If this three players are not fired , I will leave the team says the head coach of Toronto maple leafs…
The Toronto Maple Leafs accomplished something in 1934 that would soon become legendary in the world of professional sports. Following Ace Bailey’s forced retirement due to a serious brain injury, the Maple Leafs stated that no one* would ever again wear his number six. This made them the first team to retire a number from usage in the future.
Retired numbers have since evolved into the greatest honor a team can bestow to a former member. Captains, superstars, and beloved players are some of the exceptional individuals whose jerseys are hoisted to the heavens when they retire.
What if, however, the Toronto Maple Leafs instituted a new custom and retired numbers for an other cause? What if they decided to just remove certain jersey numbers from circulation after taking a close look at their past and realizing that some ones appear to be doomed to failure? Here are a few jersey numbers Toronto ought to think about retiring rather than giving up yet another player to these illegal marks.
*Ron Ellis would eventually wear #6 at Bailey’s request.
Third Jersey
The greatest of the best are usually denoted by single digit numerals. The Toronto Maple Leafs, who have retired six single-digit jersey numbers overall—four of which were done so for numerous players—are the ideal illustration of this phenomena.
The third is the next to come.
The number three seems to be saved for Toronto defensemen who are incapable of playing defense in recent memory. During the last ten years, this digit has been worn by John Klingberg, Justin Holl, and Dion Phaneuf. Prior to those three players, the number had primarily been given to players who were acquired through trades or brief call-ups; no player had ever worn the number for a particularly long period of time.
Wade Belak, the enforcer, had one of the longest tenures of any Leaf to wear #3 with three seasons, despite the fact that it was surrounded by two other digits. When Brian Leetch was dealt to Toronto, Belak famously changed from his original #2 to #3. He later abandoned the number in his last season with the Maple Leafs, opting to go to #33.
It appears the franchise needs to follow Belak’s example and do away with the number completely based on the results we’ve seen from recent Maple Leafs to wear it.
#26 jersey
Twenty-six was once one of Toronto’s more fabled numbers, in defense of itself. As a member of the Maple Leafs’ 1960s dynasty, Hall of Famer Allan Stanley wore those numbers for ten years. Frank Mahovlich also wore them briefly before moving to #27.
However, something went horribly wrong somewhere along the line. The number appears to have been set aside only for players in recent memory who aren’t able to play for the squad for the entire season. Nathan Perrott, Ben Ondrus, Mike Van Ryn, Mike Zigomanis, Petter Granberg, John-Michael Liles, Daniel Winnik, Ben Smith, Nikita Soshnikov, Par Lindholm, Nick Shore, Jimmy Vesey, Stefan Noesen, Ilya Lybushkin, and Nick Abruzzese are all players who have worn #26 in Toronto since the NHL lockout of 2005.
