This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 7/10/2015
With a career that spans 33 years and includes the all-time goal scoring title (at the time of his retirement ... at age 51) , Hall of Famer Gordie Howe's accomplishments, as grandiose as they are, can often be more folklore than reality. Known as a tough, old-school sharpshooter not afraid to drop the gloves and mix it up, Howe is credited for a statistic called "The Gordie Howe hat trick" which consists of a goal, an assist and a fight in the same game. However, the reality is that Howe completed the triumvirate only two times in his career (Rich Tocchet holds the record with 18). As popular to hockey aficionados as Yankees legend Mickey Mantle is to the baseball community, it's no wonder that Howe's debut appearance in the inaugural Parkhurst issue only serves to make it one of the most desired hockey pasteboards ever produced. Parkhurst's poor quality control and primitive cutting methods make high-grade specimens scarce, but this PSA 8 example of "Mr. Hockey" has defied the odds, offering a clean image surrounded by four NM/MT or better corners, helping to counterbalance the usual centering bias toward the right side. Along with the rookie cards of Bobby Orr and Wayne Gretzky, the 1951 Parkhurst card of Gordie Howe is an essential part of any world class collection.