A huge mail day

By Al
Hockey Hounds Universe senior Toronto correspondent

As a kid and I'm sure most of you fall in this catagory, we all had our childhood idoles. For me, growing up in Toronto, it was my Maple Leafs captain, Mr. Dave Keon. Throughout my hockey career, I had to have jersey number 14 and was very upset if a fellow teammate wanted the same number and it came down to a coin toss ... and I lost.

Some 20-plus years ago, my girlfriend, now wife, knew about my childhood idol and bought me a replica Leafs jersey with the number 14 and the name KEON on the back. At $100-plus at the time, that was a big purchase for a girlfriend.

The jersey has been proudly put on display in different locations in the two houses where we've lived.

Recently I came across an 8 x 10 of Mr. Keon and I also purchased his Hockey Hall of Fame Card (about the size of a postcard). I also was lucky enough to find out his home address in Florida.

Now living some 1,500 miles away from him, I came to the realization that meeting him in person for the auto would be out of the question. On a wish, I mailed it to him, including a short note explaining just how much of a role he played in my younger years and my hockey career.

Well can you guess what came in the mail? Yep!

Farm hands

By Mike
Hockey Hounds Universe Toronto correspondent

The Toronto Marlies, the Maple Leafs AHL club, held an open practice recently at Burnhamthorpe Arena in Mississauga. Afterwards, the team had a free signing session. That's where I added these:

Signing the cards shown above are Joe Colborne (top) and Fabian Brunnstrom.

Signing these pucks were Colborne, left, and Jake Gardiner.

Remember Cujo?

By Mike
Hockey Hounds Universe Toronto correspondent

Former NHL goalie Curtis Joseph had a public signing recently where proceeds from the session were donated to a children's hospital. For $5, I had him sign this McFarlane base. He also signed the card they were handing out at the signing session

They were there, too

By Mike
Hockey Hounds Universe Toronto correspondent

You never know who you'll run into at any hockey-based event. Well, when its the renaming of a rink in your honor, it's a given that Angela James, one of Canada's most-decorated female hockey players, will be there. The other ones, such as Wendel Clark, Mike Gartner and Dick Duff, are simply a bonus.

Brag Book: Anaheim Ducks

Hound: Al, Hockey Hounds Universe's senior Toronto correspondent
Hounding opportunity: Anaheim Ducks practice
Where: MasterCard Centre for Hockey Excellence, Toronto
When: January 2011

Let the bragging begin:

A Hockey Hounds Universe hat trick from right winger Teemu Selanne, a future Hall of Famer;

another Hockey Hounds Universe hat trick from center Saku Koivu, including a sweet player puck;

goalie Jonas Hiller;

defenseman Cam Fowler;

right winger Bobby Ryan; and

winger Jason Blake.

Brag Book: OHL team sheets

Hound: Mike, Hockey Hounds Universe Toronto correspondent
Hounding opportunities: Ontario Hockey League games
Where: Ontario, Canada
When: 2010-11 season

Let the bragging begin:

BRAMPTON BATTALION, including Sam Carrick, taken 144th overall in 2010 by the Toronto Maple Leafs; Barclay Goodrow, a 2011 mid-round prospect; Zach Bell, a 2011 mid-round prospect; and Matej Machovsky, who appeared in two games for the Czech Republic at the 2010 World Under-17 championship;

KITCHENER RANGERS, including Ryan Murphy, who Don Cherry said last year would be the No. 1 pick in 2011; and Tobias Reider, a projected second-round pick in 2011;

LONDON KNIGHTS, including Vladislav Namestnikov, a projected mid to late first-round pick in 2011; Scott Harrington, a projected early second-round pick in 2011; Jared Knight, selected 32nd overall in 2010 by the Boston Bruins; Jarred Tinordi, taken 22nd overall in 2010 by the Montreal Canadiens; and Igor Bobkov, the Team Russia's gold-medal-game-winning goalie in the 2011 WJC U-20 tournament;

MISSISSAUGA ST. MICHAEL'S MAJORS, including Justin Shugg, played on the two-time defending Memorial Cup champs Windsor Spitfires and was taken 105th overall in 2010 by the Carolina Hurricanes; Casey Cizikas, taken 92nd overall in 2009 by the New York Islanders; Maxim Kitsyn, who played on Team Russia's gold-medal winning WJC U-20 team; Devante Smith Pelley, taken 42nd overall in 2010 by the Anaheim Ducks; Stuart Percy, a mid-round prospect in 2011; and J.P. Anderson, a San Jose Sharks prospect who was an emergency call-up this month;

NIAGARA ICE DOGS, including Alex Friesen, taken 172 overall in 2010 by the Vancouver Canucks; Mark Visetin, taken 27th overall in 2010 by the Phoenix Coyotes and goalie for Team Canada's silver-medal winning WJC U-20 team; Ryan Strome, a projected top seven pick in 2011; Freddie Hamilton, taken 129th overall in 2010 by the San Jose Sharks; Dougie Hamilton (Freddie's brother), a projected top five pick in 2011; and former NHL player Mike Van Ryn, an assistant coach on the team;

SAGINAW SPIRIT, including Jordan Schwartz, taken 97th overall in 2009 by the Phoenix Coyotes; Ivan Telegin, taken 101st overall in 2010 by the Atlanta Thrashers; and Brandon Saad, a top 10 prospect in 2011; and

SARNIA STING, including Nail Yakupov and Alex Galchenyuk, both projected within the top five prospects for the 2012 NHL draft.

You have to be kidding me?

By Puckhound
Hockey Hounds Universe editor

Kinda scary, isn't it, Justin Bieber on a hockey card? Sure, the kid may be from Canada, but no self-respecting hockey fan I know would be clamoring for this card.

But there he is, holding Lord Stanley's Cup, no less, right dab smack in the middle of the 2010-11 Donruss hockey's Fans of the Game subset. Jeez, what was Panini thinking? I guess I'm not surprised, either, that he's a Leafs fan, or so the card states.

For my money, I'd rather see a real hockey fan, like Denis Leary, and not some teeny-bopper chart-topper like Bieber, added to the set.

Filling it up

Mike, one of Hockey Hounds Universe's two Toronto correspondents, might be running out of room soon on this McFarlane base for Maple Leaf alums.

This past weekend, Mike added signatures from Darryl Sittler and Rick Vaive.

In all, Mike's scored 17 autographs on the piece. Among the others who've signed are Dave Andreychuk, Johnny Bower, Wendel Clark, Mike Gartner, Doug Gilmore, Mike Palmateer and Darcy Tucker.

Brag Book: Toronto Maple Leafs II

Hound: Mike, Hockey Hounds Universe Toronto correspondent
Hounding opportunities: Ontario Hockey League games, personal appearances and the MasterCard Centre of Hockey Excellence
Where: Various locales in Ontario
When: September and October 2010

Let the bragging begin:

Leafs legend Doug Gilmour on a couple of Tall Boy cards;

Wendel Clark, another Leafs legend, on a handout card;

An 8x10 signed by Doug Gilmour, left, and Wendel Clark;

An 8x10 from Phil Kessel;

Pucks signed by Francois Beauchemin and Jean-Sebastien Giguere;

Wendel Clark on a McFarlane base; and

Goalies Jonas Gustavsson, top, and Jean-Sebastien Giguere on McFarlane bases.

Brag Book: Toronto Maple Leafs

Hound: Al, Hockey Hounds Universe's senior Toronto correspondent
Hounding opportunity: Informal skates before training camp
Where: MasterCard Centre for Hockey Excellence, Toronto
When: Early September

Let the bragging begin:

Dion Phaneuf on a McFarlane base and a mini helmet;

Jonas Gustavsson on a McFarlane base;

Gustavsson on a jersey swatch card;

Luke Schenn on a stick blade and card;

Phaneuf, left, and Carl Gunnarsson on an 8x10;

Francois Beauchemin on an 8x10;

Tomas Kaberle on an 8x10;

Phil Kessel on an 8x10;

Mike Komisarek on an 8x10; and

Nikolai Kulemin on an 8x10

Ice hogs

It's not that Mike, a Toronto-based hound, is complaining after getting 21 Maple Leafs players to sign this gigantic McFarlane's base. No, he's thinking that he could scored more autographs had Toronto's Dion Phaneuf and Luke Schenn not engaged in a "my-signature-is-bigger" contest along the bottom of the base.

"Could of got more but it will look cramped," Mike wrote.

Still, it turned out to be a pretty nice piece.

Besides Phaneuf and Schenn, the others who signed are Mike Komisarek, Colton Orr, Tomas Kaberle, Fredrik Sjostrom, Tyler Bozak, Luca Caputi, Francois Beauchemin, John Mitchell, Colby Armstrong, Wayne Primeau, Kris Versteeg, Carl Gunnarsson, J.S. Giguere, Christian Hanson, Nikolai Kulemin, Mikhail Grabovski, Brett Lebda, Clarke MacArthur and Jonas Gustavsson.