SAD NEWS: Its so painful to learn that the Detroits red wings captain announced his retirement…
Retiring numbers are extremely precious to the Detroit Red Wings. Only eight jerseys have been retired thus far, with Red Kelly’s number four being added. The retirement of a jersey is an honor bestowed upon the greatest player in team history, so it’s not inherently a bad thing.
There are numerous players deserving of having their number raised to the top of Little Caesars Arena, especially for an Original Six team like the Red Wings. Sergei Fedorov is now the player with the greatest traction; previous general manager Ken Holland said in 2015 that the team was considering paying tribute to the iconic forward’s number 91. However, one forward in particular jumps out to me for a company that obviously values loyalty as a requirement for being granted that honor: Henrik Zetterberg.
Zetterberg has remained out of the league for the last two seasons, despite the fact that his contract is still in effect for another year. The native of Njurunda, Sweden, had a career with the Red Wings spanning 15 seasons that left him forever ingrained in the memories of many NHL supporters. The forward’s number 40 should be raised by the Red Wings for this reason and many others.
Prior to the start of the shortened 2012–13 season, on January 15, 2013, Zetterberg was appointed the 36th captain in Red Wings history. Before retiring early in 2018, he played for five seasons with the letter “C” on his jersey. They didn’t appoint Dylan Larkin as their new captain until 2021.
Seven players out of the eight who had their jerseys retired by the Red Wings served as the team’s captain. Terry Sawchuk, one of the greatest goalies of all time, is the only one who hasn’t. The jerseys of Zetterberg’s immediate successors, Steve Yzerman and Nicklas Lidstrom, are both retired.
