Edmonton Oilers Legacy - Peter Pocklington

Former Edmonton Oilers owner Peter Pocklington is remembered most for acquiring and eventually trading Wayne Gretzky, who is widely considered the best hockey player in history.

While Pocklington oversaw the Oilers’ successful transition from the World Hockey Association (WHA) to the National Hockey League (NHL) in 1979-80, his lasting legacy as owner of the Oilers is dealing Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings on August 9, 1988.

That was the day Oilers fans learned that no one--not even the cornerstone of their dynasty–was untouchable.

On his 18th birthday, Gretzky signed a 21-year personal services contract with Pocklington on January 26, 1979. At the time, the deal, said to be worth between $4 and $5 million, was the longest player agreement in hockey history.

Earlier that season, in November 1978, Pocklington announced the acquisition of three players from Nelson Skalbania, who owned the Indianapolis Racers.

The trio–which included goaltender Eddie Mio, forward Peter Driscoll and the 17-year-old Gretzky–came to Pocklington’s Oilers for $700,00 and future considerations. The announced price for the players was $850,000. In any case, money didn’t seem to matter as the owner flew his new players to Edmonton in his own personal Learjet.

There were mixed opinions about Gretzky’s decision to sign a contract that would make him Pocklington’s property through the 1998-99 season. Gretzky’s father, Walter, advised his son to make the commitment.

Walter could see that his son liked Edmonton. The elder Gretzky also knew the contract would be good security in the event of an injury.

he only hitch attached to the contract was a 10-year renegotiation clause. Regardless, Pocklington capitalized on the advantages of the WHA.

"The WHA had become a rival of the NHL," wrote Rick Carpiniello in Messier. "For seven seasons, it had signed as many of the NHL’s players as possible, often by luring them with huge contracts. But there was a more subtle form of raiding going on. The NHL did not allow players under the age of 18 to be drafted. The WHA had no age limits."

Sale of the Century

Although the WHA would fold after the 1978-79 season, the Oilers were one of four teams absorbed by the NHL. On April 9, 1979, with the Oilers still in the WHA playoffs, fans started lining up at 4:30 in the morning outside Northlands Coliseum for NHL season tickets that were set to go on sale at 9 a.m.

More than 1,000 WHA season ticket-holders waited for the doors to open, eagerly awaiting the chance to see their team in the NHL that fall. Pocklington’s Oilers would sell over $5 million in season tickets before they even played a game.

In addition, Pocklington’s Edmonton Drillers of the North American Soccer League were faring well at the gate. Pocklington would eventually own the Pacific Coast League’s Edmonton Trappers Class AAA Baseball Club.

Still, "Peter Puck" was first and foremost the owner of Edmonton’s NHL team. When that team became a dynasty, several players were thought to be virtually untouchable.

The Oilers won five Stanley Cups during Pocklington’s reign. The last Cup, won in 1990, would be without Gretzky.

On August 10, 1988, the Edmonton Sun’s front-page headline read "99 TEARS!" The Sun devoted over 20 pages to Pocklington’s decision to sell/trade Gretzky to Los Angeles Kings owner Bruce McNall for $15 million USD ($18 million CDN). The newspaper’s front page featured a teary-eyed picture of Gretzky at the press conference where the deal was announced.

The 21-year contract Gretzky signed on his 18th birthday in 1979 was wiped out. Less than a month before that historic day in 1988, Edmonton’s version of the Royal Wedding unfolded, when Gretzky married Hollywood star Janet Jones.

It initially appeared the couple would settle in Edmonton until rumours in early August hinted that Gretzky would be sold to the Kings. Oilers general manager Glen Sather vehemently denied the rumours.

Just a few days later, though, what sounded like fiction became fact. Gretzky was no longer an Edmonton Oiler.

"The emotions we’re dealing with here are not unlike those of a death in the family," wrote Terry Jones in the Edmonton Sun. "Wayne Gretzky was our mark on the map. This morning our city can only be in a state of mourning…This, arguably, is the biggest deal in the history of professional sport," Jones added, referring to the deal as the "sale of the century."

Pocklington and McNall also included several players in the transaction. Marty McSorley and Mike Krushelnyski went to L.A. with Gretzky, while Jimmy Carson and Martin Gelinas came to Edmonton. The Oilers also received draft picks.

Shortly after the "sale of the century," Pocklington said on the record that he didn’t think Gretzky’s tears at the press conference were real. Pocklington was also quoted in The Edmonton Journal as saying Gretzky had "an ego the size of Manhattan."