Which NHL franchise was the first to retire a player’s jersey number?

The Toronto Maple Leafs were the first NHL franchise to retire a player’s jersey number.

Toronto retired Ace Bailey’s number 6 on February 14, 1934, during a benefit game for Bailey after he suffered a career-ending injury. Bailey had been seriously injured in a collision with Boston Bruins defenseman Eddie Shore in 1933.

The event established an important tradition in professional hockey: permanently removing a number from team circulation to honor an exceptional player. The Maple Leafs later retired numbers associated with stars such as Syl Apps, Ted Kennedy, and Dave Keon.

This fact is sometimes confused with the first number retirement by another major sports league or with the first NHL team to retire multiple numbers. The distinction here is specifically the first NHL franchise retirement of any player number.