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Post by donjohnson on Mar 12, 2014 14:31:57 GMT -5
This was brought up in the Trafford thread and I wanted to keep that thread as more of a "condolences" thread rather than hijack it for my question.
How do people feel about retiring numbers from the Spirit. At this moment in our brief (compared to other teams) history, the only person who I would even consider retiring is Saad because I think he's the best player to come through Saginaw, we drafted him and then he went on to win a Stanley Cup what seems like 5 minutes later. The only other person may be Trocheck but that trade to Plymouth still bugs me.
Do other teams in the OHL retire numbers? Do they do it based on their body of work including the NHL? It's an odd league to retire jerseys since you're only with the team usually 2-4 years and pretty much once you're great, the next second you're gone and onto the next level. I think about someone like Derosiers who was beloved in Saginaw but he was here for 10 years, plus coached the Spirit, plus did the radio for a while. Now he's a guy that has Saginaw Hockey written all over him and deserves to be in the rafters but could there ever be a Spirit player that could have his number retired?
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Post by eric8199 on Mar 12, 2014 14:48:36 GMT -5
I was going to mention Saad in the other thread too, but decided not to. I agree with you about retiring his number, and I was kind of surprised when Graham came in and started using it this year. I think that number would be very deserving of retirement. I don't think any others fit the bill. Do you think Trocheck's is really deserving of retirement? What about Shalla?
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Post by malarkey on Mar 12, 2014 14:54:46 GMT -5
The Soo has retired 5 jersey numbers....while their contributions while they were Hounds is the main criteria, the team also looks at their body of work afterwards....which is why some players who were huge stars as a Hound do not see their number hanging in the rafters. We came into the league in '72.T players honoured in this manner have been Wayne Gretzky, Craig Hartsburg, Ron Francis, John Vanbiesbrouck and Adam Foote.
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Post by kingpin794 on Mar 12, 2014 14:59:42 GMT -5
Guys I think who's numbers should be considered to be retired:
Shalla
Saad
Trocheck
Walch
And they all played on the same team in 11-12, which in my mind was the best Spirit team ever. Only team, other than eventual Memorial cup champion Shawinigan, to defeat the Knights twice in that playoff season.
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Post by eric8199 on Mar 12, 2014 15:08:05 GMT -5
I don't think Trafford or Walch fit the bill. Liked both a lot. I could see Trafford because of recent events, and would be OK with it, but I wouldn't think Walch would be one to retire. What is your criteria for each?
I think it should be extraordinary circumstances, and I think, at this point, only Saad fits the bill, with Shalla close.
What about Thorburn? First captain. Now an NHLer. What about Mursak? Was the best Spirit player ever at his time. Have to be careful with your criteria. There are only 99 numbers. You can't retire them all :-)
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Post by kingpin794 on Mar 12, 2014 15:28:38 GMT -5
I don't think Trafford or Walch fit the bill. Liked both a lot. I could see Trafford because of recent events, and would be OK with it, but I wouldn't think Walch would be one to retire. What is your criteria for each? I think it should be extraordinary circumstances, and I think, at this point, only Saad fits the bill, with Shalla close. What about Thorburn? First captain. Now an NHLer. What about Mursak? Was the best Spirit player ever at his time. Have to be careful with your criteria. There are only 99 numbers. You can't retire them all :-) Took Trafford off my list. As for Walch: Saginaw native that played his entire career for the home town team. One of our best D-men ever. Honestly based most of my picks on their OHL careers because that's the number we are retiring. If they go on to do something great in the NHL, then great but I'm not going to hold it against them if they never play a single AHL game let alone a NHL game. |
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Post by johnt on Mar 12, 2014 15:40:12 GMT -5
IIRC, PLY only has one retired jersey, that being Pat Peeke. WSR, SAR and SOO each have several, but some of the names I've never heard of. To me, retired jerseys should be "earned" for the team they played for, not what they did afterward. Seems to be the case with the last three aforementioned teams.
WSR has retired Mickey Renaud's #18, but that was a special situation. Mickey didn't have outstanding stats, but he was captain at the time of his death. His memorial displayed in the WoofSoo concourse, along with his retired sweater, are fitting tributes to him.
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Post by ricardo on Mar 12, 2014 17:12:16 GMT -5
I think the Gears retired Rosie's number (#8) and a couple of more. I'd like to see a hockey shrine set up detailing the history of hockey in Saginaw, which I believe goes back way before the Gears. It's that the Gears were the first team to play in the Civic Center and were extremely popular until economy went to hell in the early 80's.
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Post by spiritfan8 on Mar 12, 2014 17:35:26 GMT -5
Not a huge fan of retiring numbers, but I would like to see some names on banners hanging in the rafters. I'm of the opinion that what matters most is what the player did in Saginaw, not what he did in pro hockey. (if we ever draft the next Wayne Gretzky, that would be an obvious exception). People like Chris Thorburn, Tom Pyatt, Patrick McNeill and Jan Mursak might not have made a huge mark in pro hockey, but they made a huge mark in Saginaw, and that matters far more to me than anything else.
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Post by eric8199 on Mar 12, 2014 17:41:22 GMT -5
Should we add Jack Combs' name to the list? How about Tyler Murovich?
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Post by donjohnson on Mar 12, 2014 19:02:28 GMT -5
I'm starting a petition to retire Vaclav Meidl's number  |
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Post by kingpin794 on Mar 12, 2014 19:13:51 GMT -5
I'm starting a petition to retire Vaclav Meidl's number Needed a laugh. Thank you. |
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Post by donjohnson on Mar 12, 2014 19:19:26 GMT -5
I'll be here all night...try the veal
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Post by aj0512 on Mar 12, 2014 21:27:52 GMT -5
IMO the only number I would retire at this point in time is Saad's. But if it were to happen I don't see it happening for another few years.
I doubt Trafford's number gets retired, but I could see the Spirit taking it out of circulation and just never using it again (much like how the Red Wings have never used #16, ironically, since the Konstantinov car accident). Who knows.
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Post by MidlandSpiritFan on Mar 13, 2014 21:02:57 GMT -5
I'm starting a petition to retire Vaclav Meidl's number DJ, why did you have to remind me about one of the worst trades in Spirit franchise history......Uuuuuggggghhhhh! |
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