The reason this autograph is special to me is because of the story involved in obtaining it. I was getting autographs after a London Knights game in the hope of seeing John Tavares. I never came accross him at where I was standing, but as I left I noticed a man walking down the street ahead of me wearing a suit. So, I took a shot and picked up the pace of my walking a bit until I caught up to him. Sure enough my guess was correct. It was John Tavares. The 1st overall pick in 2009 was great, he signed a card and a picture and also was nice enough to take a picture with me.
The reason for Justin Verlander being on the Wall Of Fame is simple. He was one of my first big name baseball autographs. And being a Detroit Tigers fan, I was absolutely thrilled to meet him and get his autograph at an annual event for Tigers fans called, "TigerFest". Justin was extremely nice, even though the players are told not to personalize items or stop for photos with fans, Justin did both. I was lucky enough to have my picture taken with Verlander and get his signature on my 2008 Limited Edition Detroit Tigers 55 Card Team Set card of him.
Though Luke Schenn is fairly new to professional hockey, I have admired his style of play ever since he came into the league.As a Maple Leafs fan, I have seen Luke play on many different occasions and never once have I doubted his abilities. In my opinion, Schenn gets overlooked quite a bit due to his former and current defensive teammates (e.g. Tomas Kaberle, Dion Phaneuf). Though he doesn't put up the most amazing numbers in the world, Schenn always finds away to get the job done, whether it's making that first pass or sacrificing the body to make a play, Luke is always there.
San Jose Sharks superstar, Joe Thornton, was one of my first big name autographs. About 9 years back, Joe was in town for an appearance at our local arena and I thought I'd go down and meet this local hockey hero. Joe was great with everyone, he was told to only sign one item per person, but Joe made sure everyone got everthing they wanted signed. Thornton signed a card and a poster for me, and also posed for a photo with me. Out of all the current big name NHL stars, I have to say that Joe Thornton is by far the nicest guy I've ever met. Thornton really is a class act.
This was my first experience with waiting in a line for hours at an autograph session to get someones autograph. I'll never forget staking out three hours before the session with a couple of my friends in order to meet Darryl. But it was all worth it in the end, I got to meet a Toronto Maple Leafs legend, and I got to sit in line with friends for three hours. Sittler was great with everyone, he really made an effort to interact with you, for example, he made the effort to ask me where I had gotten the card and he even remembered what year the photo was taken in. Darryl signed a card, and personalized a plaque that I have had in my room for years.
RYAN NUGENT-HOPKINSThe most recent 1st overall pick was one of my first TTM successes. I sent to Ryan before he became a highly scouted NHL prospect because I knew that this kid was going to be good. As you can see in the picture he is wearing a cage and sporting the number 29, this is because it was in one of his first ever games in a Red Deer Rebels uniform. Nugent-Hopkins personalized the autograph "To Brendan, All The Best!" without being asked. Already at a young age, this guy was showing signs of being a really great person and hockey player.
DAVE KEONThe reason this autograph is special to me is because my Dad's favorite player to watch was Dave Keon. He always told me stories when I was younger about how he always loved to go down to Maple Leaf Gardens and watch Davey Keon don the #14 for the blue and white. That's why when I got this back, I was that much more thrilled.
