'You're the female Gordie Howe': Hayley Wickenheiser honoured at Oilers game
38-year-old hangs up her skates as Hockey Canada's all-time leader in points
Hayley Wickenheiser lives in Calgary and her favourite team growing up was the Edmonton Oilers, so it only seemed fitting she was honoured during the latest installment of the Battle of Alberta on Saturday night.
Wickenheiser recently announced her retirement from the game of hockey. The 38-year-old is a four-time gold medallist and is Hockey Canada's all-time leader in games played, goals, assists and points.
She was a trailblazer for women's hockey in Canada, also competing in 60 games in a men's professional league in Europe.
Edmonton Oilers great Wayne Gretzky introduced her Saturday night.
"You've touched so many lives," he told Wickenheiser and the fans at the game. "You played with heart, desire, finesse, speed, skill.
"You're the female Gordie Howe."
Wickenheiser was touched by the Howe comment but the fact that one of her heroes, Gretzky, introduced her was also important for her.
"I didn't really know Wayne would be here until tonight," she said.
"Mark [Messier] and Wayne [Gretzky] and Kevin [Lowe] and the whole gang there is a big part of why I played."
Great tribute for <a href="https://twitter.com/wick_22">@wick_22</a> at <a href="https://twitter.com/EdmontonOilers">@EdmontonOilers</a> game <a href="https://twitter.com/RogersPlace">@RogersPlace</a> <a href="https://t.co/4zMdYmCzIw">pic.twitter.com/4zMdYmCzIw</a>
—@MarkConnollyCBCShe remembered watching the 80s-era Oilers play — she would spend her Saturdays watching Hockey Night in Canada with her father, who would point out various moves and strategies employed by Gretzky and Messier. She would try to emulate them on her outdoor rink.
Fast forward to 2002 when Wickenheiser won her first gold medal with the Canadian national women's hockey team in Salt Lake City, she had a full circle moment.
"When we won the gold medal, the first two people I saw when we stepped off the ice were Wayne and Kevin standing in our dressing room cheering for us," she said.
Now in 2017, Wickenheiser is hanging up her skates to go to medical school and to pursue other opportunities in the game. With Gretzky standing behind her, she smiled. "I couldn't have asked for a better way to end my career with him standing on the ice," she said.
"It was perfect."