Upper Deck Celebrates National Hockey Card Day™ with FREE Packs of Hockey Cards this Saturday!

FREE packs of hockey cards given away to Canadian fans while supplies last

Carlsbad, CA (February 9, 2011) – For the third year running, Upper Deck will host National Hockey Card Day™ in Canada. The big day is Saturday, Feb. 12. That’s the day when Upper Deck will give away hundreds of thousands of exclusive “National Hockey Card Day” NHL trading card packs for FREE throughout Canada. Once again, the majority of distribution points will be comprised of hundreds of hobby shops as well as mass retailers throughout Canada. The mass retailers participating in the promotion include Jean Coutu, Rexall and Pharma Plus.

“Canadian hockey fans are rabid about their sport and their teams, so Upper Deck wanted to do something special as a way to salute their incredible devotion,” said Chris Carlin, Upper Deck’s sports marketing manager. “The program has been a huge success every year since we started it, so we expect countless hockey fans and trading card collectors to be visiting their local hobby shops and retailers next weekend.”

Just like in years past, the buzz surrounding the promotion lies in the National Hockey Card Day set itself. The 16-card set consists of some of the top Canadian-born rookies, current stars and legends with a special “National Hockey Card Day” logo-stamp adorning each card front. The lineup includes five rookies (Taylor Hall, Tyler Seguin, Jeff Skinner, Jordan Eberle and P.K. Subban); five established stars (Jason Spezza, Dion Phaneuf, Jerome Iginla, Roberto Luongo and Sidney Crosby); and five legends of the game (Patrick Roy, Mario Lemieux, Gordie Howe, Bobby Orr and Wayne Gretzky). Each pack will yield five randomly assorted cards featuring the aforementioned players, while a special 16th card featuring Chicago Blackhawks Captain Jonathan Toews celebrating his first Stanley Cup last year will be utilized as a gift with purchase by shop owners.

To get fans and collectors excited about Saturday’s all-day event, Upper Deck would like to share this video touting the promotion: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vyCUun4c85c.

Wayne Wagner, owner of Wayne’s Sportscards in Edmonton, AB, has participated the past two years and is once again looking forward to Saturday’s outcome. "One of the most asked about events by our customers is National Hockey Card Day,” he said. “Having it coincide with Hockey Day in Canada makes it so easy for me to make plans.

Once again we had more than 300 people through our doors last year and with this year’s Upper Deck including Taylor Hall, we are hoping to eclipse that total. For the veteran collector, it’s a must have, and for the new collector there is no better place to start. I encourage all store owners to participate and build on last year’s success."

For more information about National Hockey Card Day, please visit www.upperdeck.com/nhcd and click on the “stores list” button to find the hobby shop nearest you. Fans are also encouraged to visit Upper Deck’s National Hockey Card Day Facebook Page where a variety of fun giveaways will take place on Saturday. Please visit www.facebook.com/NationalHockeyCardDay to take part.

About Upper Deck

Upper Deck is the leading sports and entertainment trading card and collectibles company. For more information on Upper Deck and its products please visit www.upperdeck.com.