After episode 116 of the podcast dropped back in July, I decided I wanted to recap my favourite patch cards in my collection here on my blog as well for those who like the old-school (cool) approach of reading things online.
As the media landscape constantly changes, I still find myself gravitating towards longer format mediums that seems to be going the way of the dinosaur. Having a space that displays static information whenever you need it can be useful, but also provide a more ‘cozy’ feel that other forms of social media can’t quite replicate.
Regardless, however you wound up here, thank you for reading. I feel like if you are a longtime reader of my blog or if this is your first experience with it, we all have something in common: Hockey cards are awesome. Especially when it comes to the various memorabilia patches out there. So I wanted to post up my Top 10 favourite patches from my collection.
No doubt there are fancier and more notable patch cards of some generational talents out there, but my top 10 here will be more about that – It will focus on the unique aspect of some of these pieces and why they deserve a spot on this list.
So if you like memorabilia cards… buckle up. Feel free to take a moment now and get up to go grab a beverage of your choosing (hot or cold, depending on the season you’ll be reading this), and enjoy the show!
10) Ed Belfour 2004-05 Upper Deck Ultimate Collection Patch /35
First up is this sweet Ed Belfour Toronto Maple Leafs Ultimate Collection patch. When looking at this card, the nostalgia hits right away.
Many years ago, I remember seeing this set pictured in a Beckett Hockey magazine in the early 2000’s and it blew my mind as soon as I laid eyes on it. Due to the popularity of the set at the time, I was never able to afford one back then as a kid. I was finally able to add a card from this set at the 2023 Fall Expo in Toronto (Almost 20 years later!) into my Ed Belfour collection. The cards still hold up very well today even in this modern card world.
I don’t know the exact reason for this set’s creation or the inspiration behind it, but I have a theory:
Due to the NHL Lockout, I would think Upper Deck wanted to keep people interested in NHL cards. Before The Cup that would explode onto the market in 2005-06, Ultimate Collection was arguably the “it” product ever year, featuring a lot of high-end cards that collectors would chase every year.
With NHL hockey not available for the foreseeable future at the time, incorporating new sets and innovating your most popular product would be a good way to keep collectors involved. I often find a lot of the 2004-05 card sets or designs packed a really good punch, while also leveraging on a lot of solid NHL Alumni autographed content and/or key league veterans included in the product to compliment each release, instead of relying too heavily on NHL rookie cards, which is usually Upper Deck’s model to build products, as a fresh crop of rookies were not available due to there being no NHL hockey being played resulting in the lack of new rookie debuts.
While this number patch on this particular copy might night be as insane as other players or examples from this set that I’ve seen over the years, the fact that you were able to get a large piece of jersey on a single hockey card was very new at the time. Up until this point, the majority of memorabilia sets featured small windows to showcase various pieces of a jersey. To create such a large window in the middle of the card was basically unheard of back in the “old days” of collecting. Now mega patches like this are very common. We all have to start somewhere I suppose.
9) Jhonas Enroth 2012-13 Panini Dominion Peerless Patches /40
This was one of the very first cards I picked up in 2025, and I’m very glad I did. Speaking of nostalgia, I think Panini run with hockey cards is something that I will be quite nostalgic of in a few more years. After losing their league-wide NHL card licence after the 2013-14 season, cards from this time period from 2010-2014 now has seemingly now become their own ‘era’ so to speak. It was short, but sweet.
One of their most notable products was Panini Dominion. I really enjoy that run of products and the cards that came out of these boxes. A popular set was the Peerless Patches sets. These cards were to rival Upper Deck’s Limited Logos cards from The Cup. While I don’t think they would have really come close to competing with Limited Logos on a large scale, I guess we’ll never know. Panini sure did a heck of a job though on these sets.
This Enroth Peerless Patches card numbered 18/40 was from 2012-13 Panini Dominion, and it features an awesome Buffalo Sabres patch featuring a piece of the sabre sword from the front jersey crest. I have always wanted a Sabres sword patch, and I was finally able to snag one for the collection earlier this year.
Regarding Enroth cards specifically, I’ve only seen 2 other examples of sword patches (1 other coming from this set), so in my collecting world, these are also very rare.
8) Jhonas Enroth SeReal KHL Platinum Collection Jersey Logo Patch /24
This next card is probably something that the majority of you haven’t seen before, or at least not very often. This card is from the 2021-22 SeReal KHL Platinum Collection, which was actually wasn’t released until 2023 due to significant delays due to the pandemic. Nevertheless, I was finally able to add a KHL mega patch style card to my collection.
For those who aren’t aware, SeReal is a card company based in Riga, Latvia. SeReal are currently the main manufacturer of KHL cards across the pond, and have been in the game now for over a decade. They’ve made some stunning cards over the years, including some other mega patch styled cards like this one. While the card is awesome, what it holds makes it ever awesome-er (word?).
The game-used Enroth Dinamo Minsk memorabilia piece on this card is from a jersey worn during the KHL’s 2nd ever outdoor game event at the time, the Winter Ice Break. This special outdoor game took place on January 20th, 2018, and it was done during the KHL’s 10th Anniversary as a league. The game featured Enroth’s Dinamo Minsk team face-off against Dinamo Riga in (you guessed it!) Riga, Latvia.
After an exciting game, Dinamo Minsk walked away with a solid 3-2 win. The jersey’s that were first debut for this game were also very unique, as they were special 70th Anniversary jersey’s worn by all the Dinamo Minsk players. The main difference on the sweater was an additional banner just below the front emblem highlighting the teams 70-year anniversary from 1948 to 2018.
The patch on this card showcases a piece of that banner, as you can slightly see a the number 18 from the 2018 portion of the banner on the front of the jersey.
Here are some cool photos from the Winter Ice Break outdoor game!
7) Jhonas Enroth 2011-12 Panini Prime Premiere Game Patches /3
Another new surprise that Panini had provided with their Panini Prime products was some very unique event-driven memorabilia. One particular set that caught my eye was the Premiere Game Patches set, which utilized game-worn jersey memorabilia from the 2011 NHL Premiere series.
The patch used for this card comes from the NHL Premiere patches that were on the front of the jersey. I’ve included an example below on what the full patch looked like:
The 2011 Premiere event was the NHL’s 5th time opening up the season in Europe. The NHL teams that participated in the event were the Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers, Anaheim Ducks, and the Los Angeles Kings.
Aside from the NHL matches, there was also the Premiere Challenge event that opened the event. This nice prequel saw select European clubs play against NHL teams as part of some fun pre-season matches. I can only imagine how fun that must have been for both sides.
On October 4th, 2011, in Game # 7 of the Premiere Challenge, the Buffalo Sabres made the trip to Germany to play against Adler Mannheim, a club from the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL), which is the highest level of hockey in Germany. Enroth played in that game, as the Sabres cruised to a 8-3 victory.
I managed to find a few nice pictures from that game. What’s cool about a patch like this from a particular game, is that photo-matches are a breeze. Here’s the patch in action!
NHL Premiere Challenge on October 4th, 2011. This was part of the NHL’s Premiere event to open the season in Europe.
Buffalo Sabres vs Adler Mannheim on October 4th, 2011.
Enroth makes a save against Adler Mannheim on route to a win during a 2011 NHL Premiere Challenge game in Germany on October 4th, 2011.
This jersey patch was also used in the NHL Premiere event itself. The Buffalo Sabres wore these home jersey’s vs the Anaheim Ducks on October 7th, 2011 in Finland, defeating the Ducks with a final score of 4-1. Enroth wore this jersey in warm-ups and in a backup capacity this game. I was able to find a nice picture of Miller and Enroth after their memorable win to start the 2011-12 season.
Ryan Miller & Jhonas Enroth during the 2011 NHL Premiere event after defeating the Anaheim Ducks 4-1 in Finland. (October 7th, 2011).
Sometimes the patch card isn’t about the patch card at all, it’s about the story that you can piece together with it. That’s exactly what this card does here: It provides a small glimpse into some pretty cool piece of NHL history. Isn’t that amazing?
6) Jhonas Enroth 2022-23 In The Crease Jumbo Memorabilia Silver 1/1
I’ve always wanted a branded jersey patch in my collection. And this card achieved that.
As a goalie, I’ve always had a appreciation for the Reebok brand in hockey. Call it brand awareness or just flat out good marketing, but it’s been a brand that I’ve always associated with the sport for many years now, which included various types of gear I wore growing up, too.
From an NHL standpoint, I’ve always been a fan of the Reebok jersey ‘era’ and the potential it had when it comes to various patches or brand tags. At the tail end of 2022, President’s Choice launched In The Crease, a limited boxed product that was a hit with collectors right away. This goalie-focused product drew collectors in for the deep player checklist, varying sets, and of course the exceptional memorabilia included. When I looked at the Jumbo Memorabilia set and saw Enroth listed 6 times, I just knew some great cards were coming down the pipeline – And this was one of them.
More specifically, this is one of the Silver Jumbo Memorabilia 1/1 cards in the product, numbered #JM-47 in the set. This card promotes a huge Reebok brand patch from an LA Kings jersey right across the centre of the card. It’s a thing of beauty. I was lucky enough to track it down in 2023 and it remains the only complete brand patch in my entire collection.
5) Jhonas Enroth 2025 President’s Choice Mega Patch 1/1
The next Kings patch on this list is this sweet Mega Patch from 2025 President’s Choice. I added this card into the collection in February, and it quickly become one of my favourite patch cards.
When Brian Price said Enroth was going to get into the Mega Patch set, he told me he selected a very nice patch for this set, and it fits the card very nicely. This card was finally brought to life and created in January, 2025. Not a bad way to bring in the new year: More cardboard.It’s simple, but it works: A towering letter “L” from the core of the LA Kings jersey emblem. The card design around the patch is also colour-matched to the team colours, which is also a nice touch. I also like the small photo on the bottom left corner, too. I feel like it ties the card together quite well in this case. Awesome!
This patch is from a Kings jersey used during the 2015-16 season. It was from an Away jersey used in the 2nd half of the season in 2016 to close out the season.
Jhonas Enroth (LA Kings) vs the Dallas Stars on March 15th, 2016. The Kings would win that game 5-2.
4) Jhonas Enroth 2022-23 In The Crease Jumbo Memorabilia Gold 1/1
Every king needs a crown.
The 2022-23 In The Crease product release from President’s Choice included some absolute monster cards, especially in the Jumbo Memorabilia card set. Enroth had a whopping 6 cards in this subset, with this being the star of the show in my opinion.
This Jumbo Memorabilia Gold card featured a large crown from the bottom section of the LA Kings jersey emblem. I’ve said it before, but I think this is one of the best Kings patches out there right now, full stop. I’ve seen crown patches before, but never the whole thing like this. To have this LA Kings focal point all on a single card is beyond superb.
I was lucky enough to have made a deal for this card after the initial auction went above my limit and I had to bow out gracefully. As it turns out, it was won and purchased by a hardcore LA Kings card collector who I know online. After they found out they had outbid me for the card, we agreed to make a separate deal with together after they received this card in-hand. A win-win all around!
Jhonas Enroth – LA Kings vs Dallas. (March 15th, 2016).
3) Jhonas Enroth 2025 President’s Choice Mega Number 1/1
Top three! Saving ONE of the best for last, as this will be the final President’s Choice card in this countdown. This is likely one of the most unique 1/1’s in my collection, as it features a complete # 1 from the front of a Buffalo Sabres jersey.
Number cards have been around for many years now, especially with the rise of the Mega Patch. The thing is, usually number cards only feature smaller portions of the number, or they will have to be split up into multiple cards in order to be used. It’s still a very cool concept, but what if a complete number card could be done? The Buffalo Sabres jersey’s from this era had that possibility, as the player number were also located on the front of the jersey, which is a style I’ve always liked. The numbers are smaller, which would work perfect for a Mega Number card concept like this.
I spoke to Dr. Price (President of President’s Choice Trading Cards) about the idea for this card at the 2025 Spring Expo in Toronto, after he told me he had successfully acquired another game-worn Enroth jersey to use for some more cards. The gears were in motion. A little while later, the card was created and on it’s way home, and I couldn’t been more pleased by how it turned out. It even inspired a few other Mega Number cards to be created as a part of a set, which were later put up for sale on the President’s Choice Trading Cards website.
This number piece is from a 2013-14 Buffalo Sabres Home jersey (Set # 2), which was worn during the season in the following games:
January 9th, 2014 vs Florida Panthers
January 23rd, 2014 vs Carolina Hurricanes
January 28th, 2014 vs Washington Capitals
February 3rd, 2014 vs Edmonton Oilers
*This jersey was also used in multiple warm-ups & backup appearances*
Here are some photo-matches below!
January 28th, 2014 vs Washington Capitals
January 9th, 2014 vs Florida Panthers.
2) Jhonas Enroth 2013-14 ITG Between The Pipes One Of A Kind 1/1
Some people like unlicensed cards, and some people don’t. I get it. But one thing that we can all agree on is a nice patch card. That is what this card sets out to do. While this One Of A Kind 1/1 patch card doesn’t have a player photo, it sure packs a punch displaying that wicked Buffalo Sabres logo from their 40th Anniversary jerseys. I was a big fan of those alternate jersey’s, so to have a stylish piece of one is excellent.
I might feel alone in this sometimes, but I don’t feel every card needs a picture to stand on its own. This card is a beast and I am glad to have it in my collection!
By process of elimination using some other cards in my collection, I was able to determine that this patch was from a jersey used during the 2011-12 season. The Buffalo Sabres wore these 40th Anniversary jersey’s just two times that season, with Enroth playing on both occasions. He wore the Alternate jersey during the following games:
October 27th, 2011 vs Columbus (4-2 win)
November 5th, 2011 vs Ottawa (3-2 Shootout Win)
Here are some photos from those games!
Enroth wearing the Buffalo Sabres 40th Anniversary alternate jersey’s during the 2011-12 season on October 27th, 2011 vs Columbus. The Sabres won 4-2.
Enroth makes a save against the Ottawa Senators on November 5th, 2011. The Sabres would end up winning the game 3-2 in a shootout.
1) Jhonas Enroth 2010-11 ITG Between The Pipes Game-Used Emblem Gold 1/1
Usually, I let the pictures do the talking when it comes to showing off this card now & again. But this time, I feel like a little more explaining is needed. That’s what articles like these are for, right?
This card was inserted into one of my favourite products of all-time: 2010-11 In The Game – Between The Pipes. I really enjoy anything from In The Game from this time period, but especially from Between The Pipes (BTP). I’m super biased, but there is just something special about an all-goalie product. I also very much enjoyed the timeless designs from 2010-11 product, too.
This card in particular has a very unique / spooky patch in it: A Skull & Crossbones.
Have you ever seen anything like it? I sure haven’t, and I’ve viewed a lot of patch cards during my time in the hobby, and I don’t think I’ve seen anything as unique and straight up cool as this patch.
If you are scratching your head as to which team this patch comes from, you are definitely not alone. It comes from Enroth’s days with the Portland Pirates in the American Hockey League (AHL). More specifically, it comes from a jersey worn in the 2008-09 season, which was Enroth’s first year playing professional hockey in North America.
It’s a pirate’s life for me…
The patch itself comes from the front emblem logo. The skull and crossbones patch is from the pirate hat, located in the top-centre of the logo. I have included a picture below to get a better idea:
Portland Pirates patch card location.So as you can see, it’s a pretty noteworthy patch very much deserving of the #1 position on this countdown.
I remember the hype around this card when it first when up for auction after it was pulled. I couldn’t dream of bidding on it at the time, but I’m sure a few other Enroth collectors were very interested. I believe this card changed hands a few times before ultimately ending up in my collection, which it will always stay. I’m just glad I am able to own such a unique patch.
This is a very biased statement, but I honestly think it might be one of the most unique / cool patch cards in the hobby. It maybe one be a (slight( three colour patch card, but the uniqueness of it speaks volumes, in my opinion. It’s just something you don’t see everyday.
What a colourful show that was. Thank you for making it this after, and I hope you enjoyed this fun little countdown as much as I did putting it together! Do you have a favourite card from my Top 10 list? Please feel free to let me know in the comment section below. Thank you!
If you have any patch cards you’d like to share with me, please let me know. You can always head on over to the contact page and send me an email.
Happy Collecting,
Aaron
CREASECOLLECTOR 
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