13-05-2025
Darryl Sittler's 10-point game Maple Leafs sweater from 1976 up for auction
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The whereabouts of the sweater was a decades-old mystery, even to Sittler, until American sports sweater collector Barry Meisel obtained it unexpectedly in a bulk purchase in 2018.
Taking it to the Hockey Hall of Fame resource centre in Toronto, matching the slightly crooked stem of the Harold Ballard-era Leafs logo and certain stains and loose shoulder threads from action photos of Sittler in the game, it was authenticated.
Sittler told the Sun in 2018 he didn't ask to keep the white-base, blue-trim No. 27 jersey with the captain's 'C' that year, as such items weren't as desirable like today's memorabilia market.
He said it was plausible Ballard had gifted or sold it to a friend and congratulated Meisel on his detective work, adding he wouldn't bid, with the price expected to get well into six figures.
From a starting price of $10,000 US on Tuesday morning, the sweater was up to $50,549 by early afternoon with bidding on the company's web site open until June 2.
Sittler told the Sun on Monday he hadn't known it was now up for auction.
