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By ANDREW SIMONSON | Sports Editor

PELHAM ­– The Birmingham Bulls will honor one of the franchise’s greatest legends before the puck drops on the 2024-25 season.

The Bulls announced on Monday, Oct. 14 that the team will retire Jamey Hicks’ No. 14 jersey.

The jersey retirement ceremony will take place at the team’s regular season opener on Friday, Oct. 18 at 7 p.m. at the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena as Birmingham battles the Huntsville Havoc in an in-state rivalry clash.

Hicks joins Jerome Bechard as the only two players to have their jerseys retired by the Bulls. The team retired Bechard’s number at the 2023-23 home opener, making this the second-straight home opener that will feature a jersey retirement ceremony.

Hicks played with the previous iteration of the Birmingham Bulls from 1996-2001, featuring in 335 games across his five seasons in the Magic City.

His best season with the Bulls came in the 1997-98 season when he won the league’s Most Valuable Player award in just his second year with the team.

Hicks made his return to the Bulls in the 2017-18 season as he served as the team’s head coach for its first year in the Southern Professional Hockey League and the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena.

He had his best season as a coach in 2018-19 when he won the SPHL Coach of the Year award. During that year, he guided the Bulls to the SPHL President’s Cup Finals with a 39-15-2 record.

Hicks resigned from the coaching bench in Nov. 2020 when he transitioned into a role as a team consultant, ceding the head coach position to then-assistant coach Craig Simchuk, who has led the team ever since.

Now, his legacy as both a player and coach will live on inside the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena with his No. 14 hanging on the wall.

In addition to the jersey retirement ceremony, the first 1,000 fans ages 15 and older in attendance at Friday’s opener against the Havoc will receive a Birmingham Bulls beach towel and a magnetic schedule.

Tickets for the game and any other Bulls home games can be purchased at the Pelham Civic Complex and Ice Arena box office either in-person or by calling 205-620-6870. Tickets are also available online at Ticketmaster.com.