# What is the most iconic jersey number in hockey history?

> One number is retired across the entire league. Another was picked because of two Olympic basketball golds in the family. Vote for the number that says hockey to you before the name attached to it does.

*By YPB Team · Published August 21, 2026 · https://youpick.best/ranking/what-is-the-most-iconic-jersey-number-in-hockey-history*

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## Current results (no votes yet)

1. **30 - Martin Brodeur** — score 1000/1000
   One number, one team, 21 seasons and three Cups in New Jersey.
2. **99 - Wayne Gretzky** — score 958/1000
   Retired league-wide in 2000, the only number no NHL player may wear.
3. **1 - Jacques Plante** — score 958/1000
   The goalie's number from the era when goalies wore only that one.
4. **68 - Jaromir Jagr** — score 809/1000
   Chosen for 1968, the year Soviet tanks entered Prague.
5. **8 - Alex Ovechkin** — score 684/1000
   Chosen for his mother's two Olympic basketball golds, now the number of the goals record.
6. **19 - Steve Yzerman** — score 684/1000
   Detroit's captain number through the 1990s dynasty.
7. **4 - Bobby Orr** — score 684/1000
   The number that made a defenceman the most exciting player on the ice.
8. **66 - Mario Lemieux** — score 684/1000
   Gretzky's 99 turned upside down, and worn well enough to earn it.
9. **9 - Gordie Howe** — score 532/1000
   Worn for 26 seasons in Detroit and copied by half the league since.
10. **87 - Sidney Crosby** — score 532/1000
   His birthday, 8/7/87, and the face of the league for two decades.
11. **11 - Mark Messier** — score 532/1000
   Retired by both Edmonton and New York for the same player.
12. **21 - Peter Forsberg** — score 532/1000
   The number on the Colorado sweater of the best two-way forward of his era.
13. **33 - Patrick Roy** — score 342/1000
   Worn through four Cups and three Conn Smythes in two cities.
14. **5 - Nicklas Lidstrom** — score 342/1000
   Seven Norris Trophies in the quietest great career the position has had.

Tags: sports, hockey, players, legends, all-time