2013 Top Autos: No. 1

Say what you will about the Florida Panthers and their horrendous 2013 NHL season, but they'll go down as a highlight of our hockey-hounding campaign. To me, this team sheet, made with a wallpaper image, is about the coolest thing we've ever gotten signed.

From a strong, eye-catching image to the gold signatures, this will be front and center in Colin's team sheet binder.

Colin racked up nearly two dozen signatures when the Panthers visited Tampa for their last regular-season game of the season.

So, there you have it, this team sheet is the top autographed item of our 2013 hockey-hounding campaign.

In case you missed the others, here is a rundown:

No. 2: Glenn "Chico" Resch
No. 3: Ottawa's Daniel Alfredsson
No. 4: Bobby Clarke
No. 5: Jarome Iginla
No. 6: Buffalo Sabres team sheet

2013 Top Autos: No. 2

When creating this list of the top autographs from the 2013 hockey-hounding campaign, the original idea was to show off the top five. In reviewing the season's efforts, though, there was one item -- this puck that was signed by former NHL goalie Glenn "Chico" Resch -- that stuck out.

Yes, it's part of the collection. But, we didn't get it. It was our buddy Scott who got it for us.

I had been carrying the puck most every time the New Jersey Devils, for whom Resch serves as a color analyst, visited Tampa, but never had the opportunity to get it signed. So, after missing once again in late March, Scott offered to see what he could do.

And, as you can see, he delivered.

To me, the puck deserves this ranking for two reasons -- it was finally added to the collection and, more importantly, it was a friend who got it for us.

Up next: No. 1

2013 Top Autos: No. 3

It's easy to imagine that Ottawa captain Daniel Alfredsson has signed more than a few of these 2012 NHL All Star Game pucks. The game was played in Ottawa. He served as the captain of Team Alfredsson. And he earned a standing ovation for a pretty nifty goal.

What makes this puck so special, though, was that it was our first autograph of the 2013 hockey-hounding campaign. Alfie signed it in late January when the Senators visited Tampa to play the Lightning.

Up next: No. 2

2013 Top Autos: No. 4

To say that Bobby Clarke was a chippy player would be an understatement. No, he was more of a demon, buzzing around and letting opponents know that they could expect a few bumps, bruises and, on occasion, broken bones by game's end.

That point was driven home recently by watching a documentary on the 1972 Summit Series, in which Canda and the Soviet Union engaged each other for hockey supremacy. While Paul Henderson remains a Canadian legend for his series-clinching goal, Clarke's two-hander on Valeri Kharlamov is remembered just as well.

Lacking a specific puck that commemorates that series, this Team Canada puck, which Clarke signed in late January when the Philadelphia Flyers came to Tampa, serves as a capable substitute.

Up next: No. 3

2013 Top Autos: No 5

With a lineup already deep with such names as Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Kris Letang, it was a trade deadline coup for the Pittsburgh Penguins to snag a player of Jarome Iginla's talents. As luck would have it, too, the Penguins would be in Tampa shortly after Iginla joined the team in early April.

I chose to have Iginla sign this puck, the team's third logo and the one he wore in his Pittsburgh debut. Sure, it would have been just as cool to have him sign a regular Penguins or Calgary Flames puck, but I'll go with scarcity every time.

Up next: No. 4

2013 Top Autos: No. 6

When I look back on the abbreviated 2013 hockey-hounding campaign, I'm left with two impressions:  We didn't do all that bad, scoring 538 autographs in 14 trips (an updated accounting from earlier totals), and we added some quality items to the collection.

So, beginning today, we'll take a countdown-style look at the top six autographs:

Colin's team sheet from the Buffalo Sabres, in town March 26 to play the Lightning, sealed the deal, for me, on using NHL team wallpapers as autograph platforms. When you get the right image and a contrasting ink color, the finished product pops. That's exactly what we have here.

Looking ahead,these will serve as our go-to items for his team sheets.

Up next: No. 5