Every NHL jersey number has a story behind it.
A jersey number could be inspired by a favourite player growing up, it could be chosen to honour a special family member or friend or it may be as simple as sticking with the number that an equipment manager picked in training camp.
Over the past several months, The Athletic asked every player who’s appeared in at least 10 games this season about the backstory of their jersey number. A few players, of course, remain with the team from the first time we did this story in 2019-20.
(Note: Answers have been edited for clarity and length.)
, 6: My dad wore No. 6 in high school so there’s that and my buddy (Ty Alyea) who passed away in a car accident was No. 6 too so that’s why I picked it.
, 7: I was debating between No. 7 or No. 4 and then actually my nephew wears No. 7 now so I was like I might as well go with No. 7. He was excited. He’s an fan too, so I had to do something to get him on my side a little more (laughs).
I was about atom (age) when I started choosing it. When I got to midget it was taken, so (after that) I was different numbers all the way growing up. This year, I wanted to go back to a single-digit number, it’s still one of my favourites, I was lucky to have it available, it hasn’t been available anywhere else.
, 8: I wore it from a young age on a summer team, the Rhode Island Saints, I went to junior and kept it. I wore 37 one year before because of (Patrice) Bergeron when I was really, really young, he was my favourite. But having two numbers on the back of a small guy doesn’t look good, it looks a little odd.
I probably would have kept (No. 8 in Arizona) but they traded for like a week before I got called up so I went No. 83. (In Vancouver), I debated on going back (to No. 8) or staying with No. 83.
, 9: They didn’t have No. 10 here because of Bure so I had to go to 9 (laughs). I went with No. 9 just because it’s close. I wore No. 11 and No. 12 in juniors just because other guys had No. 10 already and just tried to keep everything close to 10.
I’ve always loved wearing No. 10, I’ve been lucky the couple teams before they had it free. Some of my favourite players when I was younger wore No. 10, Ron Francis and John LeClair. I thought it looked cool, my parents gravitated towards it. I kind of wore No. 10 my whole life except for juniors when a couple of older guys had dibs on it.
, 17: I wore that as a kid, started at like 4 years old. I don’t remember why (I picked it).
, 18: It was my stepdad’s number, I started (wearing it) when I was 8 years old. He was my coach from the time I was 9 years old until I was like 18, every step of the way. He and I bonded through hockey. I think it means a lot to him, it’s the family number, even my little sister when she used to play hockey she wore it.
It’s just always been my number and when I got traded here, it was one of the options available so it was an easy choice.
, 21: When I first started playing, I wore No. 21. Peter Forsberg was a pretty big idol to me, watching him when I grew up. My dad was a pretty big Peter Forsberg fan (too), so he probably just picked No. 21 for me because he thought it was cool.
, 23: My son was born in 2023, so that’s the reason I picked No. 23.official nhl jersey youth
, 24: I actually didn’t pick it, when I got to Chicago they just gave it to me. I’ve obviously worn it before, kind of had No. 22 and No. 24 in junior, then that was taken (so) I went to No. 44 back home (in Switzerland).
I’ve worn No. 24 before and I guess they knew it, so that’s what I got. It’s obviously my birthday (May 24). In junior, it’s usually No. 1-25, so there’s not that many options, so I kind of just wore it as a kid.
, 29: No. 29, I wore that all through college. I wore that because of Ken Dryden, .
I grew up a huge Habs fan and obviously Dryden (was) a legendary Habs player. He was a really smart guy, a scholar athlete. In high school and college, that’s what I tried to emulate about him. My dad always preached the whole scholar athlete thing, the scholar comes first. In my studies, especially in high school, I took that really seriously. It’s something that I really respected about him (Dryden) and obviously he’s had an amazing career outside of hockey, just a really intelligent guy.
I went to Wilkes-Barre and they just gave me No. 1 because I was new to the team. I’m actually not a big fan of No. 1, never was. But once I played in the playoffs there and we had a really good run and re-signed there, I was like what the heck, I’ll just keep it. That’s how I stuck with No. 1 through the .
I went to Montreal, I couldn’t wear No. 29 or No. 1, so Jose Theodore I grew up watching him, so I picked No. 60. Never got to wear it (because of the trade to Vancouver). I come here and 29’s available and No. 1 isn’t, so that made it easy to choose 29.
Phil Di Giuseppe, 34: I always wore No. 7 growing up at University of Michigan. My dad liked low numbers, like he was No. 9 growing up. I don’t know if it was an old-school thing but he didn’t like big numbers so No. 7 it was. I think it’s changed, Millsy’s still No. 9 but a lot of skilled forwards are all double digits and high, whereas back when my dad was watching the game and playing the game, all the best players wore single digits more often than not.
When I turned pro, in Carolina, I think No. 7 was taken so they gave me (No. 34 because) three plus four equals seven and I just stuck with it. I tried No. 7 one year, one of my last years in Carolina, and then just went back to No. 34.
, 35: I had a really good buddy of mine pass away and he wore No. 35. His name is Ian Jenkins, he passed away as he was up and coming and he was regarded as a pretty high-end prospect and just a tragic accident happened.
We were both American goalies, we were the same age. We always went to USA camps together. I got to know him over those couple years of finding our path in hockey and it hit me pretty hard. I saw a lot of myself in him. We were actually roommates at a USA goaltending camp just a few weeks before he passed away. It’s just always something that has stuck with me.
His saying was “Have a purpose” and I have that stitched into my gear and stuff. It’s just a good reminder of not taking anything for granted and just relishing every day.
, 40: I got it in Timra when I started high school there and I liked it, there’s no real meaning behind it. I like it though because not many players wear it, it’s a unique number.
, 43: There’s two teams with the U.S. national team, the U17 and the U18 teams. U17s get numbers 30 to 60 and U18s get 1 to 30 for their jersey. Going into my U17 year, I always had No. 6 so I didn’t really know what to pick (between 30 and 60) and there wasn’t much for me to go with so I just went with No. 43 and I liked it and just stuck with it.
I just figured I would like No. 43 the most in between the numbers 30 and 60 and turns out I like it more than anything now.
, 47: I got traded here from Florida and when I got to Abby (Abbotsford), Chico (Abbotsford Canucks head equipment manager Ramandeep Dhanjal) said I’d be No. 47. I was never picky growing up. I was usually No. 3 or No. 16 growing up and then I was No. 58 when I got to Montreal, No. 58 in Florida and No. 47 here.
, 51: I was a Jake Gardiner fan on the growing up, so I felt why not No. 51, I like the numberbest dallas cowboys by jersey number. It fits my name bar well. It was in my first year junior in the USHL when I switched over to it. I’ve been a No. 51 fan, the past few years in the I haven’t been able to get it, but had the opportunity in Van and picked it.
, 53: It was my training camp number when I got to Pittsburgh, so I stuck with it just because of that. I do care about the number, I think you have some success with it and you kind of make it your own.
Growing up, I was always No. 21, my favourite player’s Peter Forsberg. In college No. 21 was taken, so I was No. 23. I was No. 23 in the minors. All the (NHL) rookies get high numbers, I’m not sure if maybe they carried the 3 over (from the minors) and just added the 5.
Once I got No. 53, I had some success and made it my own.
, 57: Mine’s pretty simple, I came into my first camp and the equipment guys gave me No. 57 and I just kept it (laughs). As a young kid coming into the league at 19, I was like “I’ll play with whatever number you give me.”
I remember they came to me after a while when they knew I was staying and asked me if I wanted to change it, I think it was the 11th or 12th game of the year and that point it was like I’d already got attached to it and kept it.
, 65: (I wear it) because my father was born in 1965. I used to play No. 66 (on the) Russian national (team) because my mom’s born in 1966 but No. 65 here. I like this number.
, 81: Usually, I like to go with No. 8 but my good buddy Garland already has it. I had to take a backseat and I thought 81 was the best out of the 80s. I like the way it looks. Terrell Owens, you ever heard of T.O.? That’s my story for it, T.O.
Garland chimed in during the middle of the conversation, “You should have bought me a Rolex (and I would have given No. 8 to you).”
, 82: I remember exactly why I chose No. 28. My dad played beer league his whole life and he was always No. 14. He was definitely my hero. He played his whole life, he’s the one that introduced me to hockey, he would build me a rink in the backyard. Our mom obviously did a ton as well, driving us all over and sacrificing but my dad was the one that got me into and made me fall in love with it. I wanted to be just like him.
So then when I was a kid on a youth AAA team, it was always the lower numbers were smaller jerseys and I was always a bigger kid, so I needed a higher number. For some reason, someone always had 14, I always wanted 14 because my dad wore it. So then I was like what’s a higher number between 1-30, so No. 28, I’ll just double 14.how much are calgary flames tickets
This situation, obviously Luc Bourdon (wore 28), so I flipped it to No. 82.
, 88: Red (Canucks trainer Brian Hamilton) picked it. I like it, it’s a nice number, I like high numbers. I think it looks nice with two eights. (It looks like a goal scorer’s number), maybe I’m not a big sniper but we’ll see if I change it one day (laughs).
, 91: It’s an upside-down 16 (which was my last number). My dad’s favourite player was Vladimir Petrov. There was the line Petrov, (Valeri) Kharlamov and (Boris) Mikhailov, probably the best Soviet line in the 1970s and 1980s.
I took 16 when I first stepped on the ice at 7 years old. In London, I couldn’t because was wearing that and in Pat LaFontaine was retired but in Colorado, Chicago and Calgary I was able to wear it.
, 92: I was No. 92 for my whole life until my KHL team. I liked (Evgeny) Kuznetsov in my childhood and he was No. 92 in the KHL. I’m happy with it.
(Photo: Derek Cain / Getty Images)
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