Sweater 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 38. Keep up to date with the series everyday until the start of the 2023-24 NHL season.
Behind the Sweater Number: 38
The First 38s
According to Hockey Reference, 235 players have worn sweater number 40 since since jersey records were kept in the 1950-51 season. Hockey Reference lists Frank Bathe of the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1978-79 season as the first to wear the number. Bathe had worn a couple different numbers since joining the team. Bathe wore 38 for 21 games that season.
The next player to don the digits would be future NHL head coach Robbie Ftorek in the 1980-81 season. Ftorek wore the number for 78 games in that season and netted 24 goals that campaign. This was with the Quebec Nordiques. He’d keep the number when he would get switched over to the New York Rangers. Randy MacGregor also wore the number in 1981-82 season for two games with the Hartford Whalers.
Cameos
There are always a number of players that wore sweater number 38 that would go onto have decent to good careers. However, these were with other numbers. Hall of Famer Dave Andreychuk would have some stops in his career in the 38 sweater with the Boston Bruins and Colorado Avalanche. Chris Kunitz had the number for the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim before eventually finding his trademark 14. William Karlsson also wore 38 for the Ducks franchise before landing with the Vegas Golden Knights.
Both Jan Hrdina and Jiri Hrdina had sweater number 38 for a bit in their careers. Viktor Arvidsson started his Nashville Predators career with 38, but would move onto 33. Noted agitator Matthew Barnaby wore the number with Colorado after having 36 for a number of seasons.
Pavol Demitra
The player NHL.com picked as the best to wear sweater number 38 is Slovakian Pavol Demitra. He started his career with the Ottawa Senators, but as number 78. However, he burst onto the scene with the St. Louis Blues in the 1997-98 season. Demitra scored 22 goals that campaign and would never score less than 15 with the exception of this final season in the league in 2009-10. The 1999-2000 Lady Byng Trophy winner got a career-high 37 goals in 1998-98 and was a consistent scoring threat.
Demitra’s life would tragically end as part of the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl plane crash that killed all but one person on the plane. The Blues honored their great forward with decals on their helmets in the 2011-12 season. However, there has been a longtime campaign to retire Demitra’s beloved 38 sweater. This should be something the Blues consider doing.
Other 38s and the Future
There have been a host of players that have also played well with the number. Vladimir Malakhov‘s best period in his career was with sweater number 38 with the Montreal Canadiens. Dave Scatchard played 659 games in the league with the number and was a rugged centre. Boone Jenner is a staple of the Columbus Blue Jackets franchise despite the numerous changes.
Vernon Fiddler carved out a career as a tough, role-playing forward in the league for years. Ryan Hartman has put together some solid seasons in the league for a number of clubs. Cristobal Huet maybe should have been put in the cameos section, but was arguably the most-known NHL player from France for years.
Sweater number 38 well always be beloved in St. Louis and in Slovakia. Demitra left a legacy and was a great figure for both fan bases.
Main photo by: Dave Sandford/Getty Images
