Ridly Greig might be the most talented player ever to wear No. 17 for the Ottawa Senators.
Fortunately for him, he only wore it for 20 games before switching to No. 71.
A look through the Sens’ archive reveals that No. 17 may quietly be the most snake-bitten jersey in franchise history. According to the club’s all-time sweater database at hockeyreference.com, 19 different players have worn No. 17, making it the most commonly-assigned number in franchise history.
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The Senators’ Five Most Commonly Worn Jersey Numbers
No. 17 – 19 players
No. 27 – 17 players (William Eklund about to make it 18)
No. 10 – 16 players
No. 23 – 16 players
No. 28 – 16 players
Despite all those opportunities, No. 17 has produced almost nothing in terms of long-term success for the player who wore it.
No captains, no all-stars, no franchise cornerstones. No. 17 has become an organizational hand-me-down, and history has been extremely unkind to those who chose to wear it.
I’m not saying Ottawa’s No. 17 is cursed. But after exploring its horrors, I’m not “not saying” it either.
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The “17” Crew: The One-and-Dones
Jody Hull (1993)
Hull wore 17 with the expansion Senators, and like everyone on this part of the list, was gone after one season here. When he returned a decade later, he didn’t have the option of repeating history. Forward Bill Muckalt was already in the process of proving the curse of 17 was real, scoring 0 goals in 70 games in his one season here.
Eric Lacroix (2001)
Lacroix had played 463 NHL games when he arrived in Ottawa to throw on No. 17. Nine games later, his NHL career was over.
Bill Muckalt (2002)
Again, a forward who played 70 games for the Sens and had 0 goals. That’s tough to do. But apparently not for No. 17.
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Fillip Novák (2006)
0 points in 11 games for the Sens. He’d play 6 more NHL games before going back to Europe.
Denis Hamel (2007)
Hamel scored 56 goals in the AHL wearing No. 17. But the following year, when he grabbed Ottawa’s No. 17, he had 4 goals in 43 games in Ottawa.
David Legwand (2015)
Legwand wore No. 11 all through his time in Nashville, but it was kind of spoken for in Ottawa. So he made the ill-fated decision to jump on 17 and was gone after one year.
Nate Thompson (2018)
11 points in 43 career games for the Sens.
Brian Gibbons (2019)
Gibbons played just 20 games for the Sens, but had 14 points. But because he wore No. 17 (probably), he never had another NHL point after that.
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Max McCormick (2019)
For parts of three years, McCormick was happily wearing 89 whenever he got looks in Ottawa, but then he offered it to Mikael Boedker when he arrived. McCormick switched to 17 and then played only 14 more games for Ottawa.
Jonathan Davidsson (2020)
Davidsson was acquired in the Matt Duchene trade to Columbus. He played six games for the Sens, wearing No. 17. Those would be his only NHL games. He’s now a full-timer in Sweden.
Alex Galchenyuk (2021)
The former Canadiens star played just 8 games before the Senators had seen enough and dealt him to Carolina.
Adam Gaudette (2022)
In Gaudette’s first go-around with the Sens, he wore No. 17 and failed to stick with the Sens after half a season. By the time he returned in 2024-25, Zack MacEwen had scooped up 17, so just like Hull, he had to switch. He chose 81. Without the drag of No. 17, Gaudette had his best NHL season with 19 goals.
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Ridly Greig (2023)
For his first 20 NHL games in the league, Greig wore 17 like his father, Mark, did with the Hartford Whalers. But when the Sens signed Zack MacEwen, Greig gave MacEwen the number and flipped his digits to 71. It was a narrow escape for one of Ottawa’s top emerging young players.
“The No. 17 All-Stars:” The Ones Who Lasted More Than One Season
Dave McLlwain (1994-1995)
– 55 points in 110 games
Tom Chorske (1996-1997)
– 55 points in 140 games
Chris Murray (1998-1999)
– 15 points in 84 games
Colin Forbes (2000-2001)
– 8 points in 84 games
Zack MacEwen (2024-2025)
– 6 points in 51 games
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Filip Kuba (2009-2012)
– No one did more with No. 17 in Ottawa than Filip Kuba, and it isn’t close.
Kuba played four years here for the Senators, often alongside Erik Karlsson, then signed a two-year, $8 million deal with Florida. That’s when the curse activated and followed him to Sunrise. After one lockout-shortened season, the Panthers bought him out, and Kuba retired.
These six brave souls fought off the curse longer than the others, gloriously managing to bear it across more than one Ottawa season.
It’s almost unbelievable: A jersey number that’s been so much, yet produced so little. 12 of the 19 players who have worn No. 17 lasted just a single season of wearing it in Ottawa. Of the six who held on to it longer, only Kuba could truly be considered a clear success.
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Everyone else was either a depth player, a veteran nearing the end of his career, or someone who never established himself as a long-term piece of the franchise.
Maybe it’s just a coincidence. Or maybe No. 17 really is the unluckiest jersey in Senators’ history.
Either way, if you’re the next Senator offered No. 17, you might want to see if there’s another option available.
By Steve Warne
The Hockey News
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