1970-71 OHA JR. A
ST. CATHERINES BLACK HAWKS
# 9 MARCEL DIONNE GAME WORN JERSEY
This jersey began it's journey with the 1969-70 Central Hockey League Dallas Black Hawks and would have first been worn by Larry Romanchych. (As evidenced by the "D" tomahawk on the shoulders). The Dallas Black Hawks were known to recycle their jerseys down to affiliate teams during the 1970's including the SJHL Moose Jaw Canucks and St. Catherines Black Hawks.
The jersey was then worn by Marcel Dionne who wore # 9 as a member of the OHA St. Catherines Black Hawks from 1968-1971. He was the only player to have worn the # 9 during this period. This jersey has been photo matched to an image of Marcel Dionne from the biography "Triple Crown - The Marcel Dionne Story" by Ted Mahovlich. All the unique nuances of the front crest are a precise match to those on this jersey. His Captain "C" has since been removed with an outline of the former "C" visible on the jersey.
Marcel Dionne led the 1970-71 OHA in points with 143 despite only playing in 46 games, missing 12 games to injury. He scored an insane 29 goals and 26 assists in just 15 Playoff games. However during to a tumultuous playoff vs Guy Lafleur and the Quebec Remparts the players were accosted and bombarded with projectiles. They asked the league to move the remainder of the series to a neutral site, but the league refused. As a result, and with concern for their safety, the St. Catherines Black Hawks forfeited the series to the Remparts. This jersey would have been worn in this historic series.
The jersey shows evidence of game wear in the form of pilling and softening to the inner material, burns and snags to the lower sleeves, a team repair in the left sleeve cuff, a 2" repair to the right elbow and softening and stretching and fading to the collar.
Black Hawks jerseys are so striking and are considered the greatest jerseys ever made. The jerseys were made by General Athletic with cresting and numbering done by Gunzo. All the Chicago Black Hawk jerseys and Dallas Black Hawk jerseys from 1968-70 were identical in every way except on the shoulders where the Dallas team had the "C" tomahawks replaced with a "D" tomahawk.
This jersey is a museum worthy artifact and would easily have a place in the Hockey Hall of Fame archive. The jersey will come with a comprehensive 8 page Letter of Authenticity (including photo matches) from Global Vintage Sports Memorabilia inc.