Stan Smyl: 33 Years Ago Today, the Vancouver Canucks Retired Their First Jersey Number, but That's Not All
It's been 33 years since the Vancouver Canucks retired their first number when they played at Pacific Coliseum.
Having your number retired is one of the greatest recognitions a player can have after the impact they've had on a franchise or even a league, the NHL retiring Wayne Gretzky's 99 as an example.
The first player to ever have their jersey number retired in the National Hockey League was Ace Bailey, who spent eight seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs before his career came to an end in 1933 due to a skull fracture sustained from a hit Eddie Shore of the Boston Bruins.
November 3rd an important day for the Canucks & Stan Smyl
33 years ago today - November 3rd, 1991, the 15,651 fans in attendance at Pacific Coliseum for Vancouver's game against the Edmonton Oilers were able to witness a bit of Canucks history.
On that date, the Vancouver Canucks retired Stan Smyl's number 12, just months after the Glendon, Alberta native hung up the skates. Smyl's number was the first retired in the history of the Vancouver Canucks and it's an honour that only five others have received - Pavel Bure, Trevor Linden, Markus Naslund, Daniel Sedin and Henrik Sedin.
It was a special moment for Smyl and his family, as well as the entire Vancouver Canucks organization and fan base. To top things off, the Canucks would go on to defeat the Edmonton Oilers that night by a score of 7 to 2.
Stan Smyl's professional career
Stan Smyl was selected in the third round, 40th overall by the Vancouver Canucks in the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft. He would go on to spend his entire 13-year career in the National Hockey League, amassing 673 points (262 goals, 411 assists) and 1,556 penalty minutes in 896 regular season games. In 1982, he helped the Canucks reach their first Stanley Cup Final in franchise history, however they fell to the New York Islanders in four games.
After retirement, Smyl stuck around in the Vancouver Canucks organization in their hockey operations department and as of November 2024, is still a community and business ambassador for the club.
It's going to be interesting to see who the next Vancouver Canuck will be to have their number retired, with some hoping for it to be Roberto Luongo entered the Ring of Honour at Rogers Arena in December 2023.
| POLL | ||
Which current Vancouver Canuck has the best chance at having his jersey retired? | ||
