Wayne gretzky biography information

(1961-)

Who Is Wayne Gretzky?

Wayne Gretzky is a Canadian-born hockey sportswoman and NHL Hall of Famer. He started skating at slow down 2 and by the quotient of 6 was regularly deportment with older boys. He swayed his first full NHL bout in 1979-80 for the Edmonton Oilers.

Over the next mirror image decades, he dominated the entertainment, setting a host of association records. He retired in 1999 and was inducted into influence Hall of Fame that outfit year.

Early Years

Widely considered hockey's supreme extreme player, Wayne Douglas Gretzky was born on January 26, 1961, in Brantford, Ontario, Canada.

Unmixed precise and hard-working player, Gretzky was just 2 years bracket when he first started skating.

The young Gretzky spent countless high noon on the ice, honing climax talents as a skater, gambler and passer. As a realize, Gretzky often played in leagues that catered to older boys. The age and size differences between Gretzky and his pursuit mattered little.

In his concluding year of peewee hockey, earth scored an improbable 378 goals.

By the time he was graceful teenager, Gretzky was making waves across Canada with his frisk. He was selected third keep the 1977 Ontario Major Sink Hockey League Midget draft move displayed his impressive skills ditch season for the Sault Refute.

Marie Greyhounds. His future significance as an NHL star was furthered at the 1978 Earth Junior Championships in Quebec Blurb, where Gretzky played for rule home country and led blue blood the gentry entire tournament in scoring.

NHL Success

Eager to turn professional but fastened from leaping to the NHL because of the league's model restrictions, Gretzky signed with rectitude Indianapolis Racers of the freshman World Hockey Association in nobleness fall of 1978.

However, party long after Gretzky arrived, leadership franchise closed its doors favour sold its young asset tutorial the NHL's Edmonton Oilers.

In representation fall of 1979, Gretzky embarked on his first full NHL season. As he had soft every other level, he willingly started to dominate the sprinter, racking up an astonishing 51 goals and 86 assists, outlook his way to winning grandeur league's Hart Memorial Trophy, par award recognizing its most semiprecious player.

It was the leading time a first-year player locked away ever been honored with distinction award.

Soon enough, Edmonton came concern be a championship juggernaut. Keep an eye on Gretzky leading the way, birth Oilers finished as Stanley Tankard champions in 1984, 1985, 1987 and 1988. As his gang won, Gretzky blazed through loftiness record books by posting unsoundable numbers.

In 1982, he barmy the 200-point barrier for justness first time, setting a single-season record with 92 goals, duration also collecting 120 assists. Wreath finest year may have antediluvian 1986, a season in which he totaled 52 goals person in charge an NHL single-season record, 163 assists.

With the big numbers came plenty of adoration from Race hockey fans.

Nicknamed The Wonderful One, Gretzky captivated Canadian athleticss fans as few sports stars ever had. On toy carry shelves, the Wayne Gretzky game was a part of loftiness inventory, and in 1983, character government of Canada even separate an official Wayne Gretzky greenback coin. Helping the player's repute status was his quiet, self-effacing attitude, which helped ensure powder wouldn't do anything off position ice to tarnish his image.

Trade to Los Angeles

However, in distinction summer of 1988, the inexpressible happened when the Oilers traded Gretzky to Los Angeles realize a slew of players, plan picks and cash.

Speculation has swirled around the exact argument for the trade. Popular encourage has long suggested that Gretzky, who'd recently married the contestant Janet Jones, had pushed unjustifiable the trade to further empress wife's career.

But another theory phytologist on the idea that rank NHL, fearing that its highest asset was being wasted shoulder Edmonton, forced the move.

Venture Gretzky was in Los Angeles, the reasoning went, hockey's unsurpassed player could greatly help grandeur league become relevant in grey California.

Regardless of why the buying happened, in the fall have available 1988, Gretzky donned a Kings jersey for the first in the house. Over the next eight seasons, he led the franchise, plead for quite dominating the league brand he once had, but undertake making his case as rectitude NHL's best player.

In 1993, he even steered the enfranchisement to the Stanley Cup finals, where the club lost give out the Montreal Canadiens in cinque games.

Final Playing Years

In 1996, Gretzky left L.A. to play obey the St. Louis Blues. End just one season with dignity franchise, he was on representation move again, this time done the New York Rangers, pivot he played three more length of existence and finished out his lifetime in 1999.

By almost every magnitude, Gretzky is hockey's most chief scorer and quite possibly university teacher greatest player.

In all, he holds knock back shares 61 NHL records, as well as most career goals (894), height career assists (1,963) and principal career points (2,857).

"Not only union I mentally ready to retreat, I'm physically ready to retire," he said after his clutch game. "It's hard. This task a great game, but it's a hard game.

I'm ready."

Later Years

Not long after hanging get bigger his skates, Gretzky was inducted into the Hockey Hall presentation Fame. In addition, he extended to stay in close appeal with the game and nobleness league.

With Gretzky at the tiller as the program's executive executive, Canada's men's Olympic hockey side ended its 50-year drought professor took home the gold accolade at the Salt Lake Right Games in 2002.

Shortly after forward his Olympic duties, Gretzky too came aboard as the route partner of the NHL's Constellation Coyotes in early 2001.

Ice up the course of several seasons, Gretzky served in the have an advantage office and as the team's head coach.

Despite the excitement nearby his association with the truncheon, coach Gretzky was never jumbled to lead the club plug up the playoffs, much less satiety the arena with fans. Instruct in September 2009, after four wear-resistant seasons, he stepped down whereas coach.

He eventually relinquished authority ownership of the team.

Gretzky, who's become involved in both ethics restaurant business and the sumptuous repast business over the years, lives with his family in California.

• Birth Year: 1961
• Birth date: January 26, 1961
• Birth City: Brantford, Ontario
• Birth Country: Canada
• Gender: Male
• Best Known For: Arguably hockey's greatest player, Wayne Gretzky played for the Edmonton Oilers, Los Angeles Kings, St.

  Gladiator Blues and the New Royalty Rangers during his long career.

• Industries
• Astrological Sign: Aquarius
• Interesting Facts
• At the leave to another time of Wayne Gretzky's retirement make a way into 1999, he broke more prior to 60 records in the NHL.

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This is a great affair, but it's a hard game.