The 1971-72 O-Pee-Chee hockey card set features four cards that are considered to have uncorrected errors (UER). The errors are a bit finicky but, nonetheless, are considered by the experts to indeed be errors.
The highest profile of the four hockey cards is number 148, the Guy Lafleur rookie card. O-Pee-Chee was a company based in the very English city city of London, Ontario. This might explain the company’s difficulty with French names. The Guy Lafleur rookie card is considered an error card because the Hockey Hall of Fame legend’s last name is spelled La Fleur on the front and back. Beckett Hockey Monthly values this card at $200.
Possibly the weakest of the UER designations is the number 253 hockey card of Phil Esposito. This card is the All-Star card of Phil’s and not his main card. On the back of the card, there is a period after Esposito’s first name (Phil.). Quite frankly, this was standard grammar at one time when shortening a name, like Philip. However, Beckett and the rest of the hockey card world are calling this an error, so we will too. The card is valued at $12.
Card number 256, the All-Star card of Jacques Plante has a statistical error. In the blurb about the Hall of Fame goaltender on the back of the card, it states that Plante reached his 63rd career shutout during the 1970-71 season. In fact, Jacques ended the season with 77 career goose eggs. He ended his career with 82. The Plante card is valued at $15.
Card number 146 of Claude Larose is an error card for the same reason as the Lafleur card. On the front and back, Claude’s last name is spelled La Rose. Larose was in the middle of an NHL career that nearly reached 1,000 regular season games with the Canadiens, Minnesota North Stars and St. Louis Blues.
How do printing errors fit in to the above article?
I recently purchased a couple of boxes of old hockey items that incuded a quantity of OPC 1971-72 cards. Before the purchase I had never had any from this series, so I know little of it. Two of the cards in the group have mis-matched fronts and back. Example: #65 has a Doug Favell front with a Derek Sanderson back. The second is # 27 which has a Ab Demarco front and and Al Smith back. Is this common with this year’s issue?
Any info is appreciated.
Thanks, Tony C
Because of centering issues, apparently that Favell card is a bit rare in mint condition. This is an excerpt from PA Sports:
Thanks to centering issues that plague the entire set, some commons are also evasive in mint condition. Cable says that Murray Hall (#109) was difficult to track down. There are no PSA 10s and just two PSA 9 Halls. A PSA 8 sold for $66.22 on eBay in February 2007.
Two other tough cards are Ken Schinkel (#64) and Doug Favell (#72). There is not a PSA 10 example of either card and there is just one PSA 9 of each.
“The Gordie Howes, the Bobby Hulls and the Orrs – you’re going to find them all day long. In any given week, there is probably one of those on eBay somewhere. They’re going to be more money, but you don’t have to worry about waiting. I waited for over a year to get Doug Favell in an (PSA) 8,” said Cable.
In December 2006, a PSA 8 Favell sold for $202.50 on eBay.
Sounds like you have a couple of extremely un-centered cards. Not sure what the value would be in your situation. I’d be interested in them because they’re a pretty cool novelty…
The Ab Demarco card is the more un-centered of the two error cards, with the ‘Rangers’ name at the top touching the right side of the card.
The Favell card is slightly off-centred to the right whenyou look at it closely, but generally looks normal at first glance.
Tony
Can you scan them or take a picture? Would love to see them (e-mail: tom@vintagehockeycardsreport.com ).
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