Chris Tamer

Tamer was drafted 68th overall by the Pens in the 4th round of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft.  Of course, that was the draft that Jaromir Jagr was picked in the first round so much of the later round picks really went without much fanfare:  Joe Dziedzic, Chris Tamer, Brian Farrell, Ian Moran, Denis Casey, Mike Valila, Ken Plaquin, Pat Neaton, Petteri Koskimaki, Ladislav Karabin, Tim Fingerhut, Michael Thompson, Brian Bruininks (All household names for you I'm sure).  They did get Joe Mullen out of that draft too for a trade of their 2nd round pick but now I'm getting off track.

Tamer played the next four years for the University of Michigan, establishing himself as a hard-hitting defenseman that could serve on a grinder line, kill penalties, and rack up the penalty minutes.

Tamer was a solid d-man and played for the Pens up until 1998-99 when he was traded to the New York Rangers as part of a large deal involving multiple players and cash.  The Pens got Alexei Kovalev in return (for his first stint on the team).  After that season, he was drafted by the newly formed Atlanta Thrashers in the 1999 NHL Expansion Draft, giving the team a veteran defenseman to lead the younger guys in the locker room.  He played five more years with Atlanta before retiring after a 14 game stint in 2005-06 with the AHL Chicago Wolves.

This is a Classic Hockey card that features Chris in his Cleveland Lumberjacks uniform.  He split time with the Pens and their minor league team in 1993-94 and 1994-95.  The card is hand numbered 64/1900.  I don't know if Tamer did the actual numbering or not.