Sweaters numbers are synonymous with players. Most hockey fans can instantly tell you a great player by the number they wear on their back. There are many different stories about how players became associated with the famous numbers. Many odd and interesting facts surround these numbers as well. As we count down the start of the 2023-24 NHL season, we take a look at the story behind the numbers. Today we continue with sweater number 94. Keep up to date with the series everyday until the start of the 2023-24 NHL season.
Behind the Sweater Number: 94
Early 94s
The sweater number 94 has been worn by 21 players according to Hockey Reference. Ryan Smyth (we’ll get to him later) wasn’t the first player to don the number. According to Hockey Reference, Ottawa Senators forward Stan Neckar was the next to have that number. He’d wear 94 from 1994-97 before switching to number 24. Neckar went onto take other numbers such as two, three and six with other clubs.
Hall of Famer Brendan Shanahan would take the number 94 with the Hartford Whalers after coming over from the St. Louis Blues. Shanahan wore the number 11 with the New Jersey Devils and 19 with the Blues. Hartford wouldn’t have the future three-time Stanley Cup winner as he was shipped off the the Detroit Red Wings. Shanahan would choose the number 14 and the rest is history and wear that number with the Wings and New York Rangers. The Devils and “Shanny” would get together one last time, but Shanahan would wear 18 in his last season.
Sergei Berezin was another 90s player that wore sweater number 94 with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He’d show some flashes of being a great scorer, including a 37-goal campaign in 1998-99. However, the Russian would wear out his welcome and get traded to the Phoenix Coyotes. He’d play in 502 games and score 160 goals.
Yanic Perreault joined the Montreal Canadiens in 2001 with the 94 sweater. He would stay with the number the rest of his career. However, he wore 44 and 39 before that.
The Top 94
Smyth would carve out a lengthy NHL career with the sweater number 94. In Scott Morrison’s book By The Numbers, the Edmonton Oilers standout would explain why choose 94. The Banff, Alberta native wanted to get drafted and graduate high school in 1994. He accomplished both goals and thus took the number.
Smyth did wear the number 10 for three games in 1994-95. However, he’d switch to his trademark number the next season. It would take a couple of seasons, but Smyth broke out with 39 goals in the 1996-97 campaign. He would keep the number in stints with the New York Islanders, Colorado Avalanche and Los Angeles Kings. Smyth would go onto score 386 goals and play in 1,270 games. There’s no doubt he carved out a great career for himself.
The Future of 94
The number has appeared off-and-on over the last couple of decades. Two more Russians other than Berezin have taken sweater number 94 in the last two seasons in Alexander Barbanov and Kirill Semyonov. Corey Perry plans on wearing the number this season with the Chicago Blackhawks after wearing it with Montreal.
Ryan Ellis, Brayden Pachal, Jakub Lauko. Linus Karlsson, Ryan Lomberg and Barbanov are currently listed as slated to wear the number for the upcoming season. Ellis was a decorated major junior player in the OHL, but has been snakebitten with injuries since being traded to the Philadelphia Flyers.
No one may be jumping out right away to be the next great 94. However, that could change some day. No one knows what the future holds, but maybe Gabe Perreault can wear 94 after he finishes his time at Boston College. However, the future is still hazy for the number.
Main photo by: Perry Nelson-USA TODAY Sports
