The NHLPA has given Upper Deck some flexibility in its rules for next season’s rookie cards. That should be good news to collectors who’ve been wondering what the 2020-21 rookie crop might look like in the wake of COVID-19’s impact on the 2019-20 season.
Upper Deck says it will be able to create rookie cards for players who are currently on NHL rosters, even if they’ve yet to skate in an NHL game.
Upper Deck is also hoping to also get an exception for super prospect Alexis Lafreniere so it can put him on the 2020-21 Young Guns checklist in Series 1 but that has yet to be determined. The 18-year-old Lafreniere is a lock to be taken first overall by the New York Rangers in this fall’s draft.
The list of players eligible for 2020-21 rookie cards under the NHL’s guidelines includes a mix of players who have seen ice time and those who’ve been strictly observers. The group includes:
- Brayden Burke, Arizona Coyotes
- Victor Soderstrom, Arizona Coyotes
- Artem Zagidulin, Calgary Flames
- MacKenzie Entwistle, Chicago Blackhawks
- Philipp Kurashev, Chicago Blackhawks
- Kevin Lankinen, Chicago Blackhawks
- Alec Regula, Chicago Blackhawks
- Shane Bowers, Colorado Avalanche
- Bowen Byram, Colorado Avalanche
- Ty Dellandrea, Dallas Stars
- Thomas Harley, Dallas Stars
- Jake Oettinger, Dallas Stars
- Philip Broberg, Edmonton Oilers
- Ryan McLeod, Edmonton Oilers
- Stuart Skinner, Edmonton Oilers
- Philippe Desrosiers, Florida Panthers
- Chase Priskie, Florida Panthers
- Mat Robson, Minnesota Wild
- Alex Belzile, Montreal Canadiens
- Michael McNiven, Montreal Canadiens
- Connor Ingram, Nashville Predators
- Brandon Crawley, New York Rangers
- Vitali Kravtsov, New York Rangers
- Darren Raddysh, New York Rangers
- Kirill Ustimenko, Philadelphia Flyers
- Yegor Zamula, Philadelphia Flyers
- Pierre-Olivier Joseph, Pittsburgh Penguins
- Emil Larmi, Pittsburgh Penguins
- Nicholas Robertson, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Joseph Woll, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Jalen Chatfield, Vancouver Canucks
- Oleg Juolevi, Vancouver Canucks
- Dylan Coghlan, Vegas Golden Knights
- Reid Duke, Vegas Golden Knights
- Peyton Krebs, Vegas Golden Knights
- Alexander Alexeyev, Washington Capitals
- Philippe Maillet, Washington Capitals
- Connor McMichael, Washington Capitals
- Brian Pinho, Washington Capitals
- Vitek Vanecek, Washington Capitals
- Mikhail Berdin, Winnipeg Jets
While those players may have rookie cards, Upper Deck says it’s not a guarantee all of them will appear in any particular product. Nevertheless, you might see their names inside 2020-21 Upper Deck MVP, O-Pee-Chee, Artifacts, Series 1, Synergy and Black Diamond.
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