THE GREAT ONE RETIRES / Huge Loss and a Celebration / Teammates
Darren Langdon surrounded his locker stall with three Wayne Gretzky
sticks, an autographed No. 99 jersey and a few pucks. "This is only
today's work," he said. "I got things signed by everybody. They call me
a weasel." The booty will end up on the wall at his bar, "Langer's," in
Deer Lake, Newfoundland, which is about as far from the New York
limelight as you can get.
They know Gretzky in Deer Lake, a town with one movie theater that
has closed. If there is one satellite dish, it will be tuned into
Madison Square Garden today, when The Great One says his final farewell
to hockey. In Philadelphia, Denver and Los Angeles, arena scoreboards
are carrying the pregame ceremonies.
"I'm nervous," Gretzky said. "It's going to be a wonderful day. I was
telling the young guys that it's something for them to remember. This is
what it's like to get to the Stanley Cup Finals. This kind of mass media
is wonderful. This is how exciting it can be. For guys like Manny
[Malhotra] and [Dan] Cloutier and [Marc] Savard, this is something that
will benefit them and the New York Rangers down the road."
Only Gretzky would think of how his big day affects everyone else.
He repeatedly has said how much he will miss his teammates, that he most
cherishes those 10 private minutes in the locker room before a game,
when 20 men dressed in red, white and blue are the only people in the
universe.
Yesterday, after his last practice at Rye Playland, Gretzky's
teammates banged the ice with their sticks and circled around him. Then
Gretzky gathered all the Rangers - players, trainers, equipment men,
the public relations representative and staff masseur - for a team
photo. Gretzky knelt in the middle, smiling. Langdon, the team enforcer,
and defenseman Rumun Ndur jostled to be near him.
"This is the happiest he's been all year," Kevin Stevens said. "It's
a lot of heat off him."
Signs of adoration littered the locker room. In Gretzky's stall lay a
bouquet of carnations and two homemade collages from fans. Just after a
media briefing, 11-year-old Jennifer Russo of Rye and 10-year-old Amy
Ferraro of Purchase, members of the Rye Synchronized Skating Team,
muscled their way through towering photographers to hand Gretzky a
half-dozen white roses. "I've met other stars . . . ," said Jennifer,
"but he's the biggest one," finished Amy.
Don't, however, expect his No. 99 jersey to be raised to the rafters
this afternoon: Gretzky told the Rangers he would not have his number
retired before Mark Messier's No. 11. Messier is expected to attend
today's ceremony.
Gretzky's accomplishments in New York cannot rival those of his
previous incarnations in Edmonton and Los Angeles, but they will remain
indelible parts of post-Stanley Cup Rangers history. He recalled April
23, 1997, as the most memorable day, when he scored a second-period
natural hat trick in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference quarterfinals to
beat the Florida Panthers.
On Oct. 26, 1997, Gretzky's 1,851st assist passed Gordie Howe's
all-time points total. And a five-assist effort against the Nashville
Predators on Feb. 15 of this year earned Gretzky 1,000 more points than
Howe. Gretzky's 1,072nd goal, the most in professional hockey (NHL and
WHA), happened to be the winner against the Islanders on March 29.
"I would love to score [today]," he said, "but if I get a hat trick
I'm not going to change my mind."
Adding to the record books these past three seasons was nice, but
more than anything, Gretzky fell in love with becoming a New Yorker. He
drops off his children, Ty, Trevor and Paulina, at school in Manhattan
when he's not traveling.
"Just being a Ranger and playing in this city, walking around . . .
," he said. "People love hockey here. It's a great place to play."
Security in and around the Garden will be beefed up slightly today,
but there will be no police in riot gear. It's just not Gretzky's style.
"This is a joyful crowd," said Garden security chief Dennis Ryan.
"It's more a bunch of people wanting to touch the guy."
The way he has touched them.
The Great One's Greatest Hits
Game 7 Hat Trick vs. Toronto Maple Leafs -- (May 29, 1993) Gretzky said
Maple Leaf Gardens is his favorite place to play on the road, much to
the chagrin of Leafs fans. In the last game of the conference finals,
Gretzky scored his NHL-record eighth hat trick to beat Toronto, 4-3, and
lead the Kings to their first (and so far, only) Stanley Cup final
series. Gretzky had scored the overtime winner in Game 6 to force Game 7
in Toronto.
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