“He Knows the Game Very Well”: Wayne Gretzky Was Left in Awe of Justin Bieber’s Ice Hockey Skills While Coaching Him During NHL All-Star Game in 2017

Wayne Gretzky is to Ice Hockey what Tony Hawk is to skateboarding. The Canadian legend is a former professional ice hockey player and coach. He played 20 seasons of the National Hockey League (NHL) and was also a coach from 2005-2009. However, he returned as a coach in 2017 for the NHL All-Stars championship, where he guided a group of celebrities.

Out of this group of celebrities, one was popstar Justin Bieber. In fact, Gretzky had also been training the Metropolitan Division team for the All-Stars game. The administration hired the legend after Colombus coach John Tortorella left.

When JB impressed Wayne Gretzky

While guiding the group of celebrities and former players against a similar team, the coach could not help but notice the pop star’s prowess. In an interview during the game, Gretzky confessed that he was quite impressed by the singer’s skills. He appreciated Bieber’s presence in the game and had initially even assured him not to worry too much.

Justin Bieber grew up playing ice hockey. His experience came in handy as he tried his best to shuffle the puck. Praising the ‘Sorry’ singer, Gretzky talked about his gameplay so far.

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He exclaimed, “you know he grew up playing ice hockey so you can tell he’s got some ability. He can skate and he knows the game very well”. While the singer still trained to be on par with the professionals, he did fairly well. Gretzky appreciated Bieber’s gesture of donating his time to the cause. He believed that the singer’s presence would influence the youth.

The NHL All-Stars Hockey game is an exhibition event that unites legendary and celebrity players. The 2017 edition also benefitted a charity. One of the key moments of the match was the singer being smashed up against the boards after veteran Chris Pronger dashed into him. Nevertheless, Bieber managed to evoke smiles that day. Later, Gretzky also gifted the pop star a jersey with his name on it during his concert.

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Guess all’s well that ends well. How do you think Bieber performed in the game?