This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 5/18/2014
After a one-year flirtation with the World Hockey Association (WHA), Wayne Gretzky landed with the Edmonton Oilers in 1979 where he quickly began establishing scoring records at a dizzying pace and led his team to four Stanley Cup championships. Starting with his second year with Edmonton, he would put up scoring totals of 164, 212, 196, 205, 208, 215 and 183, a seven year span unmatched and largely unimagined. Presented here is one of a group of nine Gretzky game pucks, dating from the transcendent early years of Gretzky’s career, acquired by John Hamilton directly from Glen Sather, President and GM of the Edmonton Oilers. Each puck was utilized to achieve a different milestone or record in Gretzky’s then young career.
The National Hockey League's transcendent young star Wayne Gretzky was breaking records at an unimaginable pace in the winter of 1983-84, only his fifth season in the NHL but already clearly establishing himself as likely the greatest to ever play the game. So much so that hung that fairly unambiguous nickname on him: The Great One. One this date he logged an assist in his 17th consecutive game; by the time he retired with a boatload of records tucked away, the record would be 23, still all his own.
This puck then celebrates that historic moment, the Jan. 9, 1984 contest vs. Minnesota with Assist No. 17 in the first period. The puck shows game use and has been wrapped with trainer's tape that was affixed following the contest to include notations of game, time, place, etc. The artifact is in fine condition and without issue, with the hand writing by the trainer still legible. Includes a 3-by- 1/2-inch plastic nameplate with gold finish engraved with the date, score and description.
Includes a copy of a Letter of Authenticity signed by Glen Sather, President and GM of the Edmonton Oilers, along with a Letter of Provenance from The Newport Sports Museum.