One of the greatest lessons Gretzky said he learned from his late father was to do everything – no matter how inconsequential – as if it were the Stanley Cup playoffs. "That's the biggest lesson he taught us, is if you love something, and you work hard, good things are going to pay off. His two sons, Trevor and Ty, were there when Cowan visited. Their vacation home in Idaho has just about everything – a beautiful view, and a double water slide that is ostensibly there for their visiting kids and grandkids. Gretzky drove his dad to his last game, just as his dad has driven him to his first. For 20 seasons, number 99 thrilled fans, until he finally retired in 1999. Gretzky helped grow the sport, even in places that hadn't seen ice since the Ice Age. Gretzky himself was in tears.īut the skill and determination his dad taught him followed him to Los Angeles, where he truly became a king. Canada practically went into national mourning. His dad was there through his entire career, including the tough moments, like when the Edmonton Oilers traded Gretzky away, in 1988. He was Canada's Hockey Dad, and when Wayne lost him this year to Parkinson's at the age of 82, there was a hole that was pretty hard to fill: "Money didn't really matter to him friendships did. "He taught me so much more than just being a hockey player." He started figuring that out on an ice rink in his backyard in Brantford, Ontario, one his father, Walter Gretzky, built for him. I was always the smallest guy, right? So, I had to figure out a way to be able to be more successful than those bigger, stronger, faster guys." "Well, I played to my strength," Gretzky said. I mean, some people say that's what makes you even more of an athlete." Wayne Gretzky. "Yeah, you just were! Which is remarkable.
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