Memorabilia: Nearly 100-year-old Vancouver sweater for sale
VANCOUVER— A unique piece of hockey history is up for sale, with a rare Vancouver Millionaires sweater hitting the auction block.
The cream and maroon wool cardigan is believed to have belonged to Hall of Fame goalie Hugh Lehman, who backstopped the Millionaires to a Pacific Coast Hockey Association championship in 1922-23.
About 10 to 15 sweaters were made for players and staff to celebrate the achievement, but the one currently up for sale is believed to be the last of its kind, said Mike Heffner, president of Lelands Auction.
“Of those 10 or 15, it’s amazing that even one survived,” he said.
“Because you put clothing dormant in storage for even 10 years, if they’re not cared for properly, moths can get at them, they can deteriorate. And having something that is (almost) 100 years old like this, that survived through so many different stages, is incredible.”
Not only did the sartorial souvenir survive, it remains in excellent condition, complete with the original wood buttons, the remnants of a tag, and a patch on the left front pocket with the Millionaires’ iconic “V.”
It was made in a time when even hockey’s top stars would squeeze every possible ounce of life out of their equipment, Heffner said.
“Players wore the same jersey for the whole season and sometimes for multiple seasons because teams didn’t have the money that teams have now,” he said, noting that if a jersey was ripped during a game, it would simply be sewn up and given back to the player. “The garments weren’t worth anything back then. They were considered just sweaty, old hockey jerseys.
“They were thrown in the trash. And they were worn until they couldn’t be worn any longer, just like hockey jerseys.”
Heffner expects the unique Millionaires sweater will end up in a private collection. As of Thursday, the top bid for the piece of hockey history was $3,137. Heffner believes it could fetch as much as $10,000 before the auction closes on Dec. 11.