Blackhawks Number History, 41-50

We’re continuing our journey through Chicago Blackhawks numbers history. With 100 years of hockey under its belt, this franchise has so many names to mention. This series will help shed light on the lesser-known and forgotten Blackhawks. We’re featuring the best player to wear each number, as well as giving you some fun facts along the way.

If you’ve missed any of the previous installments of this series, check them out:

Numbers 1-5
Numbers 6-10
Numbers 11-15
Numbers 16-20
Numbers 21-25
Numbers 26-30
Numbers 31-35
Numbers 36-40

No. 41 – Jocelyn Thibault

Number of players to wear 41: 5
First to wear No. 41: Mike McNeill
Last to wear No. 41: Isaak Phillips
Rest of the No. 41s: Jocelyn Thibault, Niklas Hjalmarsson, Mark McNeill
Fun Fact: Mike and Mark McNeill are not related.

Jocelyn Thibault was put under a lot of pressure early in his career. After being selected 10th overall by the Quebec Nordiques in 1993, he was traded to the Montreal Canadiens in the deal that sent Patrick Roy to Colorado. Trying to replace a legend in Montreal was no easy task. He was eventually dealt to the Blackhawks in 1998 as part of a six-player trade. Thibault never quite got his due in Chicago, as he was a good goalie on some bad teams. In his six seasons with the Blackhawks, he went 137-142-37 with a .905 save percentage (SV%), 2.63 goals-against average (GAA), and 28 shutouts.

No. 42 – Gustav Forsling

Number of players to wear No. 42: 15
First to wear No. 42: Warren Rychel
Last to wear No. 42: Nolan Allan
Rest of the No. 42s: Rob Conn, Jeff Jackson, Rick Lanz, Ryan McGill, Steve Bancroft, Steve Dubinsky, Steve Poapst, Jon Klemm, Michal Barinka, Jordan Hendry, Shawn Lalonde, Joakin Nordstrom, Gustav Forsling
Fun Fact: Jon Klemm is the only player in team history to wear No. 42 for more than 100 games.

Long before he became a key defender on back-to-back Stanley Cup championships for the Florida Panthers, he started his NHL journey with the Blackhawks. He was acquired from the Vancouver Canucks in 2015 for fellow blueliner Adam Clendening. He didn’t make his NHL debut until the following season, at 20. Forsling joined the Blackhawks defensive corps as the team started to decline from its Stanley Cup runs. He had a tough time staying in the lineup under head coach Joel Quenneville, but you saw the potential. In 122 games, he scored eight goals and 27 points.

No. 43 – James Wisniewski

Number of players to wear No. 43: 8
First to wear No. 43: Mike Hudson
Last to wear No. 43: Colin Blackwell
Rest of the No. 43s: Milan Tichy, Nathan Dempsey, James Wisniewski, Brandon Saad, Viktor Svedberg, Alex Vlasic
Fun Fact: Brandon Saad wore 43 for his NHL debut because it represented where he was selected in the draft.

James Wisniewski looked like he was going to be a core member of the Blackhawks’ Stanley Cup teams. He was taken in the fifth round of the 2002 NHL Entry Draft, three rounds after Duncan Keith was selected. He played his first 168 NHL games in Chicago, scoring 13 goals and 56 points, while dishing out 164 hits. Wisniewski was traded to the Anaheim Ducks at the 2009 trade deadline for center Samuel Pahlsson.

No. 44 – Wyatt Kaiser

Number of players to wear No. 44: 17
First to wear No. 44: Rik Wilson
Last to wear No. 44: Wyatt Kaiser
Rest of the No. 44s: Jari Torkki, Mile Peluso, Rob Brown, Patrick Poulin, Christian Laflamme, Dennis Bonvie, Josef Martha, Bryan McCabe, Aaron Downey, Burke Henry, Danny Richmond, Klas Dahlbeck, Kimmo Timonen, Jan Rutta, Calvin de Haan
Fun Fact: Patrick Poulin is the highest-scoring No. 44 in team history with 34 goals and 70 points.

It’s hard to believe that Wyatt Kaiser is already the best player to wear No. 44, but when you look at the numbers, it's an easy choice. He’s already played more games than anyone else who’s ever worn the number, with 175 games. He set career highs last season in games played (77), goals (6), assists (11), and points (17). He has worked himself into the long-term plans and is looking to have an even bigger year this season.

No. 45 – Igor Ulanov

Number of players to wear No. 45: 6
First to wear No. 45: Karl Dykhuis
Last to wear No. 45: Adam Berti
Rest of the No. 45s: Igor Ulanov, Bryan Muir, Vladimir Chebaturkin, Quintin Lang
Fun Fact: No American-born player has ever worn No. 45.

Defenseman Igor Ulanov only wore No. 45 for 14 games during the 1995-96 season. He changed to No. 6 after Ivan Droppa was sent down to the minors. Let’s be honest, the pickings were very slim, and the rugged defenseman had the best NHL career of the six players to wear No. 45.

No. 46 – Colin Fraser

Number of players to wear No. 46: 9
First to wear No. 46: Shawn Byram
Last to wear No. 46: Louis Crevier
Rest of the No. 46s: Tuomas Gronman, Dmitri Nabokov, Craig Mills, Dennis Bonvie, Todd Gill, Colin Fraser, Lucas Carlsson
Fun Fact: Louis Crevier, the last player to wear No. 46, was traded for Bowen Byram this summer, the son of Shawn Byram, the first player to wear No. 46.

When you’re the only Stanley Cup winner among the group, you instantly become the best No. 46 in team history. Colin Fraser was originally drafted by the Philadelphia Flyers. He was acquired, along with the draft pick used to take Bryan Bickell, in the 2004 trade for Alexei Zhamnov. He became a regular in the Blackhawks’ lineup in 2008-09. He played in 151 games over the next two seasons, scoring 13 goals and 36 points. He played in three playoff games in 2010, all in the first round against the Nashville Predators. After retirement, Fraser returned to the Blackhawks as an amateur scout.

No. 47 – Martin St. Pierre

Number of players to wear No. 47: 8
First player to wear No. 47: Adam Bennett
Last player to wear No. 47: Lucas Carlsson
Rest of the No. 47s: Lasse Kukkonen, Martin St. Pierre, Evan Brophey, Michael Paliotta, Rob Scuderi, John Quenneville
Fun Fact: Adam Bennett is the highest-drafted player to wear No. 47, taken sixth-overall in 1989.

Although Martin St. Pierre only played 21 games over three seasons for the Blackhawks, he gets the nod for what he did in the AHL. After signing as an undrafted free agent in 2005, he was assigned to the Norfolk Admirals, where he scored 50 goals and 172 points in two seasons. When the Blackhawks switched affiliations to the Rockford IceHogs in 2007, he scored 21 goals and 88 points in 69 games. St. Pierre was traded to the Boston Bruins following that season, but returned to the organization in 2012, where he served as IceHogs captain. He played a role in developing many players who went on to contribute to the Blackhawks.

No. 48 – Vinnie Hinostroza

Number of players to wear No. 48: 6
First to wear No. 48: Mark Cullen
Last to wear No. 48: Matt Grzelcyk
Rest of the number 48s: David Koci, Vinnie Hinostroza, Wyatt Kalynuk, Filip Roos
Fun Fact: Vinnie Hinostroza is the only player drafted by the Blackhawks to wear No. 48.

Hinostroza made the most of being drafted in the sixth round of the 2012 NHL Entry Draft, playing in 477 NHL games and counting. He wore No. 48 for the first 106 games of his career, scoring 13 goals and 39 points. He wore No. 28 when he returned to the Blackhawks in 2021.

No. 49 – Michael Leighton

Number of players to wear No. 49: 6
First to wear No. 49: Jimmy Waite
Last to wear No. 49: Jake Dowell
Rest of the No. 49s: Aaron Downey, Shawn Thornton, Michael Leighton, Carl Corazzini
Fun Fact: Only three goals have ever been scored by a player wearing No. 49; one by Shawn Thornton and two by Jake Dowell.

While many Blackhawks fans remember Michael Leighton as the goalie who gave up Patrick Kane’s Stanley Cup-clinching goal in 2010, his long pro hockey career started with the Blackhawks. He was taken in the sixth round of the 1999 NHL Entry Draft. After wearing No. 30 during the 2002-03 season, he switched to No. 49 the following season. He wore it again when he returned to Chicago in 2016. Leighton had most of his success in the AHL. He was inducted into the AHL Hall of Fame and IceHogs Ring of Honor in 2025. He is currently serving as the Detroit Red Wings’ goaltending coach.

No. 50 – Corey Crawford

Number of players to wear No. 50: 5
First to wear No. 50: Chris Clifford
Last to wear No. 50: Corey Crawford
Rest of the No. 50s: Ray LeBlanc, Christian Soucy, Igor Radulov
Fun Fact: Igor Radulov is the only non-goaltender to wear No. 50.

There is no debating this one; Corey Crawford is the best player to wear No. 50. After winning two Stanley Cups in three years, it’s doubtful anyone else will ever wear it again. He is third in franchise history in games played (488), wins (260), and saves (12,778). He is fourth all-time with 26 shutouts and second with a .918 SV%. He has the most playoff wins by any Blackhawks netminder with 52, and should have won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 2013. Plus, he made the greatest championship rally speech in Chicago history!

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