1973-74 O-Pee-Chee Doug Volmar #215 Los Angeles Kings Dark Back

Description

1973-74 O-Pee-Chee Doug Volmar #215 Los Angeles Kings Dark BackDoug Volmar is the kind of name that turns a common card into a story, and this dark back copy of his 1973-74 O-Pee-Chee card, number 215, is a genuinely interesting piece of American hockey trivia. Volmar was born in Cleveland, Ohio, played his college hockey at Michigan State, and turned professional in 1969-70, and by the time he reached Los Angeles he was reported to be the first American born player to suit up for the Kings, a footnote the O-Pee-Chee back proudly mentions. He spent time in the Detroit organization before the Kings acquired him in 1972, and the card records his 1972-73 line of 21 games, 4 goals, 2 assists, 6 points and 16 penalty minutes, modest numbers that hide a long grind through the minors in an era when roster spots were scarce for players from south of the border. Cards like this are the connective tissue of a vintage set, the ones that fill out the checklist and remind you that the 1970s NHL was built from dozens of hardworking role players rather than a handful of stars. The front shows him in the gold and purple Kings uniform with the crown crest and number 14, gloves on stick, posed against the pale backdrop O-Pee-Chee favoured for the expansion clubs, and the green border remains vivid. The reverse is the dark brown cardboard bilingual back with English and French text and the printed in Canada mark, the harder of the two 1973-74 back varieties to find clean. this card carries the most obvious structural flaw of the group, a large dark fraying tear along the middle of the right edge, plus a chip in the green border on the left side, a blue print dot near the words right wing on the front, and light fuzz along the bottom edge. Corners are worn but intact and centering is honest. That edge damage is why the conservative raw estimate is VG-EX 4 and why the price stays low.Grade Estimate: VG-EX 4