"Total Gretzky provides fans with a wonderful and lasting tribute to the greatest hockey player of all time. This gorgeous, full-colour book based on "The Hockey News' commemorative magazine "The Great One, but adding much, much more, gives readers the total picture. It features over 130 glorious, stunning photographs, almost exclusively in colour. It includes a moving tribute by celebrated hockey author Roy MacGregor, a foreword by Gretzky fan and friend Peter Gzowski, and fascinating and revealing articles by former NHL players and acclaimed "Hockey News editors and writers. And "Total Gretzky features something truly unique: the most exhaustive look at Gretzky's career, in numbers, ever compiled. In addition to career totals and records held, "Total Gretzky lists every game, year by year, in which Gretzky ever played in the NHL, in the WHA, in junior, on Team Canada, and in all-star games, with a running total of goals, assists and points accumulated for each stage of his remarkable career. Milestone games and records are highlighted, and Gretzky's amazing achievements are set against those of other hockey immortals. "Total Gretzky is a dazzling and complete testament to Wayne Gretzky, a book that no hockey fan should be without.

Sports Illustrated followed The Great One's career right from the very beginning. Starting in 1978, when Gretzky was a young phenom playing for the Soo Greyhounds, they had their best writers cover his rise to fame and subsequent dominance of the sport. His staggering career stats tend to overshadow the struggles he faced in his career -- the early days in Edmonton, when he was establishing himself as the greatest player, but could not lead his team to a cup. The years after the trade that shook the hockey world he spent years trying to lead a new team to glory, only managing to reach the final once more, in 1993, and losing in five games. Covered as well are his forgotten goal-droughts, the thoughts that he had lost his touch in the early nineties. His struggles with injury and playing though his father's near death. The Great One reads not like a sports book, but a biography of one of the greatest athletes of all time. Sports Illustrated's greatest writers all contribute articles, EM Swift, Michael Farber, Jack Kalla, to tell the complete story of Wayne Gretzky's career.

After breaking or tying more than sixty records in hockey, it's no wonder that Wayne Gretzky is known as "The Great One." Born in Brantford, Ontario, on January 26, 1961, in a nation obsessed with the sport, he threw himself into the game practically from the time he first laced up a pair of skates. When he retired from the NHL in 1999, he had led several teams to Stanley Cup victories, competed in the Olympics, and changed the way hockey was played forever. Known for his love for family and as a truly decent human being, Wayne Gretzky is revealed as more than a sports legend in this easy-to-read biography.

Grade level: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, p, e, i, s, t.

Hockey has long been one of most prominent sports in North America. Since its rise in popularity in the twentieth century, many have asked: who is the greatest hockey player of all time? From National Hockey League legends like Wayne Gretzky to modern-day stars like Sidney Crosby, Alexander Ovechkin, and Connor McDavid, many players have written their name into the record books. Whether by goals scored or championships won, each has made their case on the ice. In this engaging and unique volume, the argument is made using math and statistical analysis to answer the age-old questions of greatness.

In this sports memoir, Wayne Gretzky weaves memories of his legendary career with an inside look at professional hockey and the heroes and stories that inspired him. From minor-hockey phenomenon to Hall of Fame sensation, Wayne Gretzky rewrote the record books, his accomplishments becoming the stuff of legend. Dubbed “The Great One,” he is considered by many to be the greatest hockey player who ever lived. No one has seen more of the game than he has—but he has never discussed in depth just what it was he saw. For the first time, Gretzky discusses candidly what the game looks like to him and introduces us to the people who inspired and motivated him: mentors, teammates, rivals, the famous and the lesser known. Weaving together lives and moments from an extraordinary career, he reflects on the players who inflamed his imagination when he was a kid, the way he himself figured in the dreams of so many who came after; takes us onto the ice and into the dressing rooms to meet the friends who stood by him and the rivals who spurred him to greater heights; shows us some of the famous moments in hockey history through the eyes of someone who regularly made that history. Warm, direct, and revelatory, it is a book that gives us number 99, the man and the player, like never before.

A story of teamwork with a positive message, featuring Wayne Gretzky and Coach Wally (Wayne's dad, Walter Gretzky) Taylor is so excited when he makes the hockey team -- and not just any team, but HIS team. The boy they are already calling The Great One. Taylor wants to be great too, but he's still got a lot to learn. Lucky for him, Coach Wally is in his corner, guiding him through the ups and downs of being part of a hockey team, and being the best player he can be. As Coach Wally says, if you have a good time, work hard and do your best, "that is all that matters."