They have 5 numbers retired (in addition to previous numbers from the Quebec days, such as the father of likely Captain Paul Statsny, who, oddly enough, wears his father’s number). 3 of those (Roy, Sakic, and Forsberg whose jersey goes up in October) are the three best players in Avalanche history, without a single doubt. I am sure Adam Foote and possibly Milan Hejduk will join them in due time.

1 of the 5 is retired league wide and while the other may not deserve to be retired there, they did it out of respect for the man and I really have no issue with that. Just as I would have had no issue if we retired Brett Hull’s 17 or Hasek’s 39 or any number of other players. You can pick on the Avs for a great number of things, but jersey retirements is not one of them, I think.

It’s been a full year already, and he shouldn’t feel compelled to bow to a sentiment that he doesn’t share and that a lot of fans don’t share, either. I don’t feel real attached to most numbers, actually. How long would he be expected to wait? If he signs a longer contract, should he switch mid-contract because it’s okay to use a number again? Sentiment is fine, but it can get a little overblown sometimes.

The only reason 8 looks weird to me on Abdelkader is because I’m so used to seeing him with a double-digit number in college, I keep thinking his jersey is bunched up so I can’t see the other digit. :)

But it’s not a big deal in the scheme of things. Like Baroque said, it’s been over a year since he retired, so it’s not like he ripped the jersey off of him.

Although he may not have thought of it because it isn’t as though Maltby retired just now. Might have been more likely to make such a courtesy call if he wanted Draper’s number, for example. He probably just asked if 18 was available, was told yes, and took it.

Better yet, forget about picking up the tab, I’d rather he just match the donations as well. That’d be upwards of $25k if everyone donates what they pledged and both Commodore and Ilitch match. I also think the guy who currently owns the Commodore brand was willing to match donations, too. Though that may have depended on Commie actually taking #64.

ah, ok.

Yeah, we’re thinking of the same person. I generally don’t like to speak of that writer, as he rather enjoys taking the negative attention as a personal affirmation.