Sportsman of the Year


 

  Just look at him," Bobby Hull says, grinning in admiration. "The puck is glued to him. On the two teams, taking nothing away from the rest of the guys, who in the hell else out there do you want to look at but Gretzky?"

Photograph by Brian Lanker
Text by E.M. Swift

In 1982, Wayne Gretzky broke the NHL single-season scoring record as a 20-year-old center for the Edmonton Oilers. After winning four Stanley Cups in nine NHL seasons with the Oilers, Gretzky was traded to the Los Angeles Kings, and then to the St. Louis Blues. He joined the New York Rangers in 1996. Now 36, Gretzky is the NHL's all-time leading scorer. He will play for Canada at the Nagano Olympics in February.

 
Sportsmen of the Year:
1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959 1960 1961 1962 1963
1964 1965 1966 1967 1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974
1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984
1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996
   

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