Wayne Gretzky
Gretzky, 42, announced his retirement as a player on April 16, 1999 after 20 seasons in which he dominated the National Hockey League unlike any player in history. Gretzky helped win four Stanley Cup Championships and three Canada Cup tournament titles during his illustrious career. He became the NHL's all-time leading goal, assist and point producer for both regular season and playoffs. Gretzky won 10 Art Ross Trophies as the NHL's leading scorer, nine Hart Trophies as the League's MVP and two Conn Smythe Trophies as playoff MVP. He earned five Lady Byng Trophies as the NHL's most gentlemanly player and made 18 consecutive All-Star Game appearances, securing three All-Star MVP Awards. Gretzky is an eight-time First All-Star Team member and seven-time Second All-Star Team member. He holds virtually every offensive record in the NHL and his tireless support of the game has contributed significantly to the popularity it enjoys today.
As a six-year-old, the Brantford, Ontario native was good enough to play on a 10-and-under team and even managed to score a goal. Four years later, a 10-year-old Gretzky finished the 1971-72 season with 378 goals and 120 assists in 85 games in the Brantford atom league. Such was the advanced billing as Gretzky arrived in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario to play for the Greyhounds for his first and only full year of major junior hockey in 1977. Selected third in the annual midget draft by Sault Ste. Marie, the 16-year-old Gretzky justified the Greyhounds' faith in him, scoring six goals in his first game and proceeding to take OHA Rookie of the Year honors, recording totals of 70-112-182 for the season.
The next year, the 17-year-old Gretzky signed a contract on June 13, 1978 with the Indianapolis Racers of the World Hockey Association. Just eight games into the season, Gretzky was sold to the rival Edmonton Oilers along with Eddie Mio and Peter Driscoll on November 2, 1978. On January 5, 1979, Gretzky realized a lifelong dream by centering a line with Gordie Howe (Gretzky's childhood idol) and son Mark Howe on the WHA All-Star Team against the touring Moscow Dynamo club from the Soviet Union. He finished the 1978-79 season with 110 points and was named the WHA's Rookie of the Year.
Both Gretzky and his Edmonton Oilers made their NHL debuts in Chicago on October 10, 1979 against the Blackhawks. Although the Oilers lost the game, the 18-year-old Gretzky recorded his first NHL point, an assist on Kevin Lowe's goal at 9:49 of the first period. Four nights later, in Edmonton's third game of the season, Gretzky beat Vancouver Canucks goaltender Glen Hanlon to score his first NHL goal on a power play at 18:51 of the third period. Gretzky finished the season with 137 points (51-86-137) and won the first of eight consecutive Hart Trophies as the NHL's Most Valuable Player.
Over the next eight seasons (from 1980-81 through 1987-88) with the Oilers, Gretzky eclipsed even the lofty pace set in his rookie year, averaging nearly 192 points per season. [next page]