Oliver Ekman-Larsson Honours His Brother with Recent Jersey Number Change in Toronto
New Maple Leafs defenseman Oliver Ekman-Larsson was unable to wear #91 in Toronto, as it belongs to John Tavares, but chose to honour his brother with his new number.
Ekman-Larsson has had a busy summer, both celebrating his first career Stanley Cup win and also packing up for his big move to Toronto after signing a new 4-year deal with the Maple Leafs.
There are some mixed feelings about OEL's deal, but for the most part, fans seem to be warming up to the idea of having another Stanley Cup winner landing in Toronto.
This past week, the Leafs revealed the jersey numbers that the new additions will wear beginning this season, including Chris Tanev, Anthony Stolarz and, of course, Ekman-Larsson. As previously mentioned, since Tavares is the proud owner of the #91, Ekman-Larsson was forced to change his digits. He has selected #95.
As Sportsnet's Luke Fox mentioned on Monday, OEL's choice to go with #95 is due to his brother, Kevin, who was born in 1995.
According to Hockey-Reference.com, no Leafs player has ever worn this number, making OEL the first to ever wear #95 in franchise history.
Hopefully, it will be a big year for Ekman-Larsson that will help put the Leafs in a position to pursue their first Stanley Cup since 1967 and OEL's second Cup in as many seasons.
| POLL | ||
SEPTEMBRE 17 | 1158 ANSWERS Oliver Ekman-Larsson Honours His Brother with Recent Jersey Number Change in Toronto Will Ekman-Larsson finish with double digits in goals this season? | ||
| Yes | 708 | 61.1 % |
| No | 312 | 26.9 % |
| Only if he quarterbacks the power play | 138 | 11.9 % |
| List of polls | ||
