Historical Hockey Memorabilia Spring 2012
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 6/12/2012
Gordie Howe is remembered for his scoring prowess, physical strength, and career longevity. He is the only player to have competed in the NHL in five different decades. A four-time Stanley Cup champion with the Red Wings, he won six Hart Trophies as the league's most valuable player and six Art Ross Trophies as the leading scorer. The mid-Fifties found Howe leading the Red Wings through an era when hockey fans in the Motor City had plenty to cheer about. It was a time when the powerful Red Wings were in the midst of racking up a record 7 consecutive regular season championships, while winning Stanley Cups in 1950, '52, '54 and '55.
Offered is this wondrous woolen Detroit Red Wings sweater worn by Gordie circa the mid-Fifties. The ravishing red uniform display's the historic and instantly-recognizable number 9 worn by "Mr. Hockey" on the back with the intricately-embroidered Detroit Red Wings emblem sewn high up on the chest below a thin, round-neck collar. A pair of tags sewn into the lower side seam include one from Coane of Philadelphia, PA with the size 48 noted in red stitch and another folded Lippman's Sporting Goods label, identifying the team supplier who marked most sticks, sweaters and equipment used by the Wings throughout the Fifties. The size is correct when compared to a 1954 Gordie Howe game worn jersey we sold in the past and the tagging is identical to those found inside that shirt and another 1954-55 Sawchuck Detroit Red Wings jersey we have handled. Splendid game wear begins with those team repairs! Five darned wool repair patches turn up on the left sleeve with seven more examples of the trainer's sewing skills over on the opposite arm. Five repairs fix holes found on the right shoulder where we also count nine smaller holes that were not sewn up. A single wool repair is there on the lower front where five more tiny holes and a slightly larger one only serve to add to the character of the sweater. The spoked-wheel Detroit Red Wings crest is slightly puckered from washings, as is the single-layer tackle twill number on the back. Once white, the number and crest have aged and discolored over the decades and turned a cream tone. Pilling is present at the cuffs where the sweater made contact with Howe's lengthy leather gloves.
Our consignor was gifted this jersey on Feb. 27th, 1958 but we believe the jersey from an earlier season than 1957-58. Because the Wings began wearing uniforms with numbers on the sleeves circa 1956-57, this dates our sweater to 1955-56 or earlier. The consignor, a nephew of former Detroit Red Wings Stanley Cup Winner Les Douglas, received the sweater when the Detroit Red Wings traveled by train on an off-day sandwiched between games versus the Leafs in Toronto and Canadiens in Montreal, to Napanee, Ontario to play an off-site exhibition match against the Napanee Comets as a fundraiser for the town's new arena. Douglas, the player-coach for the Comets, was close with Lefty Wilson, the Wings trainer and arranged for his nephew to meet Gordie Howe and Hall-of-Famer Marcel Pronovost after the game. The boy left the arena that night with this amazing sweater, a team-signed miniature hockey stick and a head full of memories! A copy of a newspaper story relating the Kingston Whig-Standard's account of the game will be included. It must be noted that the newspaper column mentions the Wings wearing red uniforms during the match. This is an important detail because it marked the first time in many years that they had not worn white sweaters in a game played outside the Olympia. A detailed letter of provenance from our consignor, retelling the story of how the sweater was obtained, will accompany the lot. This significant and highly-prized uniform, worn by the greatest player of his era and a cornerstone member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, will certainly become the showpiece of an upper echelon collection.
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