Glen Wesley Night at the RBC Center

Staff photo by Chris Seward

Glen Wesley said simply that he was "very humble" to be honored by the Hurricanes and have his jersey retired.

In a ceremony Tuesday night mixed with private reflections and some humor, the former defenseman, calling himself the "Redhead from Red Deer," reminisced about his career — about the early days in Boston with the Bruins, about the trade to the Hartford Whalers in 1994, about the move of the team to North Carolina in 1997.

"Little did we know we'd wind up in Mayberry," he said, bringing laughter from the large crowd at the RBC Center.

And, of course, Wesley and the Canes brought the Stanley Cup to "Mayberry" in 2006.

"We put hockey on the map in North Carolina, something I think will carry on forever," Wesley later said.

During the ceremony, Wesley thanked his family, thanked his coaches, thanked his former teammates. He thanked just about everyone. He also thanked all the doctors for "keeping me in one piece for 20 years."

"It's been a great ride and a great journey to remember," he said.

Moments later, No. 2 was raised to the rafters — a number never to be worn by another Carolina player. It will hang next to No. 10, Ron Francis' number and the only other retired jersey.

"It's still surreal," said Wesley. "It's something you never imagine as a kid growing up. You always dream of winning a Stanley Cup. I acheived that goal. This is the icing on the cake.

"It's something I'll be able to reflect on in the next couple of days and realize it's real." 

After being first introduced and taking the ice, Wesley skated around the rink with his two sons, Josh and Matthew. His wife, Barb, and daughter, Amanda, were waiting at center ice.

"Obviously it's special to have the kids there and be able to skate with the boys," Wesley said.

Former Boston teammate Ray Bourque was to attend, but was unable to make it because of a family emergency.

When the lights dimmed before 7 o'clock, a video montage was shown on the Jumbotron. There were quick snap-shots of the young redhead, shots of a young Boston Bruin, a little older Hartford Whaler and finally a veteran who wore No. 2 for the Hurricanes for 729 games.

The final photo was fitting: Wesley holding up the Stanley Cup in the day-long celebration that followed the clinching of the Cup in 2006.

A second montage showed video highlights of his career. At the end: a bearded Wesley hopping across the ice at the end of the final game of the Stanley Cup finals. Then, the big kiss on that big piece of silver.

While most visiting teams might skip the pregame ceremony and sit in the locker room, the Bruins came out and watched from the bench. Fitting, in that Wesley was a first-round pick by the Bruins in 1987 and twice helped them reach the Stanley Cup finals.

Before the game, they all wore No. 2.

In what's becoming something of a tradition, all of the Hurricanes players wore a No. 2 jersey with "Wesley" on the back during pregame warmups in honor of former defenseman Glen Wesley.

The Canes did the same in January 2006 when Ron Francis became the first Hurricanes player to have his jersey retired. The players all wore No. 10 before the game.

Wesley played 13 years for the Hurricanes franchise and is the all-time leader in plus/minus.