During a candid moment on the “Spittin’ Chiclets” podcast, Wayne Gretzky recounted a long-forgotten offer that still makes him shake his head.
With a mix of humor and hindsight, he described a missed opportunity that, decades later, feels almost too big to believe; one involving team ownership, a massive salary, and a decision that would quietly echo through NHL history.
Wayne Gretzky Explains his Vancouver Canucks Decision
The opportunity came right after Gretzky won the Stanley Cup in 1988. At the time, Nelson Skalbania, a businessman and former hockey executive, called Gretzky early in the morning to propose a jaw-dropping deal.
Skalbania reportedly told Gretzky he intended to buy the Canucks and offered him 25% of the team plus a $3 million annual salary. Back then, Gretzky was the highest-paid player in the NHL, making about $800,000 CAD.
Gretzky remembered the moment vividly. “He called me at 7 a.m. after we won the Stanley Cup and said, ‘I’m going to buy the Vancouver Canucks. I’ll give you 25% ownership of the team and $3 million a year,’” he said.
“I was like, ‘Mr. Skalbania, I love you to death, but it’s not going to work for me.’”
In hindsight, Gretzky couldn’t help but laugh at the magnitude of what he had passed up. “How dumb am I?” he repeated more than once during the conversation, fully aware of what that ownership stake would be worth today, possibly around $300 million based on current team valuations.
After Wayne Gretzky won the Stanley Cup, he was offered 25% of the @Canucks and a huge raise.
He declined. The rest is history.
📺: https://t.co/3yIOfbBFS0 pic.twitter.com/H22GaEvgbn
— Spittin' Chiclets (@spittinchiclets)
Despite the enormity of the offer, Gretzky declined and was later traded to the Los Angeles Kings. Though not financially equivalent, that move played a major role in popularizing hockey across the United States.
Gretzky Opened Up on Receiving a Gordie Howe Jersey for Christmas
The podcast appearance also brought up another deeply personal moment from Gretzky’s past. He recalled receiving a Gordie Howe jersey at the age of five, calling it the greatest Christmas gift of his life.
“I didn’t want toys or anything. I didn’t want anything; all I wanted was that Gordie Howe jersey. It’s so Canadian, that’s all I ever wanted,” he said, reminiscing fondly.
Interestingly, the Canucks almost had another chance at Gretzky.
In 1996, he considered signing with the team before ultimately joining the New York Rangers. Vancouver instead signed fellow former Oiler Mark Messier in 1997, though that stint was far less memorable.
Skalbania, the man behind the 1988 proposal, never actually purchased the Canucks. At the time, the team was owned by Frank and Arthur Griffiths. Skalbania’s involvement in the NHL was brief; his most notable move came when he helped relocate the Atlanta Flames to Calgary in the early 1980s.
Looking back, Gretzky had control over where he’d end up. He narrowed his post-Oilers choices to four U.S. teams: the Kings, Rangers, Flyers, and Red Wings. He knew Edmonton planned to trade him, but he refused to re-sign with any team unless he approved of the destination.
In the end, Gretzky’s move to Los Angeles may not have made him a team owner, but it made him a hockey icon far beyond Canada. Still, it’s hard not to wonder how different things might have been, for him and the Canucks, had he answered yes to that 7 a.m. call.
