1969-70 O-Pee-Chee Claude Larose #194 Minnesota North Stars FAIR 1.5

Description

1969-70 O-Pee-Chee Claude Larose #194 Minnesota North Stars FAIR 1.5 The 1969-70 O-Pee-Chee Claude Larose #194 Minnesota North Stars FAIR 1.5 is an affordable original card of a five-time Stanley Cup champion, offered with the visible character of a copy that has been handled and enjoyed for decades. This is the second Claude Larose card in the photographed sheet and is the card located at front position 9, allowing buyers to distinguish it from the separate position 8 example. Larose’s lively North Stars portrait, deep green uniform, turquoise studio background, wood-grain stick graphic, and green wing circle still create excellent vintage display appeal. Claude Larose was a talented two-way right wing whose combination of speed, scoring, checking, and toughness made him a valuable part of several championship teams. He won Stanley Cups as a Montreal Canadiens player in 1965, 1966, 1968, 1971, and 1973. Minnesota acquired him before the 1968-69 campaign, and he responded with 25 goals, 37 assists, and 62 points in only 67 games. On a line with Danny Grant and Danny O’Shea, Larose helped drive one of the most interesting early attacks in North Stars history. He also scored the tying final goal in the 1969 NHL All-Star Game. After returning to Montreal, he added more championships and eventually completed a 16-season NHL career with 226 goals, 257 assists, and more than 900 games. His later coaching and scouting work kept him connected to the sport, and he was part of Carolina’s organization when the Hurricanes won the Stanley Cup in 2006. The card back captures him at the height of his Minnesota production, with bilingual biography, a humorous cartoon about golfing and fishing, and statistics through 1968-69. This is an original Canadian O-Pee-Chee card with English and French text and Printed in Canada on the reverse. It is not a puzzle back. The front has acceptable but slightly shifted centering, approximately 55/45 from left to right. All corners are rounded, with heavier wear at the lower-left and lower-right, and paper fibres are exposed around several tips. The top and bottom edges have consistent chipping and abrasions. Numerous surface scratches, scuffs, and fine diagonal or horizontal wrinkle lines are visible across the photograph, including the upper background, face area, and lower jersey. The back shows extensive perimeter whitening, worn corners, scuffing across the turquoise field, and multiple fine creases or wrinkles near the upper and lower sections. The lower-right corner is particularly soft and frayed. Sleeve glare may exaggerate a few hairlines, but the overall wear pattern is substantial. A conservative FAIR 1.5 estimate is used because the card is complete, readable, and free of an obvious missing section, yet repeated creasing, broad surface abrasion, heavy edge wear, and rounded corners place it below a typical GOOD example. For a collector prioritizing an original Canadian issue and a strong championship-era subject at a modest price, this copy delivers considerable history without a high-grade premium. Grade Estimate: FAIR 1.5