The Toronto Maple Leafs on Thursday unveiled their uniforms for the 2022 NHL Heritage Classic, scheduled to be played against the Buffalo Sabres at Tim Hortons Field in Hamilton, Ontario, on March 13.
The Heritage Classic uniforms will pay homage to the first ones the team ever wore, when they were the Toronto Arenas from 1917 to 1919. The Maple Leafs have worn the Arenas sweater just once since 1919 — on Dec. 19, 2017, when they wore it as an alternate sweater as part of the team’s “Next Century Game.”
The uniforms are wool sweaters from the former era. A block white ‘T’ adorns the front, and player names and numbers are on the back. The team motto, “Honour, Pride, Courage,” is located on the inside collar.
“It is fitting that we are able to pay tribute to this storied franchise’s beginnings, and its first uniform, at the NHL Heritage Classic and we look forward to celebrating the team’s history with our fans,” said Shannon Hosford, chief marketing officer at Maple Leafs Sports and Entertainment.
The NHL and the Toronto Arenas, later known as the St. Patricks before adopting the nickname Maple Leafs in 1927, were born on Nov. 26, 1917, out of the old National Hockey Association. In 1918, the Arenas became the first NHL team to win the Stanley Cup, defeating the Vancouver Millionaires of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association. The Arenas name lasted two seasons.
The 2022 NHL Heritage Classic features a unique cross-border rivalry. The Maple Leafs and Sabres are two of the closest neighbors in the NHL and the closest across the Canada-U.S. border.
–Field Level Media