A Day That Changed The Game

Watch the full documentary of the trade that changed hockey. Wayne Gretzky was traded from the Edmonton Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings on August 9, 1988.

[@joesakic91]

Now, all three California teams, the Los Angeles Kings, Anaheim Ducks and the San Jose Sharks have at least one Stanley Cup Finals appearance since "The Trade."

[@111highgh]

That L.A. Kings jersey was so awesome.

[@Tyrunner0097]

If you ever see the ESPN documentary, "Straight Outta LA", you would know that McNall changed the Kings' colors to be similar to the Raiders, which Al Davis didn't like, but Al did say about the Kings' unis at that time, "They did have some beautiful uniforms, I will say that for them. I thought they were really classy."

[@Hoovie9596]

This happened on my 14th birthday. I was in Arizona...the radio mentioned “a very bizarre hockey trade” had unfolded.....

[@SnipeYurFartbox]

I hated him in 93. Looking back now he is the greatest player to lace up the skates. He is a class act and I loved watching him play. I also miss watching him play. He was a magician on the ice.

[@OriginalPuro]

People who hate are trash.

[@TheDavidbooth]

@@OriginalPuro I agree most that say trash are haters!

[@theespawner6278]

as an american i hated that he was traded down here. he deserved to play in a hockey world not a hollyworld. in the end it was his choice but dam, what could have been

[@Jay-jb2vr]

You should have loved him in 93

[@jasonsmith5226]

Greatest player in team sports history

[@bobalooie7969]

It was the day that hockey lost its innocence, that fans suddenly realized that the game was about money, not winning cups. I've never cared about the game like I did after that day...

[@briannewlin203]

Well if someone offers you more money what are you going to take

[@111highgh]

+M Michael Take it easy.

[@luketrottier9388]

+Brian Newlin exactly. Its something a lot of people want to see and are willing to pay for, so the athletes deserve their appropriate cut. Do you think tv networks would film and air hockey for free (aka at a loss), an arena would be built at a loss and maintained at a loss, and tickets would be free to sell out for unemployed athletes barely eating but pleasing the world for the sanctity of a hobby? Innocent is a funny choice of terms for line brawls and crowd spilling fights of old, too. Best case scenario a bunch of star players decide they want cups so they all sign for a big discount with the same team and ruin the parity of the sport... then we can have innocence back with an unending dynasty of relatively underpaid players. It'd be nice living in a fantasy fairy tale world but we don't, we live in the real world.

[@111highgh]

Kidney McSecrets What the fuck are you talking about?

[@kidneymcsecrets8402]

Read Ted Lindsay's memoirs

[@seukfuhi]

Soooooo many glorious mullets in this vid !!!!

[@krisross8818]

+seukfuhi Yes, the great era of hockey hair. Hard times for Barbers in hockey towns.

[@nickgangone9541]

1988 was prime time for mullets

[@LexTan]

As much as August 9, 1988 was a sad day for Canada, it may have been the first in a long series of events that might end up ending the Stanley Cup drought for the Toronto Maple Leafs: Wayne grows the game in the Western United States, which makes the game more popular in that area, spurring a love for hockey from a guy who's got a brother with a young family in Phoenix who have never seen an ice hockey game ever. His brother's young son has his interest piqued in this sport, and learns to excel in the sport despite limited resources for hockey. He becomes a fan of the NHL team there that relocated from Winnipeg a few short years before; a team where Gretzky became part owner and eventually had coach. The kid meets his hockey hero, Shane Doan, the captain of the Phoenix/Arizona Coyotes. After working so hard on improving his game, even going so far as to play in Europe as a teenager, he amazes hockey scouts in the NHL, and after a few seasons there, the NHL draft is calling him to come back from across the pond. He's eventually drafted to the Toronto Maple Leafs, and proceeds to be the first ever NHL player to score 4 goals in his debut game, and within one year, does his part to help a franchise that had been reduced to the NHL's biggest joke and elevate it back to one that is credible, respectable, and is developing into a legitimate contender. That player is Auston Matthews. And he may be poised and being groomed to become the first player of Mexican descent to captain the Leafs. If all goes the way the Leafs and their fans want it to go, he could be the first NHL captain of Mexican descent to hoist the Stanley Cup. Time will tell the complete story. But it is already a great narrative to see the 6 degrees of separation between Wayne Gretzky and the emergence of Auston Matthews in a franchise that desperately needed a glimmer of hope. Wayne Gretzky never got to play for the franchise that he grew up watching on Hockey Night in Canada, but oh, the success he had when playing against them. He even had the opportunity to join the team in 1996, but unfortunately the management didn't want to spend the money to bring him home to Toronto. But, if the Maple Leafs win the Stanley Cup in the next few years with Auston Matthews on the team, it'll be partly due to Wayne's influence on the game. Obviously at this time he's trying to help another Oiler captain wearing a high 90's number become a winner in the NHL, but in a very 6th degree way, Wayne may be a helper in giving Lord Stanley's Mug a stay-cation in Toronto. I do hope Walter Gretzky gets to watch his favourite team win the Cup one more time before he goes.

[@devilsadvocacy]

The game is immensely bigger, and better, as a result of this trade having happened. You now have young kids all over the US playing ice hockey, and the talent pool is both better and deeper than it has ever been. As you pointed out, who would have thought that a player of Auston Matthews's ability level would have come from Arizona at the time the Gretzky trade was consummated, and drafted first overall by one of the NHL's marquee franchises? The game is attracting better athletes than ever, and thriving in places, eg Las Vegas, that no one could could have ever imagined. Edmontonians may have harbored some bitterness over the trade but the game itself was the winner of the deal, and it can never repay Wayne for his contributions to it

[@amosaiccosmos6302]

Austen Matthews Stanley Cups: 0. Poor Toronto fans... really do hope your drought ends but you really tend to glorify the not-so-glorious.

[@enricodandolo6762]

Hahahahaha 4 years in the future the leafs might possibly have a chance to make it out of round 1 for the first time in 20 years😂😂 keep dreaming pal

[@PatFrenchLeafsFan1]

Even this is like Cheers without Sam Malone as its protagonist.

[@broadstreet21]

That would be quite something. But it would have been even better had Gretzky joined the Leafs himself and won the Cup sooner.

[@justawinddown]

Bernie Nicholls scored quietest 70 goals and 150 points in history in Gretzky's first season in LA.

[@misguidedangel6550]

Bernie was having another monster season the next year when he got traded to the Rangers as well. I felt so bad for Bernie Nicholls when he got traded he should have been a LA King for life but became sort of a journeyman after the Kings

[@GoldCountryTrapping]

I cant believe pocklington made it out of edmonton alive

[@niechzyjepolska1805]

Wayne had to leave because Janet Bones was nailed by every Edmonton Oiler including the coaching staff and equipment manager

[@michaelm2998]

@@niechzyjepolska1805 You’re insane

[@abdullahimohamed3428]

"I promised Mess I wouldn't do this" Wayne Gretzky

[@Comedypark9]

Abdullahi Mohamed he said he promised he wouldn't do this he never said mess ..

[@samnesbit3125]

He clearly mentioned messier

[@lancemilliken9078]

batman BatMan99Superman he absolutely said "mess"

[@FlowerGirl8]

I promised MESS... yup he said it.

[@theespawner6278]

@@Comedypark9 ah you are wrong

[@StGeoRUSH619]

He was, and will forever be the greatest player to EVER lace up a pair of skates. I was born and raised in Chicago (1966), so Edmonton (the Canadians) was never really a favorite team of mine. That being said... the shock waves we all felt as hockey fans was apparent, and in my humble opinion, "The Trade" was the best thing to EVER happen to hockey. The fact that he went to Hollywood was actually quite fitting. He's always a class act and I really loved watching him skate, pass, shoot, and score. He was a chess-master on the ice, and an awesome ambassador off the ice. Raise your Lord Stanley's Cup to... "Thee Great One" Thank you Wayne Gretzky... thank you... PEACE

[@godhere6459]

he was allmost as good as bobby orr

[@otto6702]

To the people still mad about this trade, this is the business side of sport. It sucks losing your favorite players and talented players but that's the nature of the beast. Gretzky himself was in contract negotiations beforehand because his Oilers contract was nearly up and they weren't gonna offer him what he wanted for the possibility of losing him in free agency a few years later to another team who opens the vaults for him. They got something in return and Wayne got a new team and challenge. Trades hurt but they are a part of the game, always have been. Also to the people who say the Oilers are "cursed" after the trade, they won a Cup without Gretzky in 1990.

[@codster9]

I mean I get that. It always comes down to the almighty dollar. Players will always want what they believe they are worth. Nonetheless, I cannot help but wonder what would have happened had he stayed. There will always be so many What Ifs in pro sports. Would be neat to see a talented player actually willing to settle for less for the greater good of a team and their franchise. But of course that's highly unlikely. Just all part of the game.

[@kylevogelgesang3825]

Celebrating my 11th birthday on August 9, 1988. Thanks for the present Peter.....

[@stevehickey9826]

8/9/88 was also the date of the first night game at Wrigley Field in Chicago. It was supposed to happen the night before but the came was rained out. The date is one of the biggest, most important day in sports

[@chvzrvnn]

That is spot on about the immediate hike in ticket prices. The exhibition game tickets in 1987 were about $20-$30, I had to get one for his debut season through a ticket broker, and paid $80+ I had first made the mistake of standing in a line that went around the exhibition's arena, with John McEnroe's younger brother in front of me, for three and half hours, and got beat...they sold out within two hours of opening the windows.

[@carparthero]

great documentary, really appreciate the efforts of all involved. as a 14-yr old in southern ontario in 1988 this was a big deal. didn't realize how this would impact the growth of the game in the southern states and also nhl economics. glad to see the kings stabilized afterwards and win the cup in '12 and '14. 👍

[@Tyrunner0097]

Wayne has definitely recognized how big the trade was for hockey in general. Rather than just being a regional game stuck in Canada and the American east coast and midwest, it's now covering almost all parts of North America. I think Wayne once said, "Knowing now how widely popular the game is, if you told me then this was what was going to happen, I would've said, 'Trade me tomorrow.'"

[@anthonyciaramitaro6126]

If the owner of that team kept Wayne they probably would have won another three Stanley Cups totally foolish trade man Wayne Gretzky was probably one of the most upstanding hockey players of all-time true gentleman

[@pomerlain8924]

Gretzky was going to be an unrestricted free agent after 1989, and commanded a high price. He had been playing in Edmonton for a discount, and Edmonton wouldn't have been able to come close to matching the prices once he hit free agency. So it was either trade him now and get some players and money in return to give them another shot at a cup, or keep Gretzky, maybe win another cup in 89, and then watch him walk in free agency, and get nothing back for him.

[@mattyoung6474]

@@pomerlain8924 not to mention pocklington was seeing huge loses in his many companies and got 15 million cash in the 80s which was a ton for a hockey player

[@broadstreet21]

@@pomerlain8924 You are right, and it bugs me when people don't understand that fact. They just go on, imagine how many more cups they would have won had he stayed. Well, had Gretzky actually re-signed in Edmonton, Pocklington would have been forced to sell the team and the new owner might re-locate to a bigger hockey market, say, Ottawa or Hamilton. But had Gretzky just left in free agency, actually I could see Edmonton then trading off the rest of the team, intentionally trying to bottom out in 1991 to draft Eric Lindros, with whom they could rebound.

[@americaisacontinent.]

Wayne Gretzky gave Edmonton Oilers Stanley cups, fun and memories. He gave Canada international cups and recognition. Thank you Wayne, thank you for being Canadian..

[@shellbacksclub]

I was 8 years old at the time... & I've been a die hard Kings fan to this day! Thank you Wayne... Peter & Bruce! 😉 Would've been great if we had done it in '93, but it made 20q2 even sweeter. GO! KINGS! GO!

[@giovannidibravato5576]

Also the former kings owner and LA Lakers owner Dr Jerry Bus first approached The Oilers owner back in 1985 about trading for Wayne

[@AFRTERMATH]

I've never played hockey in my life and I have the biggest passion for hockey.

[@unknowunknow4462]

1966 wen a young looking #4 bobby orr step on to the ice,thats wen the game was changed......

[@danieldengL4R]

If you noticed anything, Peter Pocklington words have changed. His words back then during the trade & his recent words during the filming of this documentary are different. He was clearly lying back in 1988.

[@justawinddown]

Walter was incredibly wise. To pass on to Wayne as a boy that he respect the game and people watching enough to tell him that there is always someone watching so he should always play as such and give 100% every shift. It's a great thing that Walter was appreciated across Canada for the parenting he did.

[@ccth22]

I went to a Nashville Predators game a few years back and I realized that Gretzky getting traded was the reason for what I saw that night. Here I was in Nashville on a Saturday night with downtown buzzing and Bridgestone arena packed with fans of all colors. He really is responsible for growth of hockey in the US...

[@ricardospaniard9050]

As a die hard Dallas Stars fan I also owe gratitude to the great one. I moved from Massachusetts to Texas at the tender age of 5. Aside from missing my family and friends I was heartbroken that there was no hockey in Texas. 3 years later I was overjoyed to hear that the North Stars were being brought to Dallas. Got to go to a lot of games with my mom and it was always cool to hear her and other spectators who had grown up around different hockey cities swap war stories. Gave me a great appreciation for the history of the game.

[@RaineriHakkarainen]

Gretzky did not make hockey popular! Tv ratings In 1980 was 4 Nielsen rating! Flyers vs Red Wings Stanley Cup final was same tv rating 4 Nielsen in 1997!

[@mpaulm]

Best part of the deal as an Oiler fan is that we won the Cup without him. It showed that they still had a good team and proved that the Oilers could win without him.

[@broadstreet21]

Well you won the Cup thanks largely to Gelinas, Graves, Murphy, and Klima, the guys who you got in return for the trade. And thanks to the $15 million, the Oilers didn't fold. Overall, it was an emotionally charged trade, but in the end, the Oilers won on it.

[@Tyrunner0097]

The late 80's - early 90's was the end of Canadian dominance in the NHL. The Oilers traded Gretzky and Messier for much-needed capital, and Montreal, thanks to their coach's stubborn pettiness, traded Patrick Roy, and Canada has not had a Stanley Cup since then.

[@leesdroidaccountharbin9665]

This helped grow the game. And plus, the Oilers won another cup. In the end, it worked out for everybody.

[@Spencer-ym5lx]

Obliviously you're not from Edmonton

[@unkonwunknow5803]

the day that hockey cried..

[@shellbacksclub]

Christmas morning of 1996 i received "from Santa" tickets to see the Kkngs play in Buffalo (i live in Ontario) & i THOUGHT i had finally realized my dream of seeing Gretzky play for the team i had grown to love... On the way to the game there was rumblings of him being traded to the Blues... He was traded to the Blues that night. 😐 I still remember being crushed that (by a c%nt hair) i had just missed finally seeing my hero play! Kings still won the game & i quickly realized that he was the (great) One responsible for sparking my love for hockey, the Kings & was the reason why i had a great night out with my dad. Thankyou Wayne. GO! KINGS! GO!

[@chipgriffiths3655]

The OIlers still won another Cup, Gretzky never did. The whole is greater than one part. The NHL benefited from it and so did all of hockey.

[@TheHeston83]

exactly Im grateful his Impact on Hockey in America as an American if he had stayed An Oiler I doubt My Avs would exist

[@rodmunch69]

Gretzky is really what brought hockey to Tampa Bay, surprised they didn't play that up. In 1990 the NHL had a preseason game in St Pete at the Florida Suncoast Dome, which was then the Thunderdome and now Tropicana Field. That marketing hype was mostly about seeing Gretzky in person - they drew over 25,000 for that game. That huge turnout, way more than anyone was expecting, was a big part of why two ownership groups ended up bidding to bring hockey to the area, one for St Pete and the other for Tampa. The Tampa group ended up getting the team, and then later played in the Thunderdome where they'd average over 21,000 people a night and set all the attendance records at the time, regular season record, postseason record and of course largest crowd ever - that would hold until the Winter Classic Series, but the Lightning still have the post-season attendance record of over 28,000.

[@joesakic91]

+Rod Munch I think the only success stories in the NHL from the Sun Belt since the Wayne Gretzky trade on August 9, 1988 are all three California teams (Los Angeles Kings, Anaheim Ducks and San Jose Sharks), the Tampa Bay Lightning and the Dallas Stars. I would like to add the likes of the Vegas Golden Knights and Carolina Hurricanes, but Vegas, despite their incredible and extraordinary run in their inaugural season, have yet to experience harsh realities for longer stretches while the Canes, despite making two Stanley Cup Finals appearances in 2002 and 2006 and a Stanley Cup in 2006, have a snakebitten decade so far in the 2010s where they missed the playoffs. The totally failed Sun Belt experiments are the Florida Panthers and the Phoenix/Arizona Coyotes where they're one-hit wonders currently and the Atlanta Thrashers where the Land of Cotton are 0 for 2 in the NHL.

[@rodmunch69]

For Florida and Carolina I really wonder how much is location as you have to keep in mind the vast majority of people in those areas are all from up north anyways - Carolina slightly less than Florida, but more than half the people there are yankees or Canadians. For Florida they built their arena way out by the Everglades and nowhere near Miami really, it's a terrible location. I think in general Miami is a terrible sports town, there is simply too many other things to do there, but the location makes no sense - it's like they wanted the Panthers to be an anchor for a new mall they were building and beyond that little thought was put into it. For Carolina, again, they choose a terrible location. Instead of being in Charlotte, which is the banking center of the south and has tons of corporations (and they buy most season tickets in almost all cities) they instead go out to Raleigh, which is hours away and convenient for no one. That is another team whose future could have been different had they just moved to a better location in the city where they're supposed to be playing. For Atlanta they're just a lost cause and they have to pump in crowd noise at football games to make it sound like people care. If you had to live in that dump known as Atlanta you'd understand why nothing could make you cheer.

[@devilsadvocacy]

Same with the San Jose Sharks. The Kings played a couple of preseason games in Oakland and Sacramento before the '88-89 season, and in both places the games sold out in less than an hour after tickets went on sale

[@mrperson0140]

The greatest mistake the oilers ever made

[@cariopuppetmaster]

apperently when grezkey became a free agent he was going to leave the oilers and pockington wanted to get something for him before he left

[@mrperson0140]

W.e the case was I compare these oilers to my 90s Dallas Cowboys. A team loaded with so much talent they were practically unstoppable until a member of that core left. For the Cowboys it was Jimmy Johnson leaving as with Edmonton having Gretzky leave. The question will always remain out on how many more Superbowls Dallas would've won if Jimmy stayed and the question is the same with the Oilers who knows how many more Cups they would've won if Wayne stayed. We will never know.

[@landrykkb]

+Tony Jn Obviously,none of us knew everything going on behind the scenes in the Oilers organization prior to this trade taking place.Needless to say,our minds have been conditioned ever since to realize that no one individual player is bigger than the entire team.

[@mrperson0140]

John W Landry Your correct and for ur oilers seeing Gretzky leave did help weaken them in order to help ur Flames at last break through in 89. However Gretzky is Gretzky the Michael Jordan of Hockey I believe Pockington shouldve traded either Messieh Coffey Kuri Anderson or anyone else besides Gretz

[@landrykkb]

But Paul Coffey was traded almost a year prior to The Great One,with the rest following suit 2-3 years later.

[@tml4437]

At heart, gretzky is forever an oiler

[@ElPantera237]

At greatness, Gretzky is forever a King.

[@jimmy_iKoN]

On the ranch, Gretzky was always a ranger

[@jimmy_iKoN]

I’m jk he was an oiler all day

[@rickbeezer34]

Kelly Hrudey reminds me so much of John Ritter.. Hrudey was one of my favs back then..

[@shellbacksclub]

Thank you Janet! 😉

[@KWCline91]

Don’t blame her. She never achieved a full film career that people thought she would. As she said, she wouldn’t have allowed herself to be pregnant and in sandals had she wanted to further her movie career.

[@wcjohnny1]

Fine example of how greed kills magic .

[@pomerlain8924]

Don't really see greed. It was just an unfortunate reality of the business. Gretzky was going to leave. His contract was up at the end of the 88-89 season, when he was 28, in the prime of his career, and the best player on the planet. He would have commanded, deservingly so, top dollar. Unless Pocklington jettisoned all the other star players, he wouldn't have been able match Wayne's asking price. And Wayne was too good to be playing for a discount. So rather than have Wayne leave in free agency and get nothing in return, he made a trade to get some value back for him to keep the team competitive.

[@lindamarzano6042]

1988 he already had 49 nhl records in the books lmao not bad 8 years in the league and still produced sick numbers w half the talent lol

[@ichbinvegetarische7471]

Gretzky's bio says Pocklington did everything to make it look as if Gretzky WANTED the trade. Gretzky says eventually he decided moving to LA would be good for Janet's acting career.

[@kidmack3556]

If you watch the "The Boy's Are Back" documentary you can see how they covered up for his wanting to go to Los Angeles. Sather says that it was up to Wayne whether the trade went through, and Gretzky verified that saying; "I had already given my word" They're all still trying to get their lies straight.

[@ShrinkingDad]

I remember hearing about this trade while I was in the middle of the Persian Gulf on deployment. I was the only person who cared or had even heard of Wayne Gretzky.

[@dociebiemowie915]

No one around you heard of Wayne Gretzky?? Lol

[@joesakic91]

The only massive fails the NHL had since the Wayne Gretzky trade were the Phoenix/Arizona Coyotes and the Atlanta Thrashers. The other current Sun Belt teams made at least one Stanley Cup Finals appearance.

[@JuliusC1973]

When they traded Paul Coffey away that was the signal that One of The Greatest Teams in The History of Professional Sports was being disassembled and all we could do was watch. If there had been a way to keep that Team intact, they might have won 10 Stanley Cups. This was a shock. It has to rank up there with The Boston Red Sox sending Babe Ruth to The New York Yankees.

[@dociebiemowie915]

They would have won 10. Hell.. Gretzky lead the Rangers deep into the playoffs when Messier was already a shell of himself.

[@austiningram6596]

Man, I remember seeing this documentary on the NHL network years ago. Does anyone know anywhere else these can be watched?

[@parkerbeard6170]

I was only a year old (13 Months) at this time. I didn't know the Business side to this until I got to college when I saw this Documentary on TV. Wayne mentioned he was going to be a Free Agent in a year, he was only making 2 or 300k a year. There were players with less talent and skills around the league getting paid more then he was. So with the Oilers struggling to afford Gretzky, I know why they made the Trade. After I saw this, I told my Dad that it looked like the Oilers were a Small Market team at the time. My Dad immediately replied and said, "They Still Are".

[@rogerred3855]

Man, this guy def loves hockey, it's no child play to step in durin his era and produce stats like him! He went in like I'll get killed!! And still ended up the greatest one ever!!

[@liammcguinty3625]

Gretzky WANTED to be traded. He wouldn't commit to re-signing in Edmonton, he didn't take Sather up on his offer to halt the trade, and he was in talks with LA's owner beforehand. But yes, let's please blame Pocklington.

[@dwaynegreene152]

LA thought they were gonna make noise in the following season so they threw money at Edm and they made the deal. Gretzky never won another cup :(

[@overdaedgebroadcasting2220]

Yea because of pay, Well the issue was pay and value.

[@FlowerGirl8]

Gretzky felt betrayed by Pocklington when he didn’t have the respect or decency to speak to Wayne first, prior to the trade call with LA. 99’s a man of principle - he was done with Peter wiener maker.

[@niechzyjepolska1805]

Wayne had to leave because Janet Bones was nailed by every Edmonton Oiler including the coaching staff and equipment manager

[@mikealvord55]

Like you know anything, you’re just spouting off at the hole, let’s see some evidence something on the record. Not some KZbin punk. News for you. Your wife wants you to move. You’re going to move.

[@dennis9707]

What else ya gonna do when in 2 years Edmonton couldn't afford Gretzky and financially Oilers would be in trouble. You gotta do what you gotta do hey. And be happy you ever had him. Oh and it was wonderful for L.A. hockey.

[@paulnguyen8910]

Yeah...even Las Vegas, NV!!! I was 17 and living in Houston, TX at the time. His marriage to Janet Jones was to blame for his trade. So by July next year, I moved to Southern California. That's our GOAT!

[@dollarrecordswithjosh795]

I'm still not sure how this is such an important moment in hockey history, other than an "untradeable" player was traded. Wayne never won another Cup, the Kings had to wait decades before they did, while Messier won two more. That to me is more remarkable than this transaction.

[@amazinmets8439]

It was big in the sense that it changed the NHL in terms of popularity on the west coast of the U.S. but you're right, in my mind, as a Rangers fan, the REAL big trade was when Messier went to the Rangers 2 years after the Gretzky deal. That was the real "ending" of the Oilers and the start of some great years in NY with Messier leading the team to it's first cup win in 54 years.

[@2minutelogic89]

Hmmm well...how many Stanley Cups have gone to a Canadian team other then Edmonton since the trade?

[@AlonsoRules]

the last Canadian team to win the Cup was Montreal in 1993

[@eyekantbeme]

@@AlonsoRules Against Gretzky and his newfound team in LA :) GKG

[@AlonsoRules]

@@eyekantbeme Wayne couldn't quite do it without the rest of 'em

[@edwu8253]

I remember this as if it were last week

[@markchristofferson5872]

Some days you remember where you were forever, on that day I was at a gas station in Kindersley SK on my way to Calgary.

[@jfedol7760]

Were u a flames fan or Oilers fan?

[@FlowerGirl8]

I was at work, watching on the small tv in the lunch room. Other employees came fast and furious until the re wasn’t any more room.

[@kidmack3556]

My girlfriend at the time told me. I was over to her apartment for the weekend and she returned from morning errands and broke the news... I was sure she was puttin' me on until I went home and turned on ESPN, and then a day or two later... There it was, all over the cover of The Hockey News. I'm never even been to Edmonton and I felt betrayed.

[@kidmack3556]

I've always wondered why Dave Taylor spent all those years in "Hollywood" and didn't make it into the movies. He has the perfect stature and countenance for being cast as an Irish gangster. I would've cast him in such films as "State Of Grace" "Miller's Crossing" and "Road To Perdition" etc.

[@DodgerFan1988]

I remembered the Sports Illustrated issue with Magic Johnson welcoming Wayne Gretzky.

[@adamdorgant9454]

DodgerFan1988 Yes, now that you mentioned it!!!

[@broadstreet21]

Johnson was the real Gretzky of basketball.

[@misguidedangel6550]

"GREAT MOVE GRETZKY" on the cover. Infamous cover. It was the first thing, other then a newspaper, that we had of GRETZKY in a Kings jersey in print

[@tiamatxvxianash9202]

Yes, what a day it was. I have in my scrapbook the newspaper photo of the effigy of Pocklington hanging from the freeway bridge in Edmonton with the attached poster board saying “Edmonton will never forget”; after the Oilers playoff elimination at the hands of the Kings in April 1989. Indeed they did not forget. The Gods of Hockey watched over the Oilers, culminating in their return to Stanley Cup glory in 1990. All Edmonton loyalists and I; like all hockey fans regardless of team allegiance, rejoiced at this vindicating moment of divine justice in hockey history.

[@christiancee6333]

So Los Angeles at that time had the LA Kings, LA Lakers, Clippers, LA Dodgers, LA Raiders, LA Rams, USC Trojans, UCLA Bruins. LA Angels. Man that's crazy

[@devilsadvocacy]

And, after losing the Rams and Raiders in the 90s, it now has the Rams and Chargers, plus the Anaheim Ducks 30 miles away (the Angels play next door to the Ducks), and the LA Galaxy and LAFC of Major League Soccer. It's crowded to say the least

[@ricardospaniard9050]

This indeed changed hockey in north america for the better in the long run when wayne went to la hockey viewership in the south soared and i believe all southern expansions and relocations were due in large part to this deal

[@psychicoutlawchanel7430]

Greatest. Human Athlete. Ever. Greatest human bc no horse will ever beat the legend that was Secretariat. And the NHL went on to rob the LA Kings of the Stanley Cup they so deserved, like a punishment, so unfair. Thx for this!

[@u2ooby]

Best thing that could have happened to the NHL as a league. It finally broke up the last true dynasty and allowed for other teams to win the cup.

[@Tyrunner0097]

I agree with the first sentence. It really took the NHL from a league really only popular in Canada and the United States east of the Mississippi and north of the Dixon line, to now a league that's popular throughout most of North America.

[@amazinmets8439]

As a Rangers fan I can say without hesitation that there is no player I would have wanted more back in 1992 than Mark Messier. No disrespect to Gretzky, but if the Rangers got Gretzky in 1992 instead of Messier, I don't think the Rangers win their cup in 1994. Messier to me was always the key piece to those Oilers teams along with the '94 Rangers.

[@strannick2212]

Kurri Coffey won the next cup. Mess was just a cheap shotting punk goon

[@nameless_no_name]

how many NHL records does that dink Messier have? (I'm saying this regardless of him being a Canuck) Messier has none as far as I know. Last I looked, Gretz had 66 records (strangely the inverse of 99)

[@broadstreet21]

For starters, if it were Gretzky instead of Messier on the Rangers, there'd be no guarantee - because New York would have beaten New Jersey in six games, then Vancouver in five. And you'd defend the title in 1995. Gretzky wasn't as much of a force of personality like Messier - he's quieter, more like Joe Sakic, only better. Rangers would have broken all sorts of offensive records back then.

[@dociebiemowie915]

Messier was a great cheap shot artist.. you’re definitely right in that account. Gretzky would have easily won a cup with the Rangers in the early 90s. He was putting up much better numbers than Mess.

[@broadstreet21]

5:07 - Glen Sather, I thought, should have resigned. Sather was the GM, meaning it was his job to handle trades on Pocklington's behalf. Pocklington undermined his subordinate, making a decision that he probably disagreed with.

[@devilsadvocacy]

It was not unlike the trades that brought Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, and Shaquille O’Neal to the Lakers. All, including the Gretzky deal, were inexplicable until you found out they were going to Los Angeles

[@ace942]

I wonder how many more cups would have been won by the Oilers if Gretzky was never traded. The team did win one more cup after he was traded by how many more would have been won.

[@terskatti4994]

i think with even half decent new young players coming in, edmontons core players could've competed at highest level at least until 1994. Rangers cup team had a lot of ex oilers playing for them.

[@broadstreet21]

The answer is just one more Cup, in 1989, and then Gretzky would have left in free agency. With no Martin Gelinas, Adam Graves, and Joe Murphy returning in a trade, the Oilers don't win the Stanley Cup in 1990. Depending on how things unfold without the fifteen million the Kings paid for Gretzky, the Oilers may be forced to fold or relocated.

[@broadstreet21]

The answer is just one, in 1989 - and then Gretzky would have left in free agency, and then the Oilers would have folded.

[@MV-os3xv]

Hypothetically if Wayne would of stayed in Edmonton, they could of realistically won 3 to 4 more cups with the team they had. Thats no joke.

[@maxrcrypto]

Bravo! *applause

[@dumisatonyjohnson8145]

Gretzky-Best NHL player to ever play the sport 🏒 20 years 4x Stanley Cup champion 9x MVP Most points goals and assists in history No one else is able to come close to the "Great One" ☝️ Gretzky=Great One ☝️

[@HeyWatchMeGo]

Glen Sather's right. When you read between the lines, there's a lot of things wrong about the Trade/and no one will come right out and say it, BUT they're saying it... you just need to listen. Sad day for Edmonton, the Oilers, and Wayne.

[@gwnsystems]

Philly Flyers in Cooperalls at 9:46

[@broadstreet21]

A similar circumstance happened in Pittsburgh - the Penguins were on the rocks financially, but unlike the Oilers, they did not trade Lemieux. The trade would have allowed the owners to retain the Penguins, and repay the debts. We know what happened instead. Lemieux differed the money owed him, but instead turned around to buy the team. Could Gretzky have done the same for Edmonton?

[@canuckereh9202]

Yes he could have. Both Lemieux and Yzerman did just that. Gretzky knew about this trade well beforehand.

[@kidmack3556]

@@canuckereh9202 Yes, I agree Gretzky and his ego had been worked on by McNall, and probably McCall's attorney at the time, Gary Bettman, with Janet Jones doubling as their "straight man" for about a year, starting in the off season between 1987 and 1988, and every time the Oilers were in Los Angeles. Gretzky never had a chance...

[@GameShowMike]

The difference was that Mario Lemieux converted that deferred salary into equity that allowed him and Ron Burkle to purchase the Penguins.

[@keenanrayne9170]

*Jimmy Carson* Im Happy Here *Also Jimmy Carson* Demands A Trade

[@LanceSolo72]

Who were the 3 first round draft picks, anyone?

[@Mark-xl1ze]

35 years ago, today.

[@americangiant1003]

Other than the 1980 Miracle on Ice US Hockey Team, the most important in American Hockey History. Without this trade, there no teams in the Sun Belt i.e. San Jose, Dallas, Tampa, Nashville, etc. From a purely hockey point of view, this trade sucks and prevented Gretzky and Messier from winning maybe another 4-5 more cups. However from a business end this is brilliant and a reason the NHL is now a multi billion dollar biz.

[@111highgh]

+AmericanGiant100 Nashville should re-locate to Hamilton, Ontario, and one of the other teams that you mentioned should move to Quebec City.

[@americangiant1003]

+111highgh Actually Tampa (was in top 10 in attendance at halfway of 2015-16)season. is doing well. With their population growth and many so called "snowbirds" from Eastern US And Canada, Fla. getting 1 team was a no brainer. And Dallas had sellouts during the late ;90 and ;early 2000's and will support a contender. Problem was Bettman put way too many teams in the Sunbelt. I am surprised places like Seattle, Salt Lake City, etc in more colder US cities would made more sense. Sorry South Fla. And Arizona;fans but I think the Panthers and or Coyotes is best choice to move to say Quebec City or Southern Ontario..

[@aboriginalbrotha9947]

111highgh Sorry, Hamilton will never get an NHL because the Sabres and Leafs own territory rights to the market, plus it too close to Buffalo and Toronto. They will do anything to keep a team from coming to Hamilton. Why the city lost out in the 1990 expansion? Because the Sabres and Leafs don't want a team in their territory. Same reason why the Pens, Preds, and Yotes didn't relocate to the city.

[@111highgh]

Da Undaground Mane That is absolutely true. You are awesome.

[@keving4408]

Why on earth would Nashville relocate? Have you seen the immense fan support that they receive? The Preds are thriving. One of the best fan bases in hockey

[@FlowerGirl8]

Whatever happened to Molson House?

[@nicoletai7866]

LOVEEEEEE UUUUUUU STAAACHEEE!!!! With love Nicole

[@Kissology3]

The day he got traded it killed the NHL forever. It was as bad as someone getting murdered. You just don't trade your champion. Without him they did nothing since in Edmonton. Only one cup. Now you don't see a player stay with a team more than 4 years. It's wrong. And it's all cause of this trade that started it all.

[@Jladd365100]

Kissology3 We won the cup without Gretzky in 1990 and we went to a cup final in 2006 I pretty sure thats not nothing.

[@mikemaclean6704]

Not even close to someone getting killed give ur head a fckn shake

[@pomerlain8924]

If they don't trade Wayne, he's going to become a UFA at the end of the 88-89 season, and he would have walked. He would have been 28, in the prime of his career, and commanding a huge payday that Pocklington just could not afford.

[@PatFrenchLeafsFan1]

Many fans compared it to would've been sad moments like Cheers without Sam Malone as its protagonist or the day Elvis was found dead in his home.

[@GameShowMike]

Or Wheel of Fortune without Vanna White…

[@Truck6000]

Who is this person at 14:07?

[@tml4437]

Watch McDavid's gonna get traded

[@terskatti4994]

and it will happen this year, exatly 30 years after Gretzky trade.

[@TruckerLerone]

To Vegas lol

[@nolanbrown4015]

Lerone Williams Screw that😂

[@danyheatleyall-star3677]

Lerone Williams to Ottawa

[@connormcguire1924]

McDavid isn't going anywhere

[@joshuaguste6883]

I have to ask Edmonton fans; how much more in the tank would you have had if he stayed? The development of talent behind the main group in the dynasty years was almost nonexistent after the pillars were gone.

[@JoeyArmstrong2800]

I agree completely. It was a financial decision that was made at the right time as far as I'm concerned.

[@joshuaguste6883]

@@JoeyArmstrong2800 Plus it grew the game to the southern part of the US and probably ranks among the best decisions from an economical standpoint.

[@JoeyArmstrong2800]

@@joshuaguste6883 Exactly. The whole league benefitted financially in the long run. Building hockey markets where there wasn't any before. It really sucked from a fans point of view though but 1990 was validation of how good the Edmonton Oilers really were.

[@joshuaguste6883]

@@JoeyArmstrong2800 it’s still amazing how fans didn’t completely get over this.

[@joer8854]

Just for accuracy the only teams that still exist that have been in the NHL since the beginning are Toronto and Montreal. All other teams came later that still exist. The Ottawa Senators were one but not the current Senators.

[@moabt.frican7163]

That video of gretzky crying about the trade to the kings to the press will always make me cringe, because when hes crying he wipes his nose with a tissue and then his eyes. Ugh

[@nickeh8083]

EsaTikkanen. Loved that kidd.

[@letigidou2052]

I really liked that rare at the time sparkling new silver easton stick. I'd always suit up in black and white and had got myself that stick* at Canadian Tire. Didn't take long before it became a best seller lol. *The run of the mill 30 dollar version. Pretty sure Wayne used better materials.

[@111highgh]

+Le Tigidou That LA Kings jersey was a beast of burden, meaning, it was an awesome jersey.

[@chvzrvnn]

That color change and the new jersey, were very hot items that Autumn. I saw them, and Gretzky in a preseason game against the Red Wings. One of my friends had one of the King's new three color windbreakers, that were only sold in The Hockey News. I had to admit they were NICE! They were white shoulder yoke and arms, light grey upper midriff, and black down to the bottom hem.

[@Lawomenshoops]

If you were a Kings fan in the early to mid 80's you hated Gretzky! You suffered through George McGuire trading #1 picks for washed up veterans- Jerry Korab and Rick Martin! The story goes when the Kings picked up Martin at LAX, they were shocked to see him walking with a cane! Or blew #1 picks on guys like Doug Smith and Craig Donothingson. So you loved the Miracle on Manchester and beating those damn Oilers. Personally I hated this trade because my favorite player on the Kings was Jimmy Carson-who was coming off a 50 goal, 100 point season! But the Oilers ship started to have holes the year before, when Paul Coffey was traded after a contract dispute! Within 2-4 years of this trade, most of the star players were traded away- Kurri, Messier, Fuhr, and Glenn Anderson.

[@heinz-haraldfrentzen1261]

Was a shame, if Poklington could have kept all of that team (Gretzky, Messier, Anderson, Lowe, etc) that team would have won 10 cups.

[@remypereira3096]

Who they got out of the deal and how long did they stay in Edmonton

[@NYFanatic]

Remy Pereira Wayne Gretzky, Marty McSorley and Mike Kruzyelenski to the LA Kings for Jimmy Carson, Martin Gelinas, three first round picks in 89, 91, and 93 and $15,000,000 to cover growing expenses. This trade was the worst trade because the three first round picks they got in return were used on busts.

[@mikealvord55]

If this doesn’t show you that it’s a business, nothing will

[@broadstreet21]

On another note, Pocklington overstepped his authority by usurping his GM, who should be the one making the decisions on who stays and who gets traded.

[@newtoncountry5937]

Pocklington was the owner and the GM's boss, so there was no usurpation. The owner has final authority on all personnel moves because he writes the checks.

[@broadstreet21]

@@newtoncountry5937 The owner has final authority, yes. But there's something called usurping your subordinate, who you'd delegated with responsibility for running your team. It's a relationship of honour and trust. You do have power to do that - but if you do it, you've broken trust. It's bad business. Sather ought to have resigned in protest - and no competent GM would lower themselves to take the job. Without Sather, the Oilers are done as a hockey team.

[@kidmack1121]

There's definitely something more to the story. And never ever forget the "marked" card in the deck; Gary Bettman was McNall's attorney.

[@KJaswal]

I think it's pretty obvious that the reason Gretzky was traded was to popularize the game in the US it was the NHL that made this happen to make the game grow in the US that's why there are 3 teams in Cali and Panthers and Lightning Stars and Coyotes.

[@johnnyballenatl]

KJSingh97 Except for the New York Islanders’ dynasty in the early ‘80s, hockey in the U.S. had very little interest compared to the NFL, NBA, and MLB. The Gretzky trade would change everything.

[@godhere6459]

all about the money

[@GameShowMike]

Don’t forget the Nashville Predators and the Vegas Golden Knights…

[@user-sj7fo1qw1c]

I think this trade had more to do with Janet than with any economic or team building decision.

[@sleezyastheocean]

4:45 thats a man w/ a broken heart.

[@kidmack3556]

That's guilt...

[@eyesofnight]

If he hadn’t been traded, would Calgary even have a Stanley cup?

[@jfedol7760]

Nope, I strongly believe that the oilers would've won 7 cups in a row if they didn't sell gretzky. From 87 to 93 and maybe 94, leaving them in total with 9-10 cups

[@paulnguyen8910]

Lanny McDonald sure did the next year. His Flames did take the crown from Gretzky's Kings in a 4-game sweep, burned feathers off Blackhawks for the Campbell Bowl, and buried the Canadiens for the title. Well, it ironically would've been another story if Edmonton had kept Gretzky.

[@pomerlain8924]

@@jfedol7760 They would have won one more in 1989. Wayne was going to be an unrestricted after 89, and being the best player on the planet, he was going to be leaving, as Edmonton wouldn't have been able to afford the high price he would have commanded.

[@111highgh]

August 9th, 1988.

[@elijahromero9191]

This was the worst trade I ever heard of in all of North American professional sports

[@jasonvoorheesthethird]

Raptors 101 well the Patrick Roy trade was much much worst imo...it literally destroyed the Montreal Canadiens for over a decade! He was trade during the 1995-96 season, and the team really started to recover from it around 2010

[@TheShermPerm]

They say that about Kobe in Basketball

[@vinewood8295]

Kobe was traded before he had done anything, you think he'd have had the same success in Charlotte?

[@MrT8599]

Also Babe Ruth

[@timothyng3226]

The canadeins destroyed their franchise again by trading pk subban

[@cocamustang]

Pocklington killed the oilers, cursed to this day.

[@666mathew]

Oilers won the Stanley Cup in 1990, and went to the finals in 2006. It's been a curse after that though as they've missed the playoffs every season since.

[@ADKubi]

666mathew That's true, they did win the Cup in 1990. And beat Gretzky's Kings in the playoffs along the way! I think if there's a curse right now, it's the curse of Pronger.

[@landrykkb]

+ADKubi Not to mention that they also beat Gretzky's Kings the following 2 seasons after that Cup win as well.Keep in mind also prior to the 1991-92 season that the Oilers had been after dismantling a lot of their other key dynasty players such as Messier,Anderson,Fuhr,etc.,yet still pulled off a second consecutive appearance in what was then called the Campbell Conference.

[@brienneoffuckingtarth5362]

I'd say trading Gretzky was the beginning of the end for the great Edmonton Oilers of that era. Sure, they won the cup in 1990 after a mindblowing performance from Bill Ranford but they slowly declined a bit each year and went to shit totally after the 1991-1992 season. Trading Messier was the final nail in the coffin.

[@Fnargl99]

the hockey god have sent their son Mcjesus

[@richcerasale8909]

if the great one doesn't go to la then the nhl isn't in san jose, anaheim, dallas, phoneix, las vegas, raleigh, nashville, tampa or miami

[@niechzyjepolska1805]

Wayne had to leave because Janet Bones was nailed by every Edmonton Oiler including the coaching staff and equipment manager

[@michaelleroy9281]

He didn't have to wear the purple 🟣 and gold the Kings changed to Black and Silver right before the trade

[@RonnyUniverse]

on the show "a kings ransom" Gretz says he thought if he stayed in edmonton they would have won 4 or 5 more Stanley cups. he says he thinks about it every day

[@landrykkb]

+RonnyUniverse It's very hard to argue with The Great One on that statement.The fact still remains,however,that the Oilers did win 1 Stanley Cup without him while Wayne Gretzky would never win another one with the L.A. Kings,and don't forget his brief stint in St.Louis prior to his 3 years with the NY Rangers either.

[@batoolabbasi2746]

+John W Landry he would have had it not been for "the stick"

[@landrykkb]

Batool Abbasi Or Jacques Demers' clever strategy.

[@dr.loomis4221]

As a Ducks fan....there would be no Ducks if Wayne didn't come to LA.

[@BadstreetMI]

Sather is right. That deal sucked on Edmonton's end. I get that they wanted futures, but three first rounders isn't enough for the greatest player in the league in his prime, plus a top three heavyweight in an era that that meant something and another solid player. Six first rounders maybe.

[@unkonwunknow5803]

i still rember it the day a player changed the game....1967 bobby orr