The Curse of the Boston Bruins No. 6 Jersey – Hockey Writer – Bruins History
Superstition exists in many sports, from fans to players and coaches—but ice hockey seems to take it to even greater heights.
The superstition in our game even has a theological identity for some: the “Hockey God.” Like Gordie Howe snapping his fingers and the puck bouncing off the backboard with precision, or Jacques Plante causing the goalie to make a save he shouldn’t have.
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Maybe it has something to do with the out-of-control nature of the game; a way to explain the puck’s unexplained bounce or why a certain player scores on a particular occasion. Maybe we are all madly in love with this sport.
Regardless, there’s an aura to the game – at least to some of us – where yesterday’s players are still with us today. They are part ice, part blade, part puck and part sweater.
sweater.
Ted Green
No. 6 is an interesting number in the storied history of the Boston Bruins. It is the only single-digit skater number (not No. 1) that has not been retired, and has been worn by 28 different athletes since 1950.
Ted Green received the honor after Bronco Horvath, a member of “The Uke Line” along with Johnny Bucyk and Vic Stasiuk, wore No. 6 from 1958 to 1961. Between 1961 and 1972, he was undoubtedly the Bruin who best made it his trademark.
Green established himself as a vital part of the Bruins’ core during the Bobby Orr era. The 5-foot-10, 200-pound defender scored 48 goals in 621 games, totaling 902 shots and 206 assists.
Although Green remained a member of the team, he missed the entire 1969-70 season due to injury, when Bobby Orr’s fly-in goal won the Bruins the Stanley Cup. In 1972, he won the Cup with Boston.
Gord Kruzak and Joe Thornton
Gord Kluzak – A name known to generations, he wore No. 6 from 1983 to 1991 and then served as a color commentator and analyst for the B’s from 1995 to 2015. The 1982 No. 1 overall pick spent all seven seasons in the NHL with the Bruins, retiring at age 26.
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He played 299 times for Boston, scoring 25 goals and providing 98 assists. He won the Bill Masterson Memorial Trophy for his perseverance and sportsmanship during the 1989-90 season.
Joe Thornton wore No. 6 for a few seasons before switching to No. 19 – a nice rookie card.
Most Bruins fans are familiar with Thornton’s saga: The 1997 No. 1 pick scored just seven points in 55 games as a rookie before blossoming into the player Boston could build. However, the Bruins traded him to the San Jose Sharks during the 2005-06 season, where he totaled 125 points and 96 assists between the two teams — both bests in the league.
He went on to play 1,714 games in the NHL, scoring 430 goals, 1,109 assists and 1,539 points. Thornton remains one of the best and most deserving players to win a Stanley Cup.
others
Then, there were plenty of others who did too: Vic Lynn (1951-1952), Gus Kyle (1952), Warren Godfrey (1953-1955), Buddy Boone (1957), Dick Raymond (1979-1982), and Glenn Featherstone (1992-1994) — yes, those are all real names.
Aside from Green, Horvath, Kluzak and Darryl Ederstrand (1974-1978), no Bruin wore No. 6 for more than three seasons.
In the 10 years since Thornton switched to double-digit jerseys, the No. 6 jersey has been worn by Gord Murphy (2002), Dan McGillis (2003-04), Brad Stewart (2006-07) and Dennis Wideman (2007-2010).
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The Bruins did not wear this jersey when they won the Stanley Cup in 2011. Since then, Greg Zanon (2012), Wade Redden (2013), Corey Porter (2014), Colin Miller (2017) and Mike Riley (2021-2023) have all worn the number.
It’s worth mentioning that Riley excelled as a member of the Bruins, evolving into a significant starting role during his tenure and proving reliable during Boston’s blueline injuries. Riley was assigned to the Providence Bruins of the American Hockey League (AHL) for the 2022-23 season. He was drafted by the Florida Panthers on July 1 and played two games for the team before becoming a member of the New York Islanders, for whom he has played three games this season.
Mason Lowrey
Mason Lohrei is one of the Bruins’ top young players, and 2024-25 is his first season in the NHL full-time. After scoring 46 points in his first 118 games as a defensive player, maybe he can break the sixth-place curse.
It feels like the hockey gods simply don’t like Boston’s No. 6 jersey. Green has had it as his trademark for 50 years, and in the past 100 years, the popular number has yet to be worn by anyone who looks worthy enough to have his name permanently nailed to the TD Garden rafters.
