The question is whether anyone has been as superior in a sport as Wayne Gretzky was for many years in hockey. The Canadian still goes by the nickname “The Great One,” and there’s no discussion about whether he’s the best player ever, at least if you look at records and statistics.
Wayne Gretzky has so many records that it’s almost getting boring to talk about them, but some are so astonishing that you can hardly believe they’re true. Gretzky is the player who has scored the most goals in one season (92), the most assists in one season (162), the player with the most goals and assists of all time (1,072 and 1,963) – and during his career, Gretzky managed to score in 51 games in a row, and in three straight seasons, he reached 200 points.
Yes, there are few prestigious records in the NHL that Gretzky doesn’t hold, and during his career, he won many individual awards and several Stanley Cups. However, the best player of all time didn’t receive a lot of criticism, especially not from his father.
Walter Gretzky meant a lot to Wayne and his career, but he wasn’t precisely the tough guy.
According to journalist Elliotte Friedman, Wayne Gretzky has only received criticism from his father once during his whole career – but when it eventually happened, Wayne responded in the best way possible.
“Wayne was asked if he had received any criticism and then mentioned match 1 of the Canada Cup final in 1987. Canada was behind 4-1 to the Soviet Union but scored four goals in a row. However, the Soviets equalized and won in overtime. Walter said that Wayne had been on the ice for too long when the Soviets scored the 5-5 goal. Then Wayne responded by making seven assists in the last two matches… “, writes Friedman.
Walter Gretzky died some years ago, aged 82, after a period of illness.
“He was the reason I fell in love with hockey. He inspired me to be as good as possible, not just on the ice but in life”, Wayne Gretzky said in a statement.
