From the moment the first John Tavares Rookie Card arrived, there has been significant hobby interest in the offensive-minded center. Now that he’s joined the Toronto Maple Leafs and one of the biggest fanbases in sports, look for interest in all John Tavares cards to grow. He joins a young core that also includes Auston Matthews, Mitch Marner and more.
The move to Toronto comes after almost a decade with the Islanders. New York took him with the first overall pick in the 2009 NHL Draft and never looked back. Tavares has scored at least 24 goals in every season, including two that were cut short due to strike or injury. Tavares also brings a lot of leadership with him, having captained the Islanders for several years and being part of a handful of gold medal-winning Team Canada teams.
John Tavares Rookie Cards can be found in 2009-10 products. All come from Upper Deck who had the exclusive NHL license. Like virtually all modern players, the John Tavares Rookie Card checklist has a fair amount of variety to it. That said, the majority of even the most basic cards are short prints making them both a little tougher to find and more expensive that you might expect from such brands.
While John Tavares Rookie Cards came out in 2009-10, he does have minor league cards dating back as early as 2005-06. In the Game made him a big part of their products for several years including autographs and memorabilia cards.
Most Valuable John Tavares Rookie Card Countdown
The following rankings are based on the Beckett Hockey Card Database and Price Guide. Only base set Rookie Cards with the RC tag are included here. Inserts and parallels are not.
20. 2009-10 O-Pee-Chee John Tavares RC #800
19. 2009-10 Upper Deck Victory John Tavares RC #318
18. 2009-10 Upper Deck Ovation John Tavares RC #70
Buy on:
17. 2009-10 Collector’s Choice John Tavares RC #273
16. 2009-10 Upper Deck MVP John Tavares RC #377
15. 2009-10 Ultra John Tavares RC #251
14. 2009-10 Upper Deck Champ’s John Tavares RC #144
Parallels: Mini Blue Backs, Mini Green Backs, Mini Parkhurst Backs, Mini Red Backs
Buy on:
13. 2009-10 Artifacts John Tavares RC #212 /699
Buy on:
12. 2009-10 Black Diamond John Tavares RC #222
11. 2009-10 Upper Deck Trilogy John Tavares RC #170 /499
Buy on:
10. 2009-10 Be a Player John Tavares RC #201 /99
9. 2009-10 O-Pee-Chee Premier John Tavares RC Auto Quad Jersey #61 /299
Parallels: Gold Spectrum (/35), Black (/10)
Printing Plates (no autograph or memorabilia, included in 2009-10 The Cup): Black (1/1), Cyan (1/1), Magenta (1/1), Yellow (1/1)
Buy on:
8. 2009-10 Upper Deck John Tavares RC #201
7. 2009-10 SPx John Tavares RC Auto Jersey #180 /499
Printing Plates (no autograph or memorabilia, included in 2009-10 The Cup): Black (1/1), Cyan (1/1), Magenta (1/1), Yellow (1/1)
Buy on:
6. 2009-10 SP Game Used John Tavares RC #200 /99
Parallels: Gold (/50), Silver Spectrum (/10), Gold Spectrum (1/1)
Printing Plates (included in 2009-10 The Cup): Black (1/1), Cyan (1/1), Magenta (1/1), Yellow (1/1)
Buy on:
5. 2009-10 SP Authentic John Tavares RC Autograph #201 /999
Parallels: Limited Autographed Patches (/100)
Printing Plates (no autograph, included in 2009-10 The Cup): Black (1/1), Cyan (1/1), Magenta (1/1), Yellow (1/1)
Buy on:
4. 2009-10 UD Black John Tavares RC Autograph #73 /99
Printing Plates Parallels (no autograph, included in 2009-10 The Cup): Black (1/1), Cyan (1/1), Magenta (1/1), Yellow (1/1)
Buy on:
3. 2009-10 Ultimate Collection John Tavares RC Autograph #139 /99
Parallels: Rookie Patch Autographs (/25), NHL Shield Autographs (1/1)
Printing Plates (no autograph, included in 2009-10 The Cup): Black (1/1), Cyan (1/1), Magenta (1/1), Yellow (1/1)
Buy on:
2. 2009-10 Upper Deck Ice John Tavares RC #184 /99
1. 2009-10 Upper Deck The Cup John Tavares RC Auto Patch #180 /99
Parallels: Gold Rainbow (/91)
Parallels (no autographs or memorabilia): Gold (/25), Black (1/1), Printing Plates Black (1/1), Printing Plates Cyan (1/1), Printing Plates Magenta (1/1), Printing Plates Yellow (1/1)
Buy on:
Great cards and concept. Next we need a Auston Matthews Rookie Card Countdown.