Hunting a piece of Hamilton's NHL history
Hamilton Tiger sweater one of sport's lost treasures
February 17, 2009
Emma Reilly
The Hamilton Spectator
http://www.thespec.com/News/Local/article/514792
It's become the stuff of hockey legend.
In the early '90s, a Hamilton Tigers NHL sweater -- the last-known in existence and worth upwards of $60,000 -- was sold for $500 in a Barton Street memorabilia shop. It has never resurfaced.
The sweater has since been named one of Sports Illustrated magazine's 25 lost treasures, alongside Muhammad Ali's gold medal and the piece of Evander Holyfield's ear bitten off by Mike Tyson.
Now, a team of Hamilton men is trying to bring the Tigers sweater back to its hometown.
Local documentary-maker David Wesley is filming a program for CBC's Documentary channel about the search for the long-lost artifact. He's teamed up with Ancaster businessman Russ Boychuk, who owns the rights to the Hamilton Tigers name for an NHL franchise.
"This sweater is described as the Holy Grail of sports memorabilia," Wesley said. "There's still a chance that somebody has one tucked away in their attic or basement and doesn't know how valuable it is."
In 1925, the Hamilton Tigers were in first place in the NHL and heading for the Stanley Cup championships. But just before the playoffs, the team went on strike after they were refused a raise.
A year later, they were sold and became the New York Americans.
Almost all evidence of Hamilton's NHL team has vanished, except for a few photos, some newspaper articles and a couple programs from their games.
Wesley's team has contacted the descendants of Tigers players, NHL sweater collectors and hockey historians in the hopes of finding one.
Their documentary, which will air in April, will feature interviews with "some pretty interesting characters from the shadowy and high-octane world of hockey collectors," Wesley said.
Angelo Savelli, the owner of the Barton Street memorabilia shop, said he doesn't have any information about the man who bought the sweater. At the time, he was eager to unload his items because police had warned him someone was trying to kill him for his collection.
If Wesley and Boychuk find a Tigers sweater, they hope to purchase it, bring it back to Hamilton for display, then donate it to the Hockey Hall of Fame.
They both feel that returning the sweater to Hamilton may break the curse of bringing an NHL team to the city.
"I think it's important for Hamilton's psyche," Boychuk said. "We've been bridesmaids for an NHL team for so long -- and yet we had one and we just forgot about it."
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