Oilers forward speaks about number change to honour late mother

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Liam McCormick
September 24, 2024 (7:31 PM)

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Oilers forward James Hamblin is changing his number as a tribute to his late mother, and earlier today commented on the act.

Hamblin has appeared in 41 games for the Edmonton Oilers with the number 57, but now will be making a change to number 52. His mother passed away from cancer in 2017 when she was 52 years old, and that's James' inspiration for the number change. Speaking to media today, Hamblin was remembering his mother and thankful to the Oilers for agreeing to the change.

»I was very fortunate the Oilers organization let me change my number. It was something that I've kinda wanted to do for a long time. To have her as a symbol on my back, it pushes me every day, and it just reminds me that there is more to life than just hockey.»
- James Hamblin

Hamblin lost his mother to cancer when he was just 18 years old, and her passing had a profound impact on him and his family. In the offseason, Hamblin opened up on how the pain of losing his mother brought his family much closer, and also forced him to mature faster.

Oilers fans will remember Hamblin was one of the best stories on the team early last season. When he scored the first goal of his career, Hamblin pointed to the sky and passionately dedicated the goal to his mom. It was a truly emotional moment of humanity and sports interconnecting.

Now 25 years old and having a bit of NHL experience under his belt already, Hamblin's in training camp with the goal of making the Oilers roster. He'll be competing with veteran Derek Ryan, Noah Philp, and Lane Pederson for the fourth line center job. Hamblin's up against some tough competition, but hard work in camp may force the Oilers hand to give him a job.

No matter what happens in training camp and even for the rest of his career, Oilers fans will certainly be rooting for James Hamblin to succeed. If there's anyone who deserves it, it's him.