(The series continues of my personal stories of Wayne Gretzky. I met Wayne in July 1979 — the same month I started writing for The Edmonton Journal.)
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| Wayne announcing he was leaving the Edmonton Oilers Aug. 9, 1988 |
When the Oilers won their fourth
Stanley Cup in May of 1988, Oiler coach and GM Glen Sather told CBC Hockey
Night in Canada the team would change 15 per cent over the summer. Never did I
think Wayne would be included in that change. I was covering a story at the
Youth Emergency Shelter — a safe haven for teenagers who find themselves
without a home — when radio reports were saying Wayne was being traded to the
Los Angeles Kings that afternoon, Aug. 8, 1988. I didn’t believe them. But when
I watched the supper hour news that night, and saw the press conference, I was
sad to see a friend leaving Edmonton.
Wayne’s first time back as a member of
the Los Angeles Kings in Edmonton that October was a circus. I went to the morning skate and
to the game and remember feeling sorry for him. Not only did he have people wanting to see him but he was
now on playing for the other guys, and was in an uncomfortable
situation.
I was glad to be there.
But didn’t like the circumstance.
A month later I was
going through a personal heartache when the woman I was dating had met someone
else. My childhood friend Barth Bradley and I had lunch and I told him how
rotten I was feeling.
“Why don’t we go to Los
Angeles for a weekend and go to a hockey game and say hello to Wayne?” Barth
suggested over post-lunch coffee.
I was in. A change of
scenery, a hockey game and good friends and a few laughs.
Barth and I went down to
Los Angeles in February of 1989 and stayed in Manhattan Beach with my good
friend Les Hayes. We went to the Kings’ morning skate and had a great visit
with Wayne and Peter Millar, the long-time Oiler trainer who went to the Kings
when his contract was up in Edmonton.
Wayne gave us the address of the store
that sold the Kings’ merchandise and said we would be more than welcome. When we
arrived, the clerk behind the desk recognized us. “You must be Wayne’s friends
from Edmonton,” he said. “Wayne told me you were coming.”
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| Retired L.A. King trainer Peter Millar |
Barth bought things for
his kids, all in black and silver with the Kings logo on it. I did the same for
my nieces and nephews. When we went to pay for everything we were shocked at
how little the bill once.
“I think we paid about
10 cents on the dollar. And Wayne was the guy that made that happen,” Barth
said.
WE WENT TO the game that
night and, for Les was his first hockey game. It was very rewarding to see
people in southern California learning the game and falling in love with
hockey.
After the game Barth and I got into the
Kings’ dressing room. They had beaten the Buffalo Sabers 5-3 and the dressing
room turned into a party with some recognizable faces from the Los Angeles
area. Wayne introduced us to actors Kurt Russell, Goldie Hawn, golfer Craig
Stradler and syndicated radio host Rick Dees.
Wayne offered Barth and I a beer. We
gratefully accepted, but didn’t have a straw. Wayne got up from his stall,
walked away from the reporters waiting to interview him and went all over the
Kings’ dressing room looking for a straw. He returned with two straws in his
hand.
“I looked all over for
these,” he said.
“I know. I am pretty
thirsty by now,” I said.
Barth and I made a few
more trips to Los Angeles in the winter to see Wayne and the Kings play. He
always shared his time for us and made sure we had a few special treats during
our stay.
We were at the morning
skate the Kings had at the Great Western Forum one trip.
On his way out of the
rink, Wayne and I had a short visit before I asked him to sign a book. It was a
book written by legendary Vancouver sportswriter Jim Taylor and Wayne’s father
Walter. Wayne took his time writing something on the first page of the book,
and it’s something I will always treasure. He wrote: “To Cam. Thanks for all
the fun times. Your friend, Wayne.”
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| The book written by Jim Taylor and Wayne's dad Walter |
THE LAST TIME I saw
Wayne play for the Kings in L.A. Was in the spring of 1995. I mentioned to Wayne I was trying my
luck at live comedy before he went into the back of the dressing room.
“Give me a minute. Don’t
go away,” he said.
He came back and said he
called a friend of his at The Comedy Store in West Hollywood. I had five
minutes to perform that night, if I wanted it. I did, and it was an experience
I will never forget.
Wayne is extremely kind.
We had not been in contact for a while and then, just before Christmas of 1998,
he sent his new picture book special delivery to our home. “To Cam, Merry
Christmas. In Friendship, Wayne.”
Before he officially retired as a New
York Ranger in 1999, he was with the team when they played the Oilers in
Edmonton. I was at the Ranger practice the day before the game and saw Wayne
with extra sticks and jerseys he had packed with him. He took as much time as
needed to sign them and made sure they
got to the people he wanted to say thank you to.
COMING TUESDAY: An unforgettable phone call
