1972-73 O-Pee-Chee Larry Carriere #282 RC Rookie Buffalo Sabres

Description

1972-73 O-Pee-Chee Larry Carriere #282 RC Rookie Buffalo Sabres This 1972-73 O-Pee-Chee card of Larry Carriere is a genuine rookie card, printed in the tougher, lower-population high-number series of the set and marked notably with a "NOT IN NHL" designation on the back because the young defenseman had yet to make his league debut at the time of printing. Carriere had just been selected by Buffalo as the second-round pick, and second player chosen overall, in the 1972 NHL Amateur Draft out of Loyola College in Montreal, and the card back proudly proclaims him "one of the few players in the NHL to go straight from college hockey to the professional ranks," a genuinely rare career path for the era when major junior hockey dominated the development pipeline. High-series rookie cards from this set are historically scarcer than early-series commons because fewer packs from the later print run survived in top condition, making authentic examples of cards like this one increasingly difficult to source in the secondary market today. Carriere would go on to have a respectable NHL career as a steady, physical defenseman with Buffalo and other clubs through the 1970s, but it is this rookie card, with its charming pre-debut messaging and hand-illustrated cartoon panel referencing his college background, that holds the most collector interest today. The reverse follows the standard Canadian O-Pee-Chee bilingual English/French format used throughout the issue, offering a fascinating snapshot of a player literally on the doorstep of his professional debut. this card is confirmed as a genuine bilingual O-Pee-Chee back, not a puzzle-back variety. Close visual review shows generally sharp corners with only light wear at the tips, clean edges free of noticeable chipping, and centering that is reasonably balanced for this high-series print run, which is historically known for inconsistent cutting even more so than the early series. The orange border retains solid, even color and no creases, stains, or surface scratches are visible under inspection. Given the scarcity and desirability of high-number rookie cards from this set, along with the generally clean appearance documented in the photos, we are issuing a conservative but respectable grade, recognizing that in-hand review is always required to confirm final condition. A key target for Buffalo Sabres rookie-card collectors and 1972-73 O-Pee-Chee high-series specialists alike. Grade Estimate: EX 5