Vintage Hockey

Upper Deck first developed Young Guns (YG) hockey cards with their inaugural hockey set in 1990. Young Guns cards have been quite popular with collectors over the years. The cards include the first cards of many star players and future Hall of Famers.

Hockey card collectors expect the release of Series 1 and Series 2 Young Guns each year. It's incredible that thirty-three years later, the Upper Deck Young Guns rookies are still the main staple in the hobby.

Young Guns cards are not 'rare,' given that the cards are part of mainstream Upper Deck sets with large print runs. But, Upper Deck has started to issue more limited variations, including serial numbered and clear-cut copies.

Hobbyists view Upper Deck Young Gun's base rookie cards as a player's key rookie card. Many have already been designated as their future PSA Hall of Fame Rookie Registry card.

Gem-Mint, PSA 10 graded examples of many big-time Young Guns rookie cards are popular and have seen a significant increase in value in the past few years.

This list focuses on the twelve most iconic and valuable hockey Young Guns Rookie cards of all time. We conclude with two lists of Young Gun cards that we think have good long term investment potential.

If you were a hockey fan during the 1980s, you were lucky enough to witness some of the best hockey players to ever play the game.

Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, and of course, the great Mario Lemieux, three players that often are discussed among the ten best hockey players of all time. 

In terms of hockey cards, the Mario Lemieux rookie card is one of the most valuable hockey cards in the hobby. 

Of course, Lemieux's rookie card was released during the Junk era; thus, between his two major rookie cards (1985 Topps and O-Pee-Cee), there's plenty of supply for everyone.

In this piece, I'll examine Lemieux's two key rookie cards, examining the scarcity, current values, and long-term investment potential.