Joe Dziedzic

I have talked about the potential for Joe to be a great Penguin before and his career ending eye injury in 2000 so I will spare everyone the recap.  But I did find more about his career after the NHL, which is more interesting I think.  

From 2004-2009, he coached Minnesota's Team Northwest in the Upper Midwest High School Elite League.  They made it to the championship game in 2008. In 2010, Joe began his job as head coach and director of hockey at St. Paul Academy and Summit School.  

As I mentioned, Joe now runs a youth hockey camp in Minnesota.  He has helped train hundreds of players of all ages on the fundamentals of what it takes to be a great player.  His camp focuses on skills development, helping students improve both skating and puck handling.   The advertise a "no-gimmicks" approach to instructions, meaning good old fashioned hard work and dedication.

This is the second Joe Dziedzic autographed card I have been able to add to my collection.  You can check out the first one here, along with my original write up if you would like.  

This one comes from the 1994 Signature Rookies set and is hand numbered out of 7,750.  The card is signed in what looks like blue sharpie marker.  It's interesting that Joe decided not to cover up any of his image and elected to sign over the card logo itself.  Vanity?  Maybe.