Historical Hockey Memorabilia Auction Spring 2019
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 6/18/2019
Carrying the “Pocket Rocket” moniker in reference to his iconic older brother and able to share the ice with his sibling and mentor for five seasons despite a 15-year age difference, Henri Richard carved out his own spectacular and historic Hall of Fame career, notably winning eleven Stanley Cup championships – the most for any player in history. Henri would also lead the league in assists in both 1957–58 and 1962–63, with nine All-Star Game appearances along with being honoured for his impeccable sportsmanship when he was selected as the recipient of the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy, in 1974. Spending his entire two decade career with his hometown Montreal Canadiens which included captaining the squad for his final four seasons in the early-1970s, Richard would be a fixture in over 1400 NHL contests (including playoffs), with 1256 regular-season points scored including over 350 goals. Currently enjoying his 83rd year at the time of this writing, Richard and his historic career would be immortalized with his enshrinement within the Hockey Hall of Fame, in 1979.
We are thrilled to be able to bring to the collecting community THE EARLIEST HENRI RICHARD SWEATER WE HAVE EVER OFFERED, with this Montreal Canadiens wool specimen worn by the superstar during the 1961-62 NHL season, and it’s been PHOTO-MATCHED! The correct "L.J. Parent & Fils Ltee - Montreal" label is present along the inside reverse hem, with the vintage sweater measuring-out across the upper reverse to roughly a modern size 48. Featuring the sport’s most famous and recognizable team crest fully administered in layered red, white and blue felt, “16” appears over the sleeves and verso in white-over-blue felt, affixed through zig-zag pattern attachment on the verso. The familiar blue and white striping patterns seen over the sleeves, chest and lower band have also been utilized, along with four-eyelet configuration on tie-neck construction. The vintage wool material remains soft and supple, with the colouration especially bold, with the red body and blue striping accents all retaining their brightness and vibrancy. Lacking any obtrusive dark marks or unsightly game wear, a few small holes are visible including beneath the team crest, over the left shoulder and near the left cuff, with numerous team repairs testament to the garment’s considerable use, with examples over the front, each sleeve and the lower reverse. A few minor tears to the felt identifiers are also worth noting, with this occurring over each reverse number and on the right sleeve.
Dated by extensive photographic research which clearly shows that this sweater was worn by Richard during the 1961-62 season, four included numeric images show Richard wearing this uniform with non-footed #1 sleeve numerals, with some other Habs players wearing footed numbers, others not. Two additional photos from the 1961-62 season are showing matches and are both dated from November 23rd 1961. The first shows Richard being carried off the ice by teammates with the perfect placement of the team crest showing along with the areas where the exterior white felt border is thinner, matching our specimen. The second photo shows Richard lying on his side receiving stitches, with a clear view of the middle portion of the reverse numbers, with the stitching pattern perfectly matching our sweater, along with the angled placement of the #6, and the correlation of its angled placement to the white striping band visible beneath. Worn near the medial of his legendary Hall of Fame career shortly after capturing an historic five consecutive Stanley Cup championships, this wool treasure is thrilling to contemplate, as it witnessed Original Six action on the back of the game’s all-time winningest player.
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