Some actors, who are also big hockey fans, were lucky enough over the years to get their own hockey trading cards. Here are 10 that stand out.
Some actors are big hockey fans. A few were lucky enough over the years to get their own hockey trading cards just like players on the NHL teams they cheer for. Here are 10 that stand out.
1. Ralph Macchio
1991-92 Pro Set Platinum #295
Karate Kid, Cobra Kai, and My Cousin Vinny actor Ralph Macchio has been an Islanders fan since the 1970s. During the 1991-92 season, each NHL team appointed a “Celebrity Captain” for the league’s 75th anniversary, and Macchio filled that role for the Isles. The 1991-92 Pro Set Platinum set featured cards of 12 different Celebrity Captains, including one of Macchio clad in an Islanders jersey. Years later in 2016, Macchio had a bobblehead in his likeness given away at an Islanders game. And there was a hockey scene in a 2021 episode of the Cobra Kai series, where Macchio’s character, Daniel Larusso, gets into a brawl with five angry hockey players after a rec league game.
2. Jim Belushi
1991-92 Pro Set Platinum #300
Actor and comedian Jim Belushi, who hails from the Chicago suburb of Wheaton, is a longtime Blackhawks fan. So, he was a natural choice to be Chicago’s “Celebrity Captain” during the NHL’s 75th anniversary season. Like Macchio, Belushi also got a card in the 1991-92 Pro Set Platinum hockey set, picturing him in a Blackhawks throwback sweater. The former Saturday Night Live alum has another hockey connection: he voiced the character Phil Palmfeather in the 1996 cartoon Mighty Ducks: The Animated Series.
3. Mike Myers
1992-93 Alberta International Team Canada #14
Former Saturday Night Live cast member and Austin Powers star Mike Myers is a die-hard Maple Leafs fan. He later wrote, produced, and starred in the hockey-themed comedy The Love Guru – but the less said about that, the better. Back in 1992, Myers was the “Honorary Captain” of the Canadian National Hockey Team and had his own card in the team set, which also included cards of future NHL D-man Adrian Aucoin and future NHL coach Tom Renney.
4. Jason Priestley
2015-16 Champ’s #300
Best known for his role as Brandon Walsh in the hit TV drama Beverly Hills 90210, Jason Priestley grew up playing hockey and later skated in celebrity charity hockey games. He played an ex-hockey player turned detective the TV series Private Eyes. He was also the love interest in the made-for-TV movie Chicks with Sticks (released on DVD as Anyone’s Game in Canada and as Hockey Mom in the U.S.). Priestley, along with several other Canadian celebrities and historical figures, had a card in the 2015-16 Champ’s hockey set.
5. Pamela Anderson
2010-11 Donruss – Fans of the Game #2
Pamela Anderson, a star in the popular 1990s TV series Baywatch, is from British Columbia and a Canucks fan. During an appearance on The Tonight Show, she once gave host Jay Leno a Canucks jersey with his name on the back. Anderson was a part of the “Fans of the Game” insert set, found randomly in packs of 2010-11 Donruss Hockey cards. A much-rarer, autographed version of her card was also issued.
6. Alyssa Milano
2011-12 Pinnacle – Fans of the Game #7
Alyssa Milano, known for her roles in Who’s the Boss? and Charmed, grew up watching her brother play hockey and is a longtime fan of the sport. Her family even had Kings’ season tickets before it was cool – that is, prior to Wayne Gretzky’s trade to L.A. Milano had a hockey card in the 2011-12 Pinnacle “Fans of the Game” insert set. Both signed and unsigned versions of her card were made.
7. Jay Baruchel
2012 Goon Promotional Card Set #NNO
It is no secret that actor Jay Baruchel is a passionate hockey fan. He wrote the book Born Into It: A Fan’s Life about his love of the Montreal Canadiens. He also produced and co-wrote the screenplay for the film Goon, based on the eponymous book. In the movie, Baruchel plays hockey fan Pat Houlihan, the best friend of protagonist Doug ‘The Thug’ Glatt. To promote Goon, a set of four Goon trading cards were available, including a card of Baruchel’s character, to download and print from the movie’s official website.
8. Wyatt Russell
2017 Upper Deck Goon: Last of the Enforcers #2
Wyatt Russell, son of Kurt Russell and Goldie Hawn, recently starred in The Falcon and the Winter Soldier as John Walker/Captain America. Prior to his acting career, he played goalie in a few junior leagues and was a third-string goalie for the University of Alabama-Huntsville, behind future NHL netminder Cam Talbot. Russell then played minor pro in Europe before an injury led him to pursue acting. He got to combine his love of hockey and acting when he played power forward Anders Cain in Goon: Last of the Enforcers. To promote the film, Upper Deck produced an eight-card set that was given out at advanced screenings and sports card shops in Canada. One of the cards pictures Russell in-character as Cain, and even has stats and a player bio on the back.
9. Elisha Cuthbert
2017 Upper Deck Goon: Last of the Enforcers #6
Canadian actress Elisha Cuthbert is a lifelong hockey fan and is married to former NHL defensemen Dion Phaneuf. She also wrote a column called “Hollywood Hockey Thoughts” as a guest blogger for NHL.com. So, it probably was not hard for her to play Mary, a die-hard Halifax Highlanders fan and sister-in-law of protagonist Doug Glatt, in the movie Goon: Last of the Enforcers. Cuthbert was also included in the card set released to promote the film.
10. Denis Leary
1994-95 Be A Player #R141
Stand-up comic and actor Denis Leary is a big-time Bruins fan. He starred in the comedy-drama show Rescue Me, playing a New York City firefighter. In the series, Leary’s character skates on the FDNY hockey team. Leary was also the executive producer of the short-lived hockey comedy Benders. In the 1994-95 Be A Player set, Leary guest wrote humorous “scouting reports” for the card back biographies for 10 of his favorite players, such as Cam Neely and Jeremy Roenick. Leary also got his own card in the set, which explains on the back that he loves hockey “because it is the only professional sport in the world that would give me my own card!”
This article first appeared in The Hockey News magazine. Get a gift issue for free with a one-year subscription at THN.com/free.