The original Tebow, Jocelyn Thibault

I had made a vow to myself at the beginning of the year to write more about hockey and hockey cards.  So far, I've failed miserably on that promise.  I might even be able to count the number of times I've even mentioned hockey on the blog on one hand.

For a guy who has collected hockey cards as long as he's collected baseball cards, that's blasphemy.

I'm going to shoot for at least one post a week, on Fridays, related to hockey cards.  This gives you all the opportunity to avoid those posts and turn to blogs that write more about what you care about...lol!

This first post came about while leafing through a couple of monster boxes of hockey cards earlier this week, looking for some cards that were interesting enough to post about.  I found a handful to start, and this is one of them:

Thibault..not Tebow

94-95 Pinnacle # 205, goaltender Jocelyn Thibault of the Quebec Nordiques.  Why do I say this is the original Tebow?  Well, because his last name is pronounced exactly the same.  It's funny because when I first pulled this card out of the box, the main reason was because of the photo. The fact that his name was pronounced the same didn't dawn on me until I started writing the post.  The mask features a fantastic wolf design, and although the scan doesn't quite reflect it, the blue on the mask and the uniform is quite sharp.  The back of the card, well let's just say it's very busy...

One of the best masks I can remember from the 90's

The close up shot of his mask, and his eyes focused on the play is fantastic.  Sadly, the stats kind of take away from the photo, and in spots can be difficult to read. 

There have been a lot of rumors over the past few months that Quebec may be getting their team back, similar to the Winnipeg Jets returning from the dead.  What helped fuel these rumors is the province of Quebec actually funding a new rink (finally) to replace the old Le Colisee, where the Nords played throughout their existence in the WHA & NHL.

So, the next time you hear a story about this guy:

Just remember that he wasn't the first guy in sports whose name was pronounced Tebow....

Thanks for reading, Robert