Chicago Blackhawks retired numbers are 1, 3, 7, 9, 18, 21, 35 and 81. The jersey number 7 worn by Chris Chelios is the latest addition.
Other Blackhawks to have their jersey number retired are Glenn Hall, Keith Magnuson, Pierre Pilote, Bobby Hull, Denis Savard, Stan Mikita, Tony Esposito, and Marian Hossa.
Stan Mikita, 21 was the first Blackhawks player to have his number retired on Nov 20, 1980. Mikita was considered the best center of the 1960s.
Likewise, Bobby Haul became the second player in franchise history to receive this honor. His jersey number 9 was retired on December 18, 1993.
The jersey number 81 of Marian Hossa was retired by the Hawks on November 21, 2022. The banner-raising rite took place in the United Center.
All the details regarding the players to receive this memorable honor are discussed in the article, including their playing tenure, legacy, and more.
Glenn Hall - Number 1
Glenn Hall was a goaltender for the Blackhawks from 1957 to 1967. His jersey number 1 was retired by the franchise on November 20, 1983.
Nicknamed "Mr. Goalie", Hall was the first player to effectively use the Butterfly style of goalkeeping. He is widely regarded as one of the best goalies in the illustrious history of the NHL.
He had a career record of 407 wins, 84 shutouts, a save percentage of 0.917 %, and a GAA of 2.49. Moreover, he also holds the record for the most consecutive games started by a goaltender with 502 games.
Glenn won 2 Stanley Cups as a player in 1952 and 1961. Furthermore, he won 1 Stanley Cup as a goalie coach for the Calgary Flames in 1989.
In 1956, Hall won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the Rookie of the Year. On top of that, he won the Vezina Trophy in 1963, 1967, and 1969.
The Vezina Trophy was awarded at the time to goaltenders that allowed the least number of goals and has been awarded as the William M. Jennings Trophy since 1981-82.
The legacy keeps on piling as he won the Conn Smythe trophy in 1968. Glenn announced retirement at the age of 39 after the 1970-71 season.
In recognition of his prolonged and wonderful career in the National Hockey League, Hall was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1975.
Keith Magnuson and Pierre Pilote - Number 3
Keith Magnuson and Pierre Pilote became the first defensemen to have their numbers retired in Blackhawks history on November 12, 2008.
Both of them donned jersey number 3 during their tenure. Pierre represented the Hawks from 1956-68, while Keith represented from 1969-79.
Magnuson played 589 games in his NHL career with 139 points, and 1442 penalty minutes. He played all of his 11 NHL seasons for the Hawks.
He retired as a player in 1979 following which he was named as the assistant coach for the Blackhawks. Magnuson was the Head Coach of the Blackhawks for 2 seasons in 1980-81 and 1981-82.
Another defenseman Pierre Pilote played 890 games earning 489 points and 1,251 penalty minutes in his 14 seasons as a player in the NHL.
Pilote was the captain of the Blackhawks for seven years after getting the role in 1961 and before his departure to the Maple Leafs in 1968. He was the longest-serving captain in the franchise history until Jonathan Toews surpassed him in the 2016-17 season.
During his time in the Blackhawks, Pilote won the James Norris Memorial Trophy for three consecutive years in 1963, 1964, and 1965. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1975.
On December 15, 2003, Magnuson passed away in an automobile accident, and on September 9, 2017, Pilote passed away due to cancer.
Chris Chelios - Number 7
Chris Chelios jersey retired news was announced by the Blackhawks on Sep 7, 2023. He is the 9th Blackhawks player to have his jersey retired.
The date of the retirement for Chelios's jersey number 7 is set for 25 February 2024, before the Blackhawks play against the Detroit Red Wings.
Chelios will join legends Keith Magnuson and Pierre Pilote becoming the third defenseman in franchise history to have their number retired.
Drafted by the Montreal Canadiens in 1981, Chelios started his NHL debut with the Canadiens in 1984 and won his first Stanley Cup in 1984-85 despite playing only 41 games for them.
He won two more Stanley Cups in 2002 and 2008 playing for the Detroit Red Wings. Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2013 and the IIHF Hall of Fame in 2018, Chelios played 9 seasons for the Blackhawks in his NHL career spanning 26 seasons.
He holds the record for the most playoff games played by any NHL player at 266 games played and accumulated 2,891 penalty minutes in 1,651 regular season games played.
Chelios won the James Norris Memorial Trophy in 1989, 1996 and his 1993 award-winning play earned him the nickname "Honey Nut".
On a career marked with notable accolades, he also won the NHL Plus-Minus Award in 2002 and the Mark Messier Leadership Award in 2007.
Bobby Hull - Number 9
Bobby Hull was the second player to have his jersey number retired in the Hawks' history. He passed away on January 30, 2023, at the age of 84.
The left winger played for the Chicago Blackhawks for 15 seasons from 1957 to 1972. He wore the number 9 as a tribute to Gordie Howe, his childhood hero which was retired on Dec 18, 1983.
During his run with the Blackhawks, Bobby became the first player in NHL history to score more than 50 goals in a single season.
Nicknamed "the Golden Jet", Hull won the Art Ross Trophy (1960, 1962 & 1966), the Lady Bing Memorial Trophy in 1965, the Lester Patrick Trophy winner in 1969, and the Hart Memorial Trophy (1965 &1966).
Bobby Hull has played 1,063 games in the NHL recording 610 goals and 560 assists. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983.
Denis Savard - Number 18
Denis Savard of the Blackhawks had his number 18 officially retired on March 19, 1998. The former center is famous for the spin' o rama move.
Savard was drafted as the No. 3 pick by the Blackhawks in the 1981 NHL entry draft. In his 18 seasons in the NHL, he played for the Blackhawks from 1980-81 to 1989-90 and returned to the Blackhawks in 1994-95.
The former Canadian star bid adieu to his playing days on June 26, 1997. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on 13 November 2000.
Savard played three seasons with the Montreal Canadiens from 1990-91 to 1992-93. He clinched the Stanley Cup with the Canadiens in 1993.
He was initially traded for defensemen Chris Chelios and Mike Pomichter in 1990 by the Blackhawks. After spending 3 seasons with Montreal and 2 seasons with Tampa Bay, Denis returned to the Blackhawks in 1995.
Savard played 1,196 games in NHL scoring 473 goals and recording 865 assists landing him at number 24 in the NHL all-time in career assists.
Stan Mikita - Number 21
Stan Mikita jersey number 21 was the first to be retired in the Blackhawks' history. The Canadian played all of his 22 NHL seasons with the Hawks.
Mikita was the first Slovak-born player to win the Stanley Cup in NHL history. In his playing career of 1,349 regular season games, he registered 541 goals and 9265 assists. Furthermore, he played in 155 playoff games recording 59 goals and 91 assists.
Mikita won the Hart Memorial Trophy in 1967 & 1968, the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy in 1967 & 1968, and the Lester Patrick Trophy in 1976.
Stan was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1983. He was the first Hall of Famer to be diagnosed with Chronic Traumatic encephalopathy, a disease mostly caused by repeated trauma to the head and commonly found in contact sports and striking-based sports like boxing.
Tony Esposito - Number 35
The jersey number 35 of Tony Esposito was retired by the Blackhawks on Nov 20, 1988. Tony retired from his playing career on March 19, 2008.
The Blackhawks claimed Esposito in the 1969-70 on waivers and in his debut season with the Blackhawks he had a GAA of 2.17 and 15 shutouts. winning him the Calder Memorial Trophy in 1970.
Tony won the Vezina Trophy thrice in 1970, 1972 & 1974. He is one of the eight goalies to win the trophy while catching the puck right-handed.
His dominant hand was his left and joined fellow Blackhawks legend, Charlie Gardner (1932 & 1934). During his NHL career, Esposito compiled a record of 886 games played with 423 wins and 306 losses with a save percentage of 0.906%, a GAA of 2.92, and 76 shutouts.
Tony Esposito was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1988. He passed away at the age of 78 due to pancreatic cancer on August 10, 2021.
Whose jersey number 99 was retired by all teams in the NHL following his career retirement?
Wayne Gretzky is the only player in NHL history to have his jersey number retired by all NHL teams. His number 99 was retired across the league on February 6, 2000.
Players could not match the multiple records set by Wayne Gretzky in his 20-season NHL career making his nickname "the great one" very apt.
During his illustrious playing career, Gretzky set league records for the most goals, assists, and points in both the regular season and playoffs.
In his 1,487 regular season games run in the NHL, Gretzky scored 894 goals which is the highest in NHL history to date. For reference, the second-highest player to score the most goals, Alexander Ovechkin has scored 822 goals.
Wayne also tops the charts in all-time assists (1,963) and points (2,857) in the NHL. On the contrary, Ron Francis has the second most assists with 1,249 assists and Jaromir Jagr has the second most points with 1,921 points.
Gretzky has made 280 playoff appearances in which he has scored 122 goals, 260 assists, and 382 points. The second-place holder for playoff goals and assists is Mark Messier with 109 goals and 186 assists.
