From the first time I learned to flip baseball cards growing up until several years ago, I was a fan of baseball card collecting. Then as I moved into Pennsylvania, away from the New York sports area, I quickly started following ice hockey again.

I followed hockey in the mid-eighties when the NY Islanders were winning Stanley Cups and before the NJ Devils moved in from Colorado. At this time there was some guy named Gretsky (Wayne is the first name - I think) making headlines all over the place. Anyway, I began taking a new interest in ice hockey when my son first started playing and have never looked back.

Like in baseball (Don Mattingly) and in football (Troy Aikman), I have an NHL favorite star that I like to follow - Mike Modano of the Dallas Stars is #9 and plays center.

Aside from being the all-time US born points leader, Mike is a hard player who gives his team 100% everytime he plays and is loyal to the team that drafted him. Mike Modano was drafted by the Minnesota North Stars who has since moved to Texas to become the Dallas Stars.

The O-Pee-Chee 1989 Mike Modano rookie card is listed to the right.

Modano's career statistics, through 2008, include 543 goals, 786 assists and 1,329 points

Before following the entire career of Troy Aikman #8 Quaterback for the Dallas Cowboys - now in the National Football Hall of Fame, I watched a young Don Mattingly make his way to the hearts of New Yorkers and even New Jersyians.

This young ball player originally wore #46 in his first season with the Bronx Bombers then quickly switched to #23.

There are so many memories I have from watching Mattingly play baseball that I cannot even list in a single hub. I remember that he hit a home run in eight straight games and edged out Dave Winfield for a batting title and that he was never elected to the hall of fame.

Like Modano and Aikman, Mattingly played at least 10 years of professional basball and played his entire career with the same team, an amazing accomplishment for each sport.

Mattingly's career statistics, include .307 batting average, 222 home runs, 1,099runs batted in.  #23 is now retired by the NY Yankees.

Obviously my favorite hockey player to watch is #26, my son, but he doesn't have any cards so I am stuck with a Pro. As for the #26 that he has held through Middle School, High School and travel hockey, it is after his boyhood star Patrik Elias #26 of the NJ Devils.

There was a time when we went to get an autograph of Flyers great #25 Keith Primeau and my son was just at the start of his ice hockey career. Being a long time Devils fan, he brought the only thing he could think of to have Keith Primeau sign - It was his NJ Devils hand held replica hockey stick with a big Devils logo on it. Primeau was a true professional, shook my son's hand and happily signed the stick