Simple, eh?
It's a chance for us to showcase some jerseys that frankly aren't related to a Stanley Cup victory, milestone goal or even a player's birthday. We call it "July by the Numbers".
So, for July 1st, we begin at the beginning and kick things off with a jersey that carries the #1, and you just knew it was going to be a goaltender, didn't you?
July 1st is "Canada Day", which celebrates the enactment in 1867 of the British North America Act which united New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and the Province of Canada, which was comprised of what would be divided into Ontario and Quebec as part of the process, into a single country.
On June 20, 1868, the Governor General issued a proclamation asking for Canadians to celebrate the anniversary of the confederation. It became an official holiday in 1879 and was originally called "Dominion Day". As most residents considered themselves to still be primarily British, the holiday was not observed with any official celebration until 1917 and not widely observed as a uniquely Canadian holiday until as recently as 1958 when the government began to organize Dominion Day celebrations with a military parade in full dress uniform, called "Trooping the Colour", on Parliament Hill, followed by a band concert and fireworks display.
Dominion Day reached an important milestone in 1967 with the countries centennial, by which time Canadians became more proud of their independence from Britain. Televised concerts and other events from the nation's capital of Ottawa raised the profile of the event, while the government began to promote Dominion Day beyond the capital by giving grants to cities across the country to help fund local events.
While many people had began calling July 1st "Canada Day" informally, the new name was officially adopted in 1982. Today communities across Canada will celebrate with festivities such as parades, carnivals, picnics, air shows, concerts and fireworks, with the organized events on Parliament Hill the main event, with Queen Elizabeth sometimes in attendance, as she will be today in 2010, her first appearance since 1997.
On the jersey front, while the hockey season is completed by July 1st, the Toronto Blue Jays baseball club annually wears a special red jersey on Canada Day.
Today's featured jersey is a 1996 Canada National Team Martin Brodeur jersey, worn during the inaugural 1996 World Cup of Hockey. While you may be more accustomed to seeing Brodeur wear his more familiar #30, veteran Bill Randford was also on the Canadian roster for the tournament and wore the #30 based on his greater seniority.
This "waving flag" style jersey is one of the most attractive national team jerseys and features the larger 4 inch size 1996 World Cup of Hockey patch used by the teams that wore Bauer jerseys. Only Canada wore the patch on their chest, while all the other teams in the tournament wore their patches on the left sleeve.
Our video section begins with a salute to canada from Flippy Cat.
We know you want to be a Canadian. After watching this, you will agree too.
To sum up what it is to be Canadian, we present Joe.
No mention of Canada would seem complete without the man who penned "The Good Old Hockey Game", Stompin' Tom Connors.
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