March 23, 1994—In Los Angeles, Wayne Gretzky slapped the puck into the net against Vancouver goalie Kirk McLean for the 802nd goal of his career, eclipsing the previous record set by childhood hero Gordie Howe. It was just another milestone in a statistic-laden career probably only matched in professional sports by the Yankees’ Babe Ruth.
As a 10-year-old in Brantford, Ontario, Gretzky had been visited by Howe, who, out of curiosity, wanted to see for himself a youngster who was already mighty prolific at scoring—385 goals in just 85 games. The older sports legend gave the budding phenom advice that was heeded: Work on your backhand.
As Gretzky achieved fame in the 1980s and 1990s with the Edmonton Oilers, the Los Angeles Kings, the St. Louis Blues, and the New York Rangers, Howe remained a constant and appreciative fan of the man who surpassed each of his records one by one. (Entering the league, Gretzky wanted to wear the same number that Howe had —9—but it was taken, so he took the next best thing—99.) Yet the two could not have been more different.
Howe piled up his scoring totals day in, day out, year in, year out. If you attempted to interfere with the puck while he was within five feet of it, God have mercy on you, because Howe wouldn’t, making sure you got a nice, sharp elbow that would send you flying. (Admittedly, this was nothing like the mayhem perpetrated by Derek Sanderson in the 1970s.)
If Howe beat opponents with sheer durability and grit, Gretzky defeated them with blinding speed. If Howe’s playing style was strictly blue-collar—he had a job to do, and he’d find a way to get it done, every day, come what may, no matter how much his bones ached—Gretzky’s was more Hollywood, a natural for the highlight reels. (And he was not a puck hog—Mario Lemieux, himself a scoring wunderkind, called him “probably the best passer who ever played the game.")
His sense of speed and puck-handling flash was made for Hollywood—and wouldn’t you know that The Great Gretzky ended up marrying actress-model Janet Jones in July 1988, in a union dubbed “Canada’s Royal Wedding.” (I enjoyed Jones’ most notable Hollywood film, The Flamingo Kid, but more for its unpretentious coming-of-age story and the fun supporting turn by Richard Crenna than for the lead actress’ thespian skills—such as they were.)
In a 2004 poll, respondents to a survey by the Canadian Broadcasting Co. voted Wayne Gretzky one of the 10 greatest Canadians of all time. That’s how seriously they take their hockey up there!
The rapid dilution of the game of ice hockey in the past few decades leaves me cold to your comparisons.
ReplyDeletethe so called "great one" would have been hard pressed to pass muster against a more hardened talent pool than Howe had to deal with. I cannot begin to give him the benefit of the doubt in this regard.
Howe, Orr, Hull, Richard, Plante, Mikita are a few of the names that every current NHLer should hope to be able to carry their skate straps!
Cross-era comparisons are always dicey, and so, in this case, is yours. Hockey, like baseball, includes a good deal more players from outside North America than it used to do. It detracts nothing from the players you cite to mention that. Moreover, for what it's worth, I don't believe I've come across anyone else who shares your belief that Gretzky would have had a tough time against Howe and his contemporaries, great as I know they were.
ReplyDelete