The Bobby Orr Rookie Card and Other Vintage Cards
Bobby Orr Rookie Cards
The 1966-67 Topps Bobby Orr #35 is the card most recognized Bobby Orr rookie and one of the most valuable hockey cards of all time. However, there’s a nearly identical card that is even more valuable, a cameo appearance by Orr an another Hall of Famer’s card – along with some awesome early non-rookie Bobby Orr cards. We’ll cover them all in this article.
1966-67 Topps Bobby Orr Card #35
The 1966-67 Topps Bobby Orr rookie card #25 is one of the greatest hockey cards of all time. Before Wayne Gretzky, the conversation around the best player ever often zeroed in on Bobby Orr, a player who revolutionized the defenceman position with his prolific scoring. A 1960s rookie card for a player who is considered an all-time great at their sport will be of interest to collectors, but there are additional factors that make this card one of the top cards in the hobby.
Other Factors:
- Tough Set for Mint Condition – The 1966-67 set creates many challenges for collectors with the wood-grain borders and thin card stock making it difficult to find one without flaws. The thin card stock makes the cards fragile and the dark border makes any dings to the side of the card visible.
- Collectability of 60’s Hockey Cards – In the 1980s collectors started to realize that sports cards had the potential to be valuable, but that wasn’t the view of hockey collectors in the 1960s. There wasn’t a big emphasis by collectors to preserve cards in mint condition, which makes finding high-grade 1960s hockey cards very difficult.
- One of Hockey’s Greatest Players: Orr has not been forgotten by hockey fans and collectors even after all these years and is considered one of the best defencemen to play the sport. He is still often mentioned alongside the likes of Wayne Gretzky, Bobby Hull, and Gordie Howe in GOAT conversations and debates.
1966-67 Topps Hockey Set Details
This season was the third season where Topps Hockey increased the checklist, bringing the card count up to 132 and that would be the norm for several years. Pictures of players were imposed over crowds and were designed to look like a television screen of that era. There was a puck shape in the upper left corner that contained the card number. Every team had cards and each team had two series in the set. The regular issue cards featured bilingual facts, but Topps issued another set that only had English on them – those cards the “USA Test” cards and are very rare. The key card of the set is the Bobby Orr rookie card, other notable rookie cards included were Emile Francis (#21) and Harry Sinden (#31). These cards were made horizontally to mimic a television screen.
- Year: 1966-67
- Manufacturer : Topps
- Number of Cards: 132
- Card size: 2 1/2″ x 3 1/2″ (standard size)
1966-67 Topps Bobby Orr Rookie Card #35 Details
- Card no: #35
- Name on Card: Bobby Orr
- Height 5’11”
- Born: 03/20/1948, Parry Sound, Ontario
- Weight: 175
- Last Amateur Club: Oshawa Generals (1965-1966)
- Shoots: Left
Front of the card
The 1966-67 Topps Card has a finished in a wood grain border, similar to the basement finish in an 80s home or the televisions you would find in houses across North America during the late 1960s. The edges of the screen were black with a white interior finish. The edges of the card are bordered by a black line. The picture of a young Orr during his rookie season with the Bruins. The headshot is imposed over a picture of hockey benches and a crowd. The game depicted behind Orr is the Toronto Maple Leafs vs the Chicago Blackhawks in a large oval.
Note: There is also a Topps USA Test version of this card. I talk about it a little further down in this article.
Shop for a 1966-67 Topps Bobby Orr Rookie card #35 on eBay (affiliate link), because this card is the most recognized version of his rookie card.
Back of the card
The back of the 1966-67 Topps Card has a similar design to the front, with the same television screen oval shape, but with less detail. The oval is black, and the wording and the wording and border are yellow. The layout is clean and simple using a basic grid, considering it is the rookie card there is not much detail besides his personal life. Some cards have French on the bottom and English on top for the player description. The card has a puck with the card number 35 in the top left corner of the card.
Bobby came to the Bruins direct from the Oshawa Generals Junior “A” Club. He is the most publicized Junior in many years and certainly will become one of the future stars in the N.H.L. A rushing defenseman who can set up goals as well as score them.
1966-67 Topps Bobby Orr Rookie card #35
Bobby Orr 1966-67 Topps (#35) Rookie Card Value
The 1966-67 Bobby Orr rookie card is one of the most valuable hockey cards ever made. The chart below was pulled from the popular card grading site PSA on 11/01/2021. It shows prices for the Bobby Orr rookie card in various conditions.
Keep in mind that prices fluctuate. While PSA is a great way to find out the value of a card, we recommend going to eBay to see what cards are currently selling for on the world’s most popular auction site. Click here to view current auctions for the 1966-67 Topps Bobby Orr Rookie card #35.
Other Relevant Bobby Orr Cards
Aside from the 1966-67 Topps card mentioned above, Orr has another clear rookie, a questionable rookie, and a lot of great 2nd-year cards.
1966-67 Topps USA Test Bobby Orr #35
In 1967 the NHL expanded from six to twelve teams by adding six new teams located in the United States: the Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota North Stars, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and St. Louis Blues. For this reason, Topps decided to print a nearly identical set and test it in the US market. The key differences are the lighter-colored wood border on the front and no French text on the back of the card. Because this was a test and the US market for hockey cards was an unknown, Topps did a smaller printing of these cards. The scarcity of the USA Test version of Orr’s rookie makes it one of the most valuable hockey cards ever made.
Shop for a 1966-67 Topps USA Test Bobby Orr rookie #35 on eBay (affiliate link), because this is the rarest and valuable version of the card.
1966-67 Topps Gump Worsley All-Star #130 (w/ Orr Puzzle)
The 1966-67 Topps All-Star subset had a photo of the All-Star on the font and a puzzle piece on the back. The puzzle piece on Hall of Famer Gump Worsley’s card has a very clear black and white photo of Bobby Orr. Collectors certainly will have different opinions on whether this counts as a Bobby Orr rookie, but either way collectors need to know that it exists so they can decide if it’s right for their collection.
Shop for a 1966-67 Topps Gump Worsley All-Star on eBay (affiliate link)
1967-68 Topps Bobby Orr #92
Bobby Orr’s 1967-68 Topps regular card is not a rookie, but it is a very cool and colorful early Bobby Orr card. Orr is pictured in front of a pink background with sketched fans. The bottom of the card has his name, position, and team on a bright yellow bar.
Shop for a 1967-67 Topps Bobby Orr on eBay (affiliate link)
1967-68 Topps Bobby Orr All-Star #128
Bobby Orr’s 1967-68 All-Star card #128 is another great early Orr card from this colorful set. The words “All-Star” are at the top of the card in a multi-color vintage font with Orr’s photo below in front of a pink background. Orr was a 2nd team All-Star in his rookie season.
Shop for a 1967-68 Topps Bobby Orr All-Star on eBay (affiliate link)
1967-68 Topps Bobby Orr Calder Memorial Trophy #118
Bobby Orr’s only other card in the 1967-68 set honors him for winning the Calder Memorial Trophy, which is the NHL’s rookie of the year award. This card uses the same photo as his solo #92 card.
Shop for a 1967-68 Topps Bobby Orr Calder Memorial Trophy on eBay (affiliate link)
Bobby Orr’s Legacy
Bobby Orr is one of the greatest players to ever lace up skates in the NHL. His unique way of play revolutionized and forever changed the defenceman position. He was the first player to ever lead the NHL in scoring in that position. Orr joined the Boston Bruins when he was just 18 years old and played for them for another ten seasons. In his tenure with the Bruins, he helped take the Bruins to eight consecutive playoff appearances, of which the Bruins won two Stanley Cups in 1970 and 1972.
He then finished his career playing parts of two seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks, Orr, unfortunately, battled many injuries during the later years of his career. His skates from the 1970 hockey season are on display at the Hockey Hall of Fame and Orr himself was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979 after he retired. Bobby Orr is best known for his flying goal against the St. Louis Blues during the 1970 Stanley Cup Final. Bobby Orr had 18 awards and honors during his career. Here are some of Bobby Orr’s career accomplishments:
- 2 time Points leader (1969-70, 1974-75)
- 1 time Hat tricks leader (1974-75)
- 7 time All-Star
- 5 time Assists Leader (1969-70, 1970-71, 1971-72, 1973-74, 1974-75)
- Calder Memorial Trophy (Rookie of the Year) (1984-85)
- 2 time Conn Smythe Trophy winner (MVP Playoffs) (1969-1970, 1971-72)
- 2 time Art Ross Trophy winner (Points Leader) (1969-70, 1974-75)
- 8 time James Norris Memorial Trophy (Top Defenseman)
- 3 time Hart Memorial Trophy winner (MVP) (1969-70, 1970-71, 1971-72)
- 1 time Ted Lindsay Award Winner (NHLPA Outstanding Player) (1974-75)
- 2 time Art Ross Trophy (1969-70, 1974-75)
- 2 time Stanley Cup Winner (1970, 1972)
- Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979
Get Your Bobby Orr Rookie
Do you want to own a 1966-67 Topps Bobby Orr rookie (#35)? If so, we recommend starting your search on eBay – the world’s #1 card trading place. Even if you’re not planning to buy one just yet, it’s fun to look at all the great cards currently for sale.
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All About Bobby Orr Rookies Infographic
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