Dust off your hockey sweaters and grab your favorite pack-ripping tool because SP Game Used Hockey is skating back to us for its quarter-century celebration. Even after flinging attempts across other sports like a slap shot gone wild, Upper Deck’s beloved memorabilia-based hockey line has remained as solid as the ice on a frosty Canadian pond. While baseball, football, and basketball may have booted the SP Game Used puck from their courts and fields, hockey fans have held this treasure of a series close for a commendable 25 years, and they’re not letting go anytime soon.
This landmark edition doesn’t just lean back on its nostalgia-padded laurels. On the contrary, it charges full speed ahead with fresh, collectible fervor. This year’s most coveted cards are those featuring relics from a groundbreaking event—the first-ever 4 Nations Face-Off in February 2025. Imagine ripping open a pack and finding a beautifully crafted card bearing a piece of the game—literally—where the teams from USA, Canada, Finland, and Sweden clashed. These international face-offs make the chase for these cards electrifying, kindling rivalries and memories.
Each hobby box of SP Game Used presents a single nine-card pack, yet it’s packed like a clowned tire with valuable, card-collecting delights. Collectors will revel in finding four hits per hobby box, which can be autographs, memorabilia, autographed memorabilia, or exclusive premium inserts. Adding to the thrill, each pack includes three base cards, Authentic Rookies, or New Grooves inserts, alongside two exciting parallels of base cards, Authentic Rookies, or yes, those New Grooves again.
Boasting a 200-card base set, this edition aligns the stars of the current NHL alongside revered legends and rookie players whose bright futures could ignite a card-collecting frenzy—or cause a decisive dent in wallets everywhere. Parallel hunters can delight in the chase through a stratified hierarchy of collectible rarities. First up are the classic reds—not numbered but possessing a shiny allure. Gold parallels numbered out of 149 promise a more precious find. However, don’t miss out on the Rainbow parallels, precisely serial-numbered to the player’s jersey number, endowing some cards with legendary scarcity. Then come the truly formidable Purple parallels /5 and, for those lucky enough to stumble upon them, the mystical Green 1/1 parallels, which are akin to finding hockey-card unicorns.
Naturally, in a series titled “SP Game Used,” the memorabilia itself takes center ice. Upper Deck has scoured the rink for game-used gear not just from regular NHL contests but high-energy matchups: Stanley Cup playoffs, the NHL Global Series, Stadium Series, Winter Classic, and of course, our new worldly 4 Nations Face-Off. Among the relic sets to hunt, Rookie Sweaters /299, Troupe Threads /199, and Game Day Gear /100 stand prominent. Of special note are the Rookie Jumbo Patches /25 and Supreme Materials /15, flaunting super-sized Supreme Patches /15 adorned with the new tournament’s relics. Because when it comes to patch-relic cards, size, dear collectors, does matter.
The hobby’s heartbeats, Puck Relics, and Net Cord cards, return, each showcasing tangible pieces of game history like nets from NHL debuts and milestone matches. Not to overshadow these, the Draft Day Marks again spotlight rookies with manufactured letter patches bearing their signatures. Assemble the full name, and you’ll not only get bragging rights but the social media glory of collecting lore.
For the rookie enthusiasts, the Inked Rookie Sweaters /99, even with rare Patch parallels /25, remain an attraction, while veterans make their mark with Inked Sweaters—with pulls as tough as a playoff overtime match at 1:100 packs—and their Patch parallels /25 as well. The signature touch is evident with Banner cards, slicing and dicing banners from notable hockey occasions like Draft Days, Stanley Cup Finals, and Winter Classics, not to forget the autograph-stamped versions for those feeling fancy.
Insert sets arrive to keep collectors guessing and gasping, with New Grooves inserts making a comeback, complete with thrilling rookie elements and parallel opportunities: Red /499, Gold /149, Rainbow /99, Purple /5, and the elusive Green 1/1. Meanwhile, the debut of the numbered NHL Masters /299 sets a fresh benchmark, offering jerseys and patches that span the spectrum from rookies to grand-standing hockey rulers of past decades.
As we edge closer to the January 2026 release, which is apt to shift as unpredictable as a bouncing puck, each SP Game Used hockey box packs the punch of 9 cards, maintaining this thrill within a 20-box case setup, each divided into two 10-box inner cases.
So, as you ready to navigate this glacial jubilee of hockey card excellence, prepare for the whims and whoops of a nostalgia-laden, relic-stuffed ride. SP Game Used has returned, painting the goalposts of card collecting with once-in-a-lifetime finds and sparking the magic of hockey history in card form.
