I have been collecting sports cards for as long as I can remember. Growing up, my room was filled with packs from every sport imaginable—everything from pro wrestling and baseball to basketball. But if you were to dig through my deepest collection, you would find a massive archive dedicated entirely to hockey. I’ve been buying them since I was at least five years old.

Recently, while doing some spring cleaning around the house, I stumbled upon a sight that instantly took me back: binders after binders of cards that I’ve accumulated over the decades. Honestly, given how much time has passed and how life moves on, I can’t believe I managed to hold onto all of them.

Flipping through those plastic sleeves was like opening a time capsule to one of the most iconic eras of the sport. I found a Paul Kariya card from his legendary days with the then-named Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. Right next to it was a Jaromir Jagr card from his flowing-hair era with the Pittsburgh Penguins, a Mark Messier card proudly displaying his New York Rangers sweater, and the "Great One" himself, Wayne Gretzky, donning the silver and black of the Los Angeles Kings.

But out of the thousands of cards in those binders, one in particular stopped me in my tracks: a Teemu Selanne card from his time with the Mighty Ducks.

These cards carry an immense amount of sentimental value, but that Selanne card holds a truly special place in my personal history. It was the very first Mighty Ducks card I ever received.

At the time, I was living in San Diego and was completely swept up in the hockey culture of the West Coast. I was a massive fan of the Mighty Ducks movies and the animated Disney cartoon series (which, admittedly, I still watch on Disney+ to this day). Between my obsession with the fictional Ducks and going to see the San Diego Gulls play live, I was totally engulfed by the sport.

I still remember the day I ripped open that specific wax pack. When I pulled out the Teemu Selanne card, I actually didn't know who he was yet. But it didn't matter. Just because he was wearing that iconic duck-shaped goalie mask logo on his chest, he instantly became my favorite player.

Finding these binders didn't just remind me of the players who defined a generation; it reminded me of why I fell in love with hockey in the first place.