“Real Negative Image to the Sport”: Wayne Gretzky Once Appealed to Eliminate an Infamous Hockey Tradition to Increase Popularity in the United States

Some of the records of Wayne Gretzky in the NHL are yet to be broken. His magnificent 20-year NHL career has shaped the sport a lot. The legend also addresses a serious issue that the sport still has and is trying to improve in that specific area.

Back in 2017, in an interview with Esquire, Wayne Gretzky talked about the issue of getting physical in the sport. He directly points out the fights that commonly occur in the ice rink due to the heat of the game.

Wayne Gretzky candidly speaks about the issue

The Great One observed a lot of moments like this during his prime. He also knows why this issue is common, but it needs to be gotten rid of as soon as possible, as it can damage the reputation the sport has.

“In ’88, when I was traded to L.A., we would do clinics and go to high schools and youth rinks, and try to expand the game. But I found out really quickly that there was a real negative image to the sport of hockey in the United States, especially the southwest—that it was a hooligan sport. So my suggestion was, maybe the way that we change the perception in this country was eliminating fighting. I understand why it hasn’t been taken out since,” Gretzky says in the interview with Esquire. 

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In his country, Canada, the sport had a different reputation, which he was astonished to learn when he came to the US. In the United States, he observes how the sport has a pretty bad reputation because it gets pretty physical in the ice rink. This led him to leave a suggestion. He suggested completely removing the fighting that is involved in the sport by issuing heavy penalties. As per the Great One, strict rules are the only solution for this situation.

A similar experience of the Great One

It’s not like the Great One was a pure saint on the ice rink. Sometimes he also did get heated up in some situations that led to disaster. In a game between the Edmonton Oilers and the Minnesota North Stars on December 22, 1982, a fight broke out between him and Neal Broten.

The fight was nothing special, as linemen came to stop Gretzky and Broten from getting really physical. This is the only time the Great One received a major fighting penalty in the NHL.

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What do you think of the Great One speaking of one of the biggest issues in the NHL? Let us know in the comment section.