Topic spans: 1960 - 1988
The Great Wayne Gretzky
By now it's practically hockey legend. Wayne Gretzky started playing the game in the backyard rink built by his dad. It marked the beginning of the most spectacular career in hockey history. From the time Gretzky donned his first pair of skates at age two to the shocking trade that took him south of the border, we look at how the "Great One" set the bar higher for Canada's favourite game.
Wayne Gretzky photo from the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame.
16 television clips
8 radio clips
The whiz kid turns pro
Broadcast Date: June 14, 1978
Wayne Gretzky embarks on a professional hockey career after just one season in the junior hockey league. After a short but successful season with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds, Gretzky signs a seven-year, $1.75 million contract to play for the Indianapolis Racers in the World Hockey Association. Gretzky's decision is controversial since both the NHL and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association discourage signing players before they are 20.Gretzky is only 17. But he defends his decision on CBC's As It Happens, saying it was the right one for him. "Why should I play Major A hockey at $75 a week when I can go out and make a living?"
The whiz kid turns pro
• It took the 17-year-old rookie some time before he scored his first goal as a professional hockey player. It happened during his fifth game, against the Edmonton Oilers. Gretzky scored his second goal just four seconds later.• Gretzky had his own fan club — the Great Gretzky Fan Club for those 17 and under — even before he played a single game for the Racers.
• In 1979, Gretzky played on the same line with his hockey hero Gordie Howe. It was in Edmonton during the World Hockey Association's All-Star Series. The series featured some of the best players from the WHA against the Moscow Dynamo. Gretzky, Howe and Howe's son Mark led the WHA to a two game sweep of the visiting team.
• "Now Gordie Howe is my kind of player. He had so many tricks around the net no wonder he scored so many goals. I'd like to be just like him."
— 10-year-old Wayne Gretzky
The whiz kid turns pro
Medium: Radio
Program: As It Happens
Broadcast Date: June 14, 1978
Guest(s): Wayne Gretzky
Host: Elizabeth Gray, Alan Maitland
Duration: 7:05
Last updated:
March 28, 2008
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24 clips in this topic . page
Television
5:26
This 1970 documentary profiles 22-year-old Bobby Orr, already the NHL's premier defenceman, on the verge of winning his first Stanley Cup with the Boston Bruins.
Television
10:21
Former NHL superstar turned Team Canada general manager Steve Yzerman describes the type of NHLer he wants at the Olympics.
I remember this as if it was yesterday.I was 11 years old and I lived and breathed Soo Greyhound hockey.When Gretzky left us after only one season and Craig Hartsburgh followed suit with the Birmingham Bulls of the WHA..we went from a Memorial Cup contender to a basement dweller in a matter of weeks.
Submitted by: Donny Chabot