2009/10 Upper Deck MVP Hockey Hobby Box | 24 Packs | Factory Sealed

MVP was Upper Deck's entry-level hockey line, and what it carries is the same 2009 rookie class as the expensive products of that season: John Tavares, Matt Duchene, Victor Hedman, Tyler Myers, Erik Karlsson, Antti Niemi, Tyler Bozak, James van Riemsdyk and Jonas Gustavsson. MVP Rookies fall in every second pack.

Each hobby box holds 24 packs of 8 cards. On average a box yields one game-used memorabilia card, one 2-on-2 jersey card carrying swatches from four NHL players, six MVP inserts built around Hart Trophy winners and candidates, and one or two Gold Script or Super Script parallels.

The card worth knowing about is the One-on-One autograph. It is signed on both faces, a different player on each side of the same piece of card, which means that however it is displayed, half of it stays hidden. These are case hits rather than box hits, so the odds in any single box are long — but it is an unusual format, and one that a collector either wants or has never heard of.

What this box is, plainly: the cheapest way into the 2009/10 rookie class. The Black Diamond and the Series 2 box from the same season carry several guaranteed hits each; MVP carries one. Where it does not economise is the checklist, which covers the same freshman class as both of them.

Released 1 December 2009. Factory sealed and never opened.