Wayne Gretzky is a former professional ice hockey player and is
currently part-owner and head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes.
Nicknamed
"The Great One", he is regarded as the best player of his era and has
been called "the greatest hockey player ever" by sportswriters,
coaches, and fans. Along with his many awards and achievements, he
is
the only player to ever have his playing number, 99, officially
retired across the entire National Hockey League. He set 40 regular
season records (including 9 MVP awards and 10 scoring titles), 15
playoff records, 6 All-Star records, and won four Stanley Cups with
the Edmonton Oilers. He was the only player to total over 200 points
in a season, accomplishing the feat 4 times. He retired from playing
in 1999, becoming Executive Director for the Canadian national men's
hockey team during the 2002 Winter Olympics. He became part-owner of
the Phoenix Coyotes in 2000, and their head coach following the
2004-05 NHL lockout.
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wayne_Gretzky
_______________________________
Today's selected anniversaries:
1772:
HMS Resolution set sail from Plymouth, England, under the command of
Captain James Cook.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Resolution_%28Cook%29)
1793:
Jean-Paul Marat, a leader in the French Revolution, was murdered in
his bathtub by Charlotte Corday.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jean-Paul_Marat)
1878:
The major powers in Europe redrew the map of the Balkans in the
Treaty of Berlin.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Treaty_of_Berlin%2C_1878)
1923:
The Hollywoodland Sign was officially dedicated in the hills above
Hollywood, California. The last four letters of the sign were later
removed in 1949.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hollywood_Sign)
1985:
Live Aid benefit concerts, organised by Bob Geldof and Midge Ure to
raise funds for famine relief in Ethiopia, were held in London and
Philadelphia.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Live_Aid)
_____________________
Wikiquote of the day:
To-morrow comes, true copy of to-day,And empty shadow of what is to
be;Yet cheated Hope on future still depends,And ends but only when
our
being ends. -- John Clare
(
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Clare)