Greatest Sweater Numbers: #2 Duncan Keith

Picking the best #2 in Hawks history was a little tougher than #1. A little, but not much.  Current d-man Duncan Keith takes the prize over 50's goon Gus Mortson and edges out 70's d-man Bill White.

POSTION: D

YEARS WITH HAWKS: 2005-Present

Keith is now regarded as one of the top defensemen in the game today. He, along with linemate Brent Seabrook, form one of the most talented d-lines in the NHL. They were picked as a line for Team Canada for the Olympics this year, where Keith had 6 points in the tournament in route to winning the gold.

I think its Duncan skating ability that separates him from the rest of the pack, the guy can realy fly. He also has steadily became an offensive threat from the blue line. His point totals have improved from 31, 32, 44, to 66 thus far this year.

Keith was the Hawks second round pick in 2002 Draft. He was always a pretty prolific two-way defenseman in the amateur ranks, the knock on him was always his size.  He was thought to be too small to be a successful defenseman in the big leagues. He proved the nay-sayers wrong, however, by bulking up to near 200 lbs.

It has been a fun journey watching Keith mature as a player from his rookie season to today. He's a tremendous asset to team not just by being a superb shut down defenseman, but also contributing nicely with the power play as well.

Earlier this year, the Hawks signed Keith to a 13 year contract extension, locking up #2 for the forseeable future.  That signing, along with long term deals given to Jonathan Toews, Patrick Kane, and Marian Hossa, gives us long-suffering Hawks fans hope that a Stanley Cup may be in our future.

Greatest Sweater Numbers: #1 Glenn Hall

In an idea blatantly copied from White Sox Cards,  today is the debut post of a new feature here at Blackhawks Cards, a look at the greatest Hawk players wearing a particular sweater number.  We'll start at #1 and work our way up.

Fortunately for me, #1 is a complete no-brainer. The number hangs in the rafters of the United Center and belongs to a legendary Hall of Famer, "Mr. Goalie" Glenn Hall.

Glenn Hall is most famous for two things, his ridiculous record of 502 consecutive games played between the pipes, and the fact that he vomited before each game. It's hard to imagine a goalie playing 500 straight games, especially considering the fact Glenn wasn't wearing a mask while he did it.  As far as the vomiting goes, legend has it it was his way to calm his nerves before taking the ice. Some other facts about "Mr. Goalie":

• He originally signed with the Red Wings in 1949, although he languished in the minors until the 1955-56 season, replacing Hall of Famer Terry Sawchuk.
• Recored 12 shutouts in his rookie year en route to winning the Calder Trophy. He played every game of the season, and would continue for 8 more years.
• He was traded, along with Ted Lindsay, to Chicago before the 1957-58 season.  According to the book Net Worth, the trade occured due to Lindsay orgainzing the first NHL union, and Detroit originated the trade to the lowly Blackhawks in an effort to "punish" Lindsay.
• Won the Stanley Cup with the Hawks in 1961.
• The streak ends at 502 on November 8, 1962, due to Hall having back problems.
• Won the Vezina Award in 1963 and 1967.
• Was picked up by the Blues in the 1967 Expansion Draft.
• Won the Conn Smythe Award in the 1968 Stanley Cup playoffs, despite the fact that the Blues were swept in 4 games by the Montreal Canadiens.
• Shared goaltending duties in the 1968-69 season with fellow Hall of Famer Jacques Plante, and won his third Vezina Trophy.
• He retired after the 1970-71 season, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1975.

There have always been "unbreakable records" in sports, such as Babe Ruth's home run records or Gordie Howe's goals scored record, that turned out to be not so unbreakable.  But I think Glenn Hall's 502 straight games just may be the safest record in all of sports.  Not only does it speak to tremendous toughness to accomplish that feat (remember, no mask was worn), it takes remarkable consistency. And that, I believe, is the most amazing thing about the streak, the fact the his abilities were at such a high level during its course. Looking at the Blackhawks goalies woes today, I definately appriciate the streak even more.