Following up on their wildly successful PWHL First Edition, Upper Deck released the encore to the first-ever professional women’s hockey card set on Wednesday. Like the previous release, the 2024-25 Upper Deck PWHL set has flown off shelves, with many local hobby shops sold out in pre-sales before the official release date.
“The first two releases of the PWHL product have been two of the biggest wins for Upper Deck in some time. The demand from collectors is so overwhelming that they can't print enough product,” says John Amendola, Founder & CEO of Mintink Trading Cards. “The most significant piece of data is the number of women collectors and customers we see around these products.”
“Selling out the First Edition was a great surprise,” says Keegan Krasne, Brand Coordinator with Upper Deck. “You never know if consumers are going to eat it up, or if they're just going to look at it. But they showed us that the market is there.”
Like the inaugural release, the 2024-25 features designs that mirror the Upper Deck flagship NHL sets from the same season. In addition to the base set, Young Guns, UD Portraits, and Blue Dazzlers, the second edition has been supplemented with Pink Dazzlers, Elevated Talent inserts, and the first autographs to appear in a PWHL set: Base Set – Autograph Parallel and PWHL Signatures.
“I'd say the main difference between this year and last year is autographs,” explains Krasne. “It's the first time collectors can get their hands on PWHL autographs from their favourite players. You'll have a chance at rookie autos, with Sarah Filier being the marquee rookie in the set. And, of course, Young Guns are always a big chase in Upper Deck flagship products, and Fillier, Hannah Bilka, and Gwyneth Philips lead the pack for this year's set.”
“The other new feature of this set is the team identities. The First Edition displayed the standard city names on the jerseys. The 2024-25 PWHL set is the chance for collectors to get cards with new team branding- Fleet, Frost, Charge, Sceptres, Victoire and Sirens.”
In addition to hobby boxes, which contain 12 packs/box, the 2024-25 set will also be available in blaster boxes, containing 5 packs/box and featuring a blaster box exclusive in the form of Purple Dazzlers.
“New to this release will be that PWHL blaster boxes will be available from retailers in-store and online starting on August 20th.”
A question that has been raised by many PWHL collectors is when they can expect to see memorabilia (jersey/equipment) patches in cards, which are commonplace in pro sports cards but have yet to appear in a PWHL release. “Unfortunately, our hands have been tied by the smaller league size. In terms of getting memorabilia cards, there's a lot that goes into that, and we’re trying to get there. It's in the works, but we have a ways to go.”
“What I can tell you is that collectors can expect change coming in the future. Right now, we use the same designs as our flagship brands, whether it's the NHL or some of our other licenses. There will be new designs that you'll be able to find in future PWHL sets. As we move forward, we're going to keep introducing new things.”
Krasne says that Upper Deck is also looking into the possibility of introducing additional PWHL product lines.
“As the league continues to grow - as you know, we're at 8 teams now - hopefully it allows us to create more products and larger checklists. Allure, O-Pee-Chee, and MVP are three candidates that have been discussed internally. Fans love their sport and the league, and as they continue to get behind it, hopefully we'll be able to introduce even more unique PWHL products.”
The First Edition made headlines with one-of-one Young Guns Gold Outbursts setting records for the three highest prices ever paid for women’s hockey cards- Marie-Philip Poulin’s sold for $20,000, Taylor Heise’s for $12,500, and Natalie Spooner’s for $9,500 (all prices CAD).
“The demand for the product on the secondary market really showcases the popularity of the PWHL,” says Amendola. “The high prices aren’t always the best thing for the collector, but they certainly highlight the growth of professional women's hockey.”
“It's been mind-blowing,” says Krasne about the record sales. “You know, we put that first product out there, it's typically going to do well, just because it's a limited, first-time offering that consumers love. This time around, if the Fillier one-of-one goes to market, I'm very curious where it will go.” As with the PWHL First Edition, packs, boxes, and cases of the 2024-25 release will become available on Upper Deck’s e-Pack platform.
“e-Pack releases take place at a later date than the physical ones,” explains Krasne. “What e-Pack does is offer consumers who don't live near a hobby shop, or don't feel comfortable ordering a box in the mail, a chance to log onto our website and buy products directly from us. Cards purchased on e-Pack live in your account until you want the physical copies, at which point you can request to have them shipped to you.”
“The platform also allows collectors the opportunity to make trades with other users to curate their collection. Another unique aspect of e-Pack is Achievements. For certain cards on e-Pack, collectors have the option to combine multiple copies of the same card through Achievements to create an e-Pack exclusive parallel of that card.”
Game Dated Moments are PWHL product exclusive to e-Pack and are cards released at regular intervals throughout the season in limited quantities, commemorating significant events like Carly Jackson’s debut start for the Toronto Sceptres in April.
“I'm very happy with our Game Dated Moments program this year and the numbers. Fans seem to really enjoy being able to collect them. It’s not easy trying to pick moments when you have 6 teams, but the league's fantastic, and the quality moments are there.”
What are some of the challenges Upper Deck has faced in creating products for a brand-new league? “Like with everything you do in this industry, there are always growing pains. But working hand in hand with the league, they've been fantastic. They're transparent with what they can do and what they can't. We both have the same goal of delivering a quality product to fans. They’re knowledgeable about league operations. We have the expertise on the trading card side, so we share insights back and forth to fine-tune the product for consumers.”
“It’s a very exciting time here at Upper Deck, and I'm sure the PWHL feels the same way. As we get more products out there and gear up for the 2025-26 season, we’ll continue to monitor consumers' reactions, give consideration to their feedback, and try to give them the best product next season as we keep growing together.”