The real reason behind Jeff Petry's number change revealed.

The number that a player wears in the National Hockey League can carry with it a great deal of meaning, and it is for that reason that when a player changes his number it often draws some attention.

Long time NHL defenseman Jeff Petry will be doing just that this season when he moves away from his usual number, the number 26, to adopt his new number with the Detroit Red Wings, the number 46. There could be any number of reasons that Petry decided to make the switch, but this week his father , former Major League Baseball pitcher Dan Petry, joined the NHL Network to spill the beans.

Dan, who played for the Detroit Tigers, revealed that it had come as a complete surprise to him to learn that his son would be adopting the number that he wore through his career in baseball, a clear tribute from son to father.

"They showed me the announcement that he was gonna wear number 46 and I thought he was just gonna wear number 26... and all of a sudden 46 comes out and I went 'You gotta be kidding me!' it took me so off guard," revealed Dan Petry."It's quite an honor."

Although Dan did an excellent job of maintaining his composure during the segment, there was no hiding the emotion in his voice when he spoke of his son's decision to wear his number. A truly beautiful moment between a father and his son, and one we are lucky enough to get a glimpse at thanks to Dan appearing on the NHL Network.