'I'm not so passionate about it': Winner of multimillion-dollar Gretzky card case says he's changed his mind
CBC
The man who bought a highly sought-after, multimillion-dollar case of hockey cards now says he doesn't want them anymore.
CBC confirmed that Ontario-based real estate agent Jack Arshawsky won the auction for a case containing thousands of unopened 1979-1980 O-Pee-Chee brand hockey cards — the set that contains Wayne Gretzky's rookie card — for $3.72 million US.
However, Arshawsky says he has not paid the full amount for the cards yet, so they remain in the auction house's "vault."
The box of unopened hockey cards was found in a Saskatchewan family's attic. American-based auction house Heritage Auctions, which ran the sale, estimated there could be as many as 25 to 27 Gretzky rookie cards in the case.
A single rookie Gretzky card has previously sold at auction for $3.75 million US.
Online bidding for the cards went into "extended bidding time," dragging into the early morning, according to Arshawsky.
He said he chugged four Red Bull energy drinks to keep him "focused and sharp" in order to continue bidding competitively.
"I actually have one of Wayne Gretzky's 1979 rookie cards myself, right, and that's what piqued my interest when I heard about the auction coming up," Arshawsky said.
But now he's not so sure he is the best person to possess the cards, he said.
Arshawsky said the spark just isn't there for him when it comes to card collecting.
"I'm not so passionate about it as I've seen, like, other people in the sports collecting world, like how they're so into it, and it's like their lives kind of revolve around it," said Arshawsky.
He said he's reached out to the likes of Canadian rapper Drake, NHL team owners and Wayne Gretzky's family to see if they might want to own the cards.
He even floated the idea of gifting the cards to his "true soulmate," who he met in his childhood.
Arshawsky said his feelings about the purchase changed after hearing an interview with a Heritage Auction executive talking about the bidder who came in second place.
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