When you work on the manufacturer side of the NHL trading card business, you tend to pick up tons of behind-the-scenes skinny and invaluable insight into the daily dealings with the game’s superstars and their agents.
For example, Panini America NHL acquisitions specialist Alex Carbajal was one of the first people on the planet to know that Boston Bruins winger Milan Lucic earlier this year had expressed an interest in getting out of the card-signing business. It was nothing against collectors or the hobby, Lucic simply didn’t want to sign any more trading cards.
Read more: The Official Blog of Panini America