Wayne Gretzky
Wayne Gretzky (born January 26, 1961) was a Canadian professional ice hockey
player. He was born in Brantford, Ontario, Canada. Often known simply as
"The Great One", Gretzky is considered by most to be the best hockey player
of all time. As of 2002, he was a Managing Partner of the Phoenix Coyotes
National Hockey League team.
Gretzky had a remarkable career in children's leagues in Ontario. He scored
378 goals in 85 games at the age of 10. He played one year in the Ontario
Hockey League at the age of 16, with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. The
next year, he signed with the Indianapolis Racers of the World Hockey
Association, then a major professional league in North America. Eight games
into the season, his contract was bought by Peter Pocklington, owner of the
Edmonton Oilers.
After the 1978-79 season, four teams, including the Oilers, joined the
National Hockey League and the WHA folded. Gretzky tied for the scoring
league with Marcel Dionne, amassing 137 points, but did not win the Art Ross
Memorial Trophy because he had scored fewer goals than Dionne. Despite
obviously being the top NHL rookie, he was not eligble for the Calder
Memorial Trophy, having had a year of professional experience.
In his second season, Gretzky set a record for most points a season, with
164. He won both the Art Ross Trophy and the Hart Memorial Trophy, and would
have a stranglehold on those trophies for several more years. The Oilers had
a young, strong team, with players such as Mark Messier, Glenn Anderson,
Jari Kurri and Paul Coffey. In the 1982-83 they made it to the Stanley Cup
finals, only to be swept by the New York Islanders. The Oilers, led by
Gretzky, made it back to the finals the next year, and this time they won.
It would be the first of four Stanley Cup victories in five years.
After the 1987-88 season, Gretzky was traded to the Los Angeles Kings. He
helped to popularize hockey on the West Coast of the USA. That summer, he
married Janet Jones, an American actress. Gretzky had several more excellent
seasons with the Kings, leading them to the Stanley Cup finals in 1992-93,
but they lost 4 games to 1 to the Montreal Canadiens, despite Gretzky
leading all playoff scorers with 40 points in 24 games.
The Kings suffered through several mediocre seasons. In February 1996 he was
traded to the Saint Louis Blues. He played only 18 games for the Blues.
After the 1995-96 season he joined the New York Rangers, where he finished
his 20-year career.
After he retired, following the 1998-99 season, he was inducted into the
Hockey Hall of Fame in 1999. The NHL waived the usual 3-year waiting period.
In his honour, his uniform number, 99, was retired for all teams.
Gretzky holds or shares more than 61 NHL records; 40 in the regular season,
15 for play-off games, and six for All-Star games. He holds single-season
records for goals (92, set in 1981-82), assists (163, set in 1985-86) and
points (215, set in 1985-86). He also holds the career records for goals
(894), assists (1963) and points (2857).
He won many trophies: 9 Hart Trophies (including 8 in a row from 1980-1987
inclusive), 10 Art Ross Trophies (7 in a row from 1981-1987), 5 Lady Byng
Trophies, 2 Conn Smythe Trophies and 5 Lester B. Pearson Awards. He played
on four Stanley Cup winning teams.
In 2002, Gretzky served as the Executive Director of the Canadian Olympic
men's hockey team, which won the gold medal at the 2002 Winter Olympics in
Salt Lake City, Utah, USA.
He has been inducted into Canada's Walk of Fame, and is an Officer of the
Order of Canada.
Career Statistics
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM Playoffs Playoffs Playoffs Playoffs Playoffs
GP G A Pts PIM
1976-77 Peterborough OHA 3 0 3 3 0 0 0 0 0 0
Petes
Sault Ste.
1977-78 Marie OHA 64 70 112 182 14 0 0 0 0 0
Greyhounds
1978-79 Indianapolis WHA 8 3 3 6 0 0 0 0 0 0
Racers
1978-79 Edmonton WHA 72 43 61 104 19 13 10 10 20 2
Oilers
1979-80 Edmonton NHL 79 51 86 137 21 3 2 1 3 0
Oilers
1980-81 Edmonton NHL 80 55 109 164 28 9 7 14 21 4
Oilers
1981-82 Edmonton NHL 80 92 120 212 26 5 5 7 12 8
Oilers
1982-83 Edmonton NHL 80 71 125 196 59 16 12 26 38 4
Oilers
1983-84 Edmonton NHL 74 87 118 205 39 19 13 22 35 12
Oilers
1984-85 Edmonton NHL 80 73 135 208 52 18 17 30 47 4
Oilers
1985-86 Edmonton NHL 80 52 163 215 46 10 8 11 19 2
Oilers
1986-87 Edmonton NHL 79 62 121 183 28 21 5 29 34 6
Oilers
1987-88 Edmonton NHL 64 40 109 149 24 19 12 31 43 16
Oilers
1988-89 Los Angeles NHL 78 54 114 168 26 11 5 17 22 0
Kings
1989-90 Los Angeles NHL 73 40 102 142 42 7 3 7 10 0
Kings
1990-91 Los Angeles NHL 78 41 122 163 16 12 4 11 15 2
Kings
1991-92 Los Angeles NHL 74 31 90 121 34 6 2 5 7 2
Kings
1992-93 Los Angeles NHL 45 16 49 65 6 24 15 25 40 4
Kings
1993-94 Los Angeles NHL 81 38 92 130 20 -- -- -- -- --
Kings
1994-95 Los Angeles NHL 48 11 37 48 6 -- -- -- -- --
Kings
1995-96 Los Angeles NHL 62 15 66 81 32 -- -- -- -- --
Kings
1995-96 St. Louis NHL 18 8 13 21 2 13 2 14 16 0
Blues
1996-97 New York NHL 82 25 72 97 28 15 10 10 20 2
Rangers
1997-98 New York NHL 82 23 67 90 28 -- -- -- -- --
Rangers
1998-99 New York NHL 70 9 53 62 14 -- -- -- -- --
Rangers
