Hockey from Finland

[ac4760]

I have not done a show and tell for awhile and as I have had a lot of time on my hands lately, I thought I would share some hockey items from Finland. This may ramble on a bit but I wanted to show some things I have received from another member from Finland I met on this forum about 10 years ago. His name is Marko and his user name is Karhukissa. We started corresponding as he collected J.S. Giguere and his son collected Corey Crawford. I sent some cards their way and an internet friendship was made. We have sent each other numerous things over those years and I felt it was fitting to show some of them. One of the most recent items he sent was a Finland jersey signed by all 25 members of the 2018 Finnish team who competed in the world championship tournament in Denmark.


I used the roster as a guide and looked up all examples I could find to identify each signer. I think I got them all (?)







He has known Teemu Selanne for many years and I was sent these;








The Esso cards were sold at gas stations in Canada in packs with players from different teams from the 1998 Olympics in Nagano. There were autographs inserted at 1 in 10,000 packs of the Canadian team members.These are IP autos but I have no problem with their authenticity. The Ducks card was apparently printed for Teemu's personal use. I also have an unsigned one.

He was also kind enough to get me this nice hardback book of the career of Jari Kurri. It was printed in Finland and is in Finnish. I can't read it but it has some great photos.





Also sent over the years were various Finnish jerseys. One was a youth Jokerit (the blue one) for my daughter.





Many others items not shown were sent but some I really love are part of Finnish culture. The Moomins, which was the first I had heard of them. The white hippo character is I believe, Moomintroll. Also many angry bird related items from the Finnish company , Rovio. I had every version you could get for the PC. And a set of Uno cards featuring Finnish players in a Finland jersey case.





Last is the man himself, Marko, playing hockey with his son, Niko and Teemu. He dressed out for a father son game in a 90's era Phoenix Roadrunners jersey I sent him.









Just goes to show the type of great people you can meet using this site. I am still in touch with members in Russia, Sweden and Finland whom I've had great dealings with here. Even though Marko and I have never met, we have kept in touch for over 10 years. He is scheduled to attend an organizational meeting here in Phoenix in June of next year. This organization includes NHL/AHL equipment managers and sports coaches. Why they chose Phoenix in June is beyond me. It was 112 degrees here today. Hope you enjoyed the show and happy collecting.

[Robert96]

Thanks for the share + pics - really interesting!

[camsue]

Thank you for sharing some great stuff

[creasecollector]

This was a really fun read. Just goes to show you that the hobby relationships can form even across the globe. I am so glad that you were able to add these incredible items to your collection! My favourite is the Autographed Esso card!

Thanks for sharing all of these :)

[kurri17]

Thank you for sharing the great story and items. As noted by my username, I am a huge Kurri collector, and through the years have dealt with many fine gentlemen from Finland. Back in the days of simply hand writing letters back and forth to arrange trades, I acquired many Finnish Kurri items through both the trades and simply their generosity. Every trader I have dealt with from Finland has been outstanding, some of the most enjoyable interactions in my history. I really enjoy seeing the great items, especially love the auto'd Kurri book and the jerseys. Funny I should see this post now, as I sit here writing my reply wearing my Finland Hockey t-shirt haha. Again, thanks for the show.

[sparty07]

Relationships around the world, thats an awesome story.