Unsuccessfull prospects + Black Friday = cheap patches

 I'm an opportunist when it comes to my collection. I collect pretty much everything, and everyone, for my sports. I like to sort on COMC by sport then cheapest, sometimes checking the boxes for game used or autographed and picking off whatever looks nice to me.

 Although I rarely get to see minor league hockey on TV, I enjoy getting cards of them because I can see some unusual (and usually fun) team logos, color combinations, etc.

 Even if I've never heard of the player before, that does not stop me from buying their cards.

 Even if I have heard of them- only Rychel and Shinkaruk were known to me before I got the cards- it gives me an opportunity to learn more about my new sport.

and I really like the opportunity to add cheap patches (or just really large swatches, as in the case of Nantel) for cheap. How cheap, you may wonder? Only the Nantel cost more than 80 cents. And he cost me $1.25, probably because he's SN to 25 copies. Nantel is the only card new enough that he might still make it in the NHL- it's from 2015-16. All the rest are probably not going to make it in the NHL- in fact, the day before I wrote this post, I read an article on ProHockeyRumors that Shinkaruk had signed in the KHL.

Can't beat that, and I added some nice and rare pieces to my collection without feeling guilty about spending too much money. And every single one of them was my first card of the player.