Max Talbot

Shhhhhh!!

There are so many characters in the storied history of the Pittsburgh Penguins and no list would be complete with Max Talbot. Max was drafted (almost not drafted) 234th overall by the Penguins in the 2002 Entry Draft and went on to be named playoff MVP in back to back President's Cup championships in the Q. When he finally started his journey with the Penguins in 2004-05 in Wilkes-Barre, it was tough sledding at first because the scoring wasn't as easy in the AHL as it was in the Q. So he had to shine in other areas to get the look from the big club. 

That he did, and in 2005-06, he made a roster spot out of training camp. But after 48 games, he went back down to the AHL, spending the rest of the season on Wilkes-Barre as well as the first five games to begin the following season. Getting called up in October 2006, Max took to his roll as a penalty killer and won himself a permanent spot on the team from that point on. He would go on to play the rest of the 2006-07 season and four more full seasons thereafter with the Penguins.

Max has a huge personality, some would say larger-than-life, that earned him the nickname Superstar while playing for Pittsburgh. He was known for pranks, jokes, and generally just speaking his mind when it came to interviews. Did I mention he scored the goal that clinched the 2009 Stanley Cup? Maybe I should have lead with that.

This card is from the 2011-12 Artifacts Autofacts set. The card is signed with blue pen on a sticker, unfortunately. Artifacts is known more for it's jersey swatch cards than the autos so it gets the sticker treatment.