Historical Hockey Memorabilia Auction June 2017
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 6/21/2017
In 1972 founders of a company named Hockey Diversified Inc. envisioned that each puck shot into the net to produce an official goal scored in an NHL hockey game would develop a degree of intrinsic collector value for hockey fans everywhere. The founders took this idea to the NHL and procured the rights to all such NHL pucks during regular season and playoff games for a period of five years. Pucks shot into the net for a goal were collected by the referees, given to the time keepers to label and then shipped to Hockey Diversified to further label with scoring details. The pucks were then marketed to the public by Hockey Diversified Inc. Unfortunately this idea was ahead of its time and pucks sold poorly. The program lasted only two seasons, 1972-1973 and 1973-74. Hockey Diversified Inc. dissolved shortly thereafter. Classic Auctions is honored to have been chosen by an original founder of Hockey Diversified to sell, at upcoming auctions, residual, unsold pucks from that “NHL Registered Goal Puck” collection.
Each puck originally distributed by Hockey Diversified could be obtained by mail with the buyer’s choice of team and possibly player. A label was affixed to each puck listing the scorer, team and date, along with a code that divulged which team-goal said puck accounted for. This particular puck was used by Bill Fairbairn to score the New York Rangers 295th goal of the season vs Detroit at MSG, on April 1st 1973. Assisted by both Steve Vickers and Walt Tkaczuk, the even strength goal was Fairbairn’s 30th and final goal of the season, and 82nd of his 162 career goals. The last game of the season, the Rangers would battle to a 3-3 draw despite being heavily outshot, with the Bruins their next victim in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Regarding condition, the slightly off-centered Rangers logo exhibits toning along with a few very faint marks, while the Goal Puck Program label shows some very light discolouration along the center. There are also a few very small cuts, with a small gouge along an edge on the Rangers logo side.
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