2024-25 Ultimate Collection This Week
 

Checklist: [url]https://upperdeck.com/checklist/2024-2025-ultimate-collection-checklist/[/url]

Know people like this and it’s one of the more affordable “high-end” boxes so this can be for discussion/hits.

Checklist came out a week ago. And saw cases prices fly away after Monday when most digested it. It’s like a quarter the price of Cup and the legacy shield sig product. But cannot tell how high the price settles after release. Stature only went up so far.

The issue with Ultimate the last couple years is that it seemed like UD forgot what a true case hit looks like. Since 23-24 Premier they've been really good on their marquee products. The 24-25 Ultimate checklist has a lot of case hit worthy cards - not surprised the prices have gone up .

I would buy Ultimate way before Black Diamond.

Last year was horribly watered down, lets see how this years goes.

and 25/26 s1 is coming out in a couple weeks, that will take away a ton off attention from 24/25 stuff.

[QUOTE=odjickfan;20043800]I would buy Ultimate way before Black Diamond.[/QUOTE]

I don't think anyone but Upper Deck puts Black Diamond in the same room as Ultimate (or Premier, Stature, etc).

"We will label and price it as a top end product, and hence forth it shall be".

Also:

"Why is no one buying our arbitrarily defined [I]top end[/I] product?"

I have some Ultimate memorabilia cards, but for rookies and autos I go with Premier (or other products) because I typically like Premier's design more.

This product has gone way downhill. UD realized people are seduced by the shield hunt, so why bother delivering value. And LOL at pulling a shield. By my count there are 113 in total, and looking at GP breaks, you're lucky if you get one per every 30 or 40+ cases. I'm just glad premier has not suffered the same fate....yet.

[QUOTE=rizzeedizzee;20043897]This product has gone way downhill. UD realized people are seduced by the shield hunt, so why bother delivering value. And LOL at pulling a shield. By my count there are 113 in total, and looking at GP breaks, you're lucky if you get one per every 30 or 40+ cases. I'm just glad premier has not suffered the same fate....yet.[/QUOTE]

What products do deliver value? I’ve seen plenty of bunk Premier boxes. If you dislike it cool but in this day and age the value argument goes for 99.9% if products. If not I’d love to learn some I won’t lose my wallet on lol

Got out of the hobby in 2005 after busting SP Authentic boxes (Crosby/Ovie rookie year) for ~$150 a pop as it was terrible value back then. 2 autos per box and checklist was full of plugs. Enough was enough so I tapped out.

Cracked some UD Series 1 during Covid (Lafreniere hunting LOL) and have since re-retired from wax again.

I buy singles. There is zero VALUE in any of these releases. Its wild.

Zero sum debate on value. If top tier rookie sigs or top tier vets/HOF were in every other case for value, then prices would be even higher. Had this convo with my late LCS owner years before 2020 and the market uplift. Would be nice to have the higher odds to pull a great player but do not think anyone wants any higher prices than already. Blame who you wish to but if McDavid was falling out loose boxes left and right for example sake, value of singles will plummet. Great for buying but not for selling. Your choice of which side to hop scotch around depending on your hobby habits.

[QUOTE=rohara99;20043924]Got out of the hobby in 2005 after busting SP Authentic boxes (Crosby/Ovie rookie year) for ~$150 a pop as it was terrible value back then. 2 autos per box and checklist was full of plugs. Enough was enough so I tapped out.

Cracked some UD Series 1 during Covid (Lafreniere hunting LOL) and have since re-retired from wax again.

I buy singles. There is zero VALUE in any of these releases. Its wild.[/QUOTE]

I have been in hockey cards since around 2002. I remember the much shorter checklists of 2002-03 and 2003-04 products vs now. I am mostly gone from wax except for a few packs of Timmies and maybe a blaster of UD1 or a OPC hobby box.
I get my fun in downsizing my inventory and I am turning my focus on collecting Patrick Roy singles.

GP Sports has bounties for the major legend shields. So far it doesn't seem to be pushing sales of break spots though. Maybe people realize shields are needles in haystacks period, with only 10% or so being of the legends.

I never understand the draw of the bounties. It's a nice a bonus, but I would never open product because of a bounty given how long the odds are.

[QUOTE=FatButcher;20045793]I never understand the draw of the bounties. It's a nice a bonus, but I would never open product because of a bounty given how long the odds are.[/QUOTE]

Agree 100%. Like who is picking up hobby boxes because of a bounty? You may as well buy a straight up lottery ticket. It's the same mindset when a major hit in a product is pulled, you have people saying "Good now the prices of boxes will go down" as if one singular card is the sole reason people buy a box.

[QUOTE=Grave252;20045858]Agree 100%. Like who is picking up hobby boxes because of a bounty? You may as well buy a straight up lottery ticket. It's the same mindset when a major hit in a product is pulled, you have people saying "Good now the prices of boxes will go down" as if one singular card is the sole reason people buy a box.[/QUOTE]

I will say this. Breaks for 2023-24 The Cup were filling despite huge prices, then the Bedard shields, plus those of Cooley and Carlsson, were pulled in short order, and suddenly people were not lining up for Cup breaks like they had been despite no changes in pricing. Whales don't like it if they can't win big. Case in point - there was a break of 5 cases of 2022-23 The Cup where I'd wanted Arizona, but didn't get them in time, but then the person who did requested a refund since after the break was posted but before it ran the Guenther shield was pulled. And yes, this was a whale.

I just always assume the “bounty” is prob less than what you could get at market. Not always but look at this site….they “remove” or say their bounty is expired as soon as these cards lose value (ie Bedard outburst after he wasn’t Gretzky day one). You also have the offer for the Skenes card they turned down and just sold. I only saw Gretzky but them saying it’s $225K but will prob flip it and use Goldin and get $250K out of it. Both are a ton of money but I don’t get just not selling it yourself over taking a bounty.

Also feels like a marketing gimmick for those offering them, have any large-size bounties even been given out in the last few years? I’m talking over $10K

I don’t trust breakers that are in bed with UD and get posted on their social media weekly, but if you choose to trust GP Sports Cards two boxes of their three box Ultimate rip had three autos. That definitely didn’t happen in the past so if it’s legit and not covert UD promo that’s pretty cool

Saw the Matthew Knies Update RC auto shield pulled by Dave & Adams on Fanatics Live from the first case they broke today

Opened my case. Lots of emblem autos like previous years but the 1st box was a Macklin Gold Emblem Sig /25. Good condition for these kinds of cards. Just grateful to hit his sig at all. Got the case before the prices started moving.

[QUOTE=chris_ac;20046961]Opened my case. Lots of emblem autos like previous years but the 1st box was a Macklin Gold Emblem Sig /25. Good condition for these kinds of cards. Just grateful to hit his sig at all. Got the case before the prices started moving.[/QUOTE]

That's an outstanding result, congrats!

The Emblems look to be much less streaky this year. I watched more cases than I'd like to admit get opened by GP and never saw anything as good as your Celebrini.

I didn’t know about the streaks and opened a 21-22 and my Tyce Thompson was mangled from that. Luckily it was Tyce Thompson but was prob the worst looking auto I ever pulled streak wise. I don’t care for me but did they do anything at the time? I’m realizing now this issue was pretty widespread.

Sick case though, nice Celebrini, guessing no shields but would love to hear some other hits. I wanna open just done so terrible including Streaky Streak auto I don’t think this product likes me

So out of 32 autos, 2 per box on avg, maybe 4/5 were streaky. Not widespread imo. Just as likely to see surface scratch kind of things as ink issues. One patch auto had a major edge lift in the bottom center. Sometimes these single pack boxes where the cardboard edges wedge against the pack can create some rough rubbing lol. Learned from watching breakers to rip the box on the right edge to create more room to remove the pack so that helped.

No other real hits to mention really is why most say value is typical. Hit a Wyatt Johnston sig 1/35 and dupe base sigs of McTavish. Hit multiple patch autos but wrong names.

Seems like the same junk as always but the gamblers are chasing the Gretzky logo. I bet its going to be on epack.

[QUOTE=anusinha;20047514]Seems like the same junk as always but the gamblers are chasing the Gretzky logo. I bet its going to be on epack.[/QUOTE]

Very possible, which makes this even riskier for wax opening. Any of the legend or rookie shields might end up on e-pack.