Howdy Mantel community! Hope everyone is doing awesome! Still loving this site more every day, and although I definitely think the "Reddit of Sports Cards" works for a tag line. I'd say Mantel is quickly becoming it's own entity. Maybe down the road Reddit will be the "Mantle of random crap".

Anyhow, just wanted to jump on and give you guys a quick review of the new (as of last week) Upper Deck Skybox 2023-24 E-X 2000 NHL set. This is my first try at a set review of any kind so please cut me some slack (although construction criticism is always helpful!).

Part 1: Basic Info

Release Date: March 12, 2025

Hobby Box: 14 Packs Per Box, 2 Cards Per Pack

MSRP=$229.99

Secondary Market Average As Of 3/20/2025=$200

Base Set: 150 Cards

Parallel Sets: 6 total numbered paralell sets ranging from /499 to 1/1, 1 non-numbered SSP parallel set (1:108 Pack Odds) and a full four "card" printing plate set for each base card.

Insert Sets: 8 insert sets, most of which feature varying amounts of numbered parallel sets similar to the base set Parallels. Two of these sets have full (4 "card") printing plate sets as well. 2 of these insert sets focus on autographs and a third has an autograph parallel.

Highest Single Sale To Date: 2023-24 Upper Deck Skybox E-X 2000 Connor Bedard CREDENTIALS RC 98/499 1/1! #109 (Jersey Match) ==$2249==

For complete set details, this link will take you to the TCDB checklist page: LINK

Pre-Release Thoughts: I heard about this set quite late (just a handful of days before release) and my original reaction, like most Hockey card collectors was one of excitement.

Essential Credentials we're and continue to be one of the most iconic and collectable insert cards of the 1990s for both the Basketball and Baseball card hobbies and Hockey is no different. So the idea of a current set which would pay homage this these awesome cards is (at least from a very basic stand point) a great one!

First Impressions: Due to the above average price tag (at least as far as Hockey products are concerned), I chose to buy into a handful of PYT and Random Team breaks rather than to "Percy" a box (or more) of my own on release day.

This turned out to be a wise choice because (and I'm just going to get this one out of the way early) this product is (in my opinion) without a doubt, overpriced.

Now hear me out here, because I want to make it clear that I understand completely WHY the product is priced as high as it is, and this brings us to what in my opinion is the set's best quality.

The Card Designs (which are, for the most part great to amazing looking) are almost all acetate and/or Diecut with a variety of different designs for each insert set etc... This could not have been cheap to produce and Upper Deck honestly did an amazing job.

Just to expand on this point a little, the base set design is just stunning. With a rainbow of different colors, all in neon shine and stand out, 3-D looking action shot of the player jumping out of the center of the card, this is without a doubt my favorite modern base set that I have ever seen. I like this base set so much in fact that I have begun working on putting the entire 150 card set together so if any of you out there have any extras FT/FS I would absolutely be interested!

My appreciation of this set design doesent end with the base set either... Out of the 8 insert sets, I think 7 are easily B to B+ level or better, with the Double Helix (esspecially the 1:2880 pack odd Gold versions) and Net Assets being my personal favorites.

The only insert set that I think isn't up to par with the rest design wise are the Reverberation. In my opinion they're just going too far with the whole Diecut thing here and it's just moved past the point where it's a card for me... Now it's just a weirdly shaped piece of paper (yea yea, same thing I know). However that being said, they aren't anywhere near my least favorite Upper Deck inserts in recent memory (Metal Universe Constellations I'm looking at you).

The autograph cards (on card) also look great and although the checklist isn't absolutely massive, it has most of the major players you would want in an NHL set from 2024 as well as a few cool Veteran players in there as well.

Conclusion: So with all those positives why do I still say the set is overpriced? There are no guarenteed autos in the box. The only guarantee in fact is that ON AVERAGE you will find two numbered cards per hobby box.. For $230... Even with all the great card designs etc... I just think that's a tough sell to today's NHL card collecting community when even lower end sets like Credentials or Allure have at least 1 guarenteed Autograph.

Other small downsides which by themselves wouldn't be a deal breaker but start to pile up when taken together include:

- No memorabilia cards.

- At just two cards per pack, quality control issues in terms of condition have started to crop up.

In any case, my final word on the set is this. I think that it's not a bad set by any means, and I do believe it has its audience out there in the community (heck, like I said, I'm building the base set as we speak), however.. Im building that set by trading with other collectors and buying singles, not with buying boxes... Now if the price ends up coming down about $100 (making it $100-$130) than we'd have a very different story (and final grade on our hands) but for now, I give this set an:

6.5/10