Oh it was a thing in the early 80s, when getting pictures of players was a premium. It seems like there were two or three guys that took pictures for hockey cards, and only in certain venues on the east coast.
If a player didn’t play in those games on that road trip, there was a chance they didn’t get an updated picture for next year.
If the player stayed with the same team the next season, no problem, they’d use another shot from earlier in his career.
If he changed teams though, that was a problem.
Take Mel Bridegman, former captain of the big bad Flyers. Traded to the Flames in 1981 but in the 1983 offseason he was traded to the Devils. The chaps at OPeeChee had to scramble to get Mel in Devils silks for the Fall 1983 hockey card release.
The recolouring of the jersey went ok, but something went terribly wrong on the production floor, and whatever recolouring/drawing of the helmet they planned for poor Mel’s helmet went sideways to say the least.
