NHL Global Series reach helped by popularity of Upper Deck in Australia

Hockey fans in Australia will get their first in-person look at the Arizona Coyotes and Los Angeles Kings this weekend with the 2023 NHL Global Series being played to Melbourne.

But it’s almost certain the faces of star forwards Clayton Keller of the Coyotes and Anze Kopitar of the Kings will be familiar ones, thanks to Upper Deck trading cards.

"The market for Upper Deck trading cards in Australia is quite impressive as our products have been in the market since the early 1990s," Upper Deck senior brand manager of sports trading cards Paul Zickler said.

Upper Deck, which extended its partnership with the NHL in 2021, is on-site in Melbourne for the Global Series and the NHL Global Fan Tour, allowing fans to interact with products in ways such as creating their own personalized trading cards.

The Kings and Coyotes will play two preseason games on Saturday and Sunday at Rod Laver Arena, home of the Australian Open tennis tournament. The games will start at 12 a.m. ET and air on NHL Network and ESPN+ in the United States, Sportsnet and Sportsnet+ in Canada, and 9Go, 9Now, ESPN and the ESPN App in Australia.

It's the first time the NHL will play games in the Southern Hemisphere.

"Given our tenure in this market, there is opportunity to continue to grow our brand here," Zickler said. "Having the NHL Global Series games come to Melbourne will help us to grow our hockey card market here at an especially opportunistic time when we are expecting a strong rookie class highlighted by (Chicago Blackhawks forward) Connor Bedard."

For Zickler, Upper Deck's presence has allowed the company to connect local fans to something that is a longtime hobby for some and one in the making for others.

"Of course, any time we get the opportunity to connect with the local community and share what the Upper Deck brand is all about, we expect card collecting to grow," he said. "Whether it's hosting our personalized trading card station at the Global Fan Tour or supporting hockey card trade events at local hobby shops, we look to connect with the local community any chance we can.

"There is no better feeling than opening up a pack of hockey cards and finding a superstar player or finding a rare autograph card. The art of hockey card collecting has stood the test of time and seeing these same reactions amongst the local Aussies has been great."

Nathan Walker was the first Australian player in the NHL. The St. Louis Blues forward was born in Cardiff, Wales, but his family moved to Sydney when he was 2 years old, and that's where he was raised and learned to play hockey. Last season, Walker's sixth in the NHL, he had 10 points (two goals, eight assists) in 56 games.

Cards of the forward are in circulation and the demand in his home country is expected to rise, according to Zickler.

"I expect an increase in demand for Nathan's Upper Deck cards amongst the local community," he said. "There is usually a tendency to collect the local players who have succeeded at the highest level."