I came across an interesting set of hockey cards recently on eBay and had to snatch them up. It was a 1986-87 Sudbury Wolves team set
dubbed P.L.A.Y. cards (Police, Law and Youth). The set is of no significant value. I would suspect, with the Wolves finishing dead last in the Ontario Hockey League in 1986-87, that even Sudbury fans wouldn’t have much use for these cards. There were no hugely recognizable stars. In fact, there were no names all that familiar. Except for one.
Toronto and Montreal fans may recall a feisty little forward named Paul DiPietro. Paul played 192 NHL games from 1991-92 to 1996-97 with the Canadiens, Maple Leafs and Los Angeles Kings. The 5’9″ DiPietro came up from the Fredericton Canadiens of the AHL for just 29 games with Montreal during the regular season in 1992-93. Yet, Paul played an important role in the Canadiens Stanley Cup run that saw them meet, and take out, Wayne Gretzky and the Los Angeles Kings in the finals. It would, of course, mark the last time the Habs would win the Stanley Cup.
DiPietro is now 41 years old and played his last National Hockey League game nearly fifteen years ago. However, Paul is now in his fourteenth season playing in Switzerland’s National League. Now a dual citizen, DiPietro has represented Switzherland on the National stage on numerous occasions, including the 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Turin, Italy, where he was an alternate captain for the Swiss side. On three occasions, he has played for his adopted country at the World Championships, most recently in 2008.
Getting back to the P.L.A.Y. hockey card. Card number 21 featured a barely 16 year old DiPietro sporting a moustache, mullet and Cooper-alls. It was his first of four seasons with the Wolves. In his final season, 1989-90, He exploded offensively. His 56 goals were second in the OHL, just one behind Keith Primeau of the Niagara Falls Thunder. Paul 119 points were eight behind Primeau but three ahead of Mike Ricci of the Peterborough Petes and eight ahead of Owen Nolan of the Cornwall Royals.
DiPietro was a fifth round pick of the Canadiens at the 1990 NHL Entry Draft, 102nd overall. The only thing close to a full season in the NHL came in 1993-94 with Montreal, when he played 70 games, scoring 13 goals and totalling 33 points. After one season in Germany’s Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL) with the Kassel Huskies in 1997-98, the rest was Swiss history.
Paul NHL rookie card(s) are the 1991-92 Pinnacle #350 and the 1991-92 ProSet #546. Both are common cards that are hardly worth pennies.
DiPietro’s in his fifth decade and that seems like a lot. However, if you look throughout the European leagues, you will find many former North American pros still playing the game they love. The shorter schedules, the active European lifestyle, the difference in the style of the game. These are things that allow longevity as opposed to the NHL where a superstar’s career is over often before it has a chance to really begin.