, not '12/13. There are five cards like this, as well as a checklist. So that makes 44 rookies in the set. Cool gimmick?

No. Let's be real. There just wasn't 50 rookies worth the cardboard to put in this set. That's the price of coming out so early.

As usual, there are parallels to chase. The Rainbow Foil of course.....

My scanner seems to love Rainbow Foils.

And of course, Black Bordered Rainbow Foils,  #/100.

 You can really see the airbrushing of the faux border on these. Foils are 1:4 packs. I somehow ended up with 12 of them, 5 black bordered, instead of the 8 I should've received.

A few years ago, OPC came out with a Retro parallel. In 08/09, I LOVED them. In 09/10 I did not. In 10/11 I LOVED them. In 11/12 I did not. So that must mean that in 12/13 I must LOVE them again, right?

 Damn right. I am all over these. Vinny demonstrates the base. Very 1954/55 if I rememebr correctly.

 There are also retro Rookies as well as Legends.... You'll find a retro card in every pack.

Oh, by the way, did I mention that this year OPC is including stickers in their hockey set? STICKERS!!!!!!! WHOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!

 Stickers are found 1:3 packs. I found 12 over the 10-11 expected.

 OPC is also including Pop Ups. Just like the old days. I rememebr getting Pop Up cards in my cereal box waaaaaay back when. Well they're back! At an insertion rate of 1:16 packs, I should've found two. I didn't get any. Boo!

However.

OPC is also including Team Logo Patches. These are found every 3 boxes, or 1:96 packs. Yeah, you know where this is going.

 Woot! A nice little semi-case hit.

But wait....

What's this?

Could it be?

Not one, but......

two?

Ok. I'm not so upset about the Pop Ups anymore.
Supposedly four patches per case, and I find two in my one box. Hmmm.... fine by me.

So there you have it. My want/trade list will be up shortly. Anyone out there going to collect this set?