Wayne Gretzky scored 894 objectives in 1,487 profession NHL video games. Alex Ovechkin is poised to shatter that record, having scored 872 instances in 1,451 video games by means of Wednesday evening.
That’s a mixed 2,938 profession video games performed between the 2 gamers, sharing the ice with a whole lot of teammates, spanning from Hall of Famers to one-night wonders. Yet there’s just one participant in NHL historical past that was a teammate to each Wayne Gretzky and Alex Ovechkin.
His identify is Mike Knuble, a winger who performed 16 hardscrabble seasons within the NHL. And he was as shocked as you might be to be taught he is the surprising hyperlink between two hockey legends whose careers did not overlap.
“I get to be one of many humorous trivia solutions! Got to place that in Trivial Pursuit or a bar sport or one thing,” he advised ESPN lately, with fun.
As Ovechkin neared the Gretzky report, Knuble began questioning whether or not he was the one participant to have skated with each the Washington Capitals star and The Great One as a teammate.
“I sort of was spitballing with anyone: ‘Well, who’s performed in Washington and with the New York Rangers that is additionally about my age?’ I’m like, ‘There’s no person actually. So possibly it is simply me,'” he stated.
Knuble was a 26-year-old ahead with the New York Rangers in 1998-99, the ultimate season of Gretzky’s profession. He performed three seasons with Ovechkin in Washington (2009-10 by means of 2011-12) earlier than ending his profession at age 40 with the Philadelphia Flyers.
“The proven fact that Ovi is nipping at Gretzky’s heels is simply loopy,” Knuble stated.
Gretzky was in his elder statesman period with the Rangers, and Knuble acquired to witness the mania when it was introduced he was retiring after 20 seasons. But Knuble was the elder statesmen when he arrived in Washington to discover a 24-year-rock star in Ovechkin, who had simply gained his first Hart Trophy and scoring title, because the face of the Capitals’ “Young Guns” resurgence.
“I simply felt so lucky to play with them. They’re each such superstars,” he stated.
In the method, Knuble turned somebody uniquely certified to check, distinction and analyze the 2 biggest objective scorers in NHL historical past as teammates.
KNUBLE WAS DRAFTED 76th total by the Detroit Red Wings in 1991. After 4 seasons on the University of Michigan, and a while within the AHL, he joined the Red Wings as a rookie in 1996-97.
Knuble was no goal-scoring slouch, tallying 278 instances in 1,068 NHL video games, however he had a unique method to that artwork than Gretzky or Ovechkin did: He was well-known for parking himself inches from the goaltender’s crease and scoring short-distance objectives whereas being mauled by opposing defensemen.
“[Hockey Hall of Famer] Dino Ciccarelli was the pioneer of that. He was undersized, under-gunned and acquired the s— beat out of him on a regular basis,” Knuble stated. “He scored 600 objectives again once they might be actually imply to you. I went [to the crease] once they weren’t as imply.”
Knuble chuckles when he sees goal-scoring warmth maps in coaches’ places of work that present an intense crimson across the crease.
“I’ll be speaking to younger gamers and I draw the East Coast of the United States. I draw Florida after which I draw Cuba after which a draw a giant shark additional away,” he stated. “And I’m like, ‘If all of the fish are proper right here between Florida and Cuba, why would you be swimming all the best way over right here if you happen to’re a shark and also you’re hungry? All the fish are proper right here! Go to the place the fish are!'”
For many of the Nineteen Eighties and Nineteen Nineties, the fish had been wherever Wayne Gretzky had the puck on his stick.
Knuble had by no means met Gretzky earlier than, however he was a fan — not simply as a child rising up in Toronto, however as an grownup taking part in within the NHL.
Before the 1998 Olympics, he cornered Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman within the weight room to sheepishly ask if he may convey house a signed Gretzky stick from Nagano, Japan. Knuble was surprised when Yzerman returned with a personalised autographed stick, the butt finish burned with an Olympic brand that integrated Gretzky’s initials into it.
A couple of months later, the Red Wings traded Knuble to the Rangers for a second-round draft decide. Which meant the man asking for Wayne Gretzky’s autograph was now Wayne Gretzky’s teammate.
“You see his jersey and also you see your jersey, and it is the identical coloration as his. And you are identical to, ‘Holy s— right here we go,'” Knuble stated. “I keep in mind saying my hellos after which simply sitting in my stall, not speaking to him for a few weeks. I used to be quiet on the bus with him, too. I’d simply sit and hearken to his recollections about his time in Edmonton, dropping names and telling tales.”
Time with Gretzky away from the rink was fleeting. There had been cities on the highway the place Gretzky might seize dinner together with his teammates and never get mobbed — largely “non-traditional” hockey markets, in response to Knuble — however all over the place else, followers would swarm probably the most well-known hockey participant on this planet.
“He’d give the time, but it surely wasn’t going to be an excessive amount of time. He knew the way to deal with that stability,” he stated.
Gretzky wasn’t a boisterous presence within the Rangers’ dressing room. That’s partially as a result of the Rangers had different leaders to whom he would defer, corresponding to captain Brian Leetch. “He wasn’t making an attempt to outshine anybody. But everybody knew that when he wished to say one thing, the ground was his,” Knuble stated.
Knuble wasn’t a main linemate for Gretzky throughout his time with the Rangers. He’d watch from the bench as The Great One operated from his workplace behind the opponent’s web, and anticipate his probability to affix the Gretzky scoring ledger.
“You’re simply hoping that he scored and you bought some extent with him. You simply wish to hear your identify linked with him,” stated Knuble, who scored two objectives assisted by Gretzky in 1998-99.
Those objectives by Knuble had been a number of the closing factors collected by Gretzky in his legendary profession. That season could be his final.
The Rangers weren’t going to make the playoffs that season. As the video games dwindled on the schedule, the hypothesis about Gretzky’s future grew louder. Knuble remembers the Rangers gamers purposefully avoiding the subject contained in the room, however then it occurred: It was formally introduced very late within the season that Gretzky could be retiring.
The Rangers’ subsequent sport after that announcement was on the Ottawa Senators on April 15, 1999.
“We had been in Ottawa and the Canadian National Guard surrounded our lodge as a result of it was his final sport in Canada,” Knuble recalled. “I’ll always remember popping out of the lodge for the sport and seeing guys with rifles.”
The lodge restricted entry to friends solely, having individuals present some type of ID to get into the foyer, which was nonetheless jam-packed with individuals looking for Gretzky. The Rangers’ bus would park in entrance of the lodge, drawing the entire consideration from followers as Gretzky discovered one other exit.
“Wayne was at all times actually good about going out the again door, sending diversion out within the entrance, after which he’d slip out,” Knuble stated. “And I’m certain Alex acquired good at taking part in these video games, too.”
KNUBLE CURRENTLY COACHES teenage hockey gamers in Michigan. They find out about his NHL profession. They’ll ask whether or not he has Alex Ovechkin in his telephone contacts record.
“I’ll present it to them and inform them that he is in all probability modified his quantity like eight instances. But go forward and name him. Go knock yourselves out,” he stated, laughing. “But I’m tremendous proud to have it. The children recognize that. It’s a superb cocktail celebration dialog, too.”
Knuble was in his third NHL season when he turned Gretzky’s teammate. He was getting into his thirteenth season when he signed with the Capitals as a free agent in 2009, having beforehand battled towards Ovechkin & Co. as a member of the Flyers.
As a lot as he knew about Gretzky earlier than changing into his teammate, Knuble knew little about Ovechkin earlier than becoming a member of him.
“There was a little bit little bit of thriller,” he stated.
Ovechkin had scored 219 objectives in his first 4 NHL seasons and would add one other 50 objectives to that complete in Knuble’s first season in Washington. He skated quick, blasted extra photographs than anybody within the league and hit like a truck. He was a power of nature. Knuble stated one among his greatest challenges as a teammate was to not be in awe of Ovechkin’s talents.
“As a participant you needed to be very cautious that you simply did not defer to him an excessive amount of. You knew what he might do, but it surely wasn’t like ‘power it, power it, power it’ to him on a regular basis,” he stated. “I feel you needed to get him the puck when you may and do a number of the legwork. But while you had an opportunity — and also you had been in a high-end, excessive share scoring space — you needed to shoot the puck. You could not defer on a regular basis.”
Knuble assisted on 14 objectives by Ovechkin throughout his 220 video games with the Capitals.
“I feel the largest factor is you did not wish to gradual him down. He’s trending to be a hundred-point man, and now you are taking part in with him, you are linked to him, you don’t need his share go down,” Knuble defined. “If he is all the way down to an 80-point tempo, effectively, who’re they going to level the finger at? It’s not due to him, it is due to me. So you did not wish to be that man.”
Off the ice, the 2 did not spend a lot time collectively. Knuble was older and had youngsters. Ovechkin hung with youthful gamers, a crew who all grew up collectively on the Capitals. Knuble understood the dynamics.
“When I used to be in Detroit, it wasn’t like I used to be hanging out with Yzerman. You’re together with your friends,” he stated. “Maybe there’s the odd time you find yourself on the similar restaurant or you’ve gotten a group occasion the place you hang around, however your boys are your boys.”
As he watched Ovechkin proceed to pile on objectives, taking part in with quite a lot of teammates — Knuble, for the report, thinks Ovechkin may have already got the report if Nicklas Backstrom might have remained wholesome — he figured Ovechkin had a shot at catching Gretzky if his physique cooperated.
“If he stayed wholesome, with the best way he finishes … might he be second or third all-time? And then he stayed actually wholesome and saved taking part in effectively,” Knuble stated. “He’s at all times been blessed with nice well being on the ice, the place nothing tremendous fluky occurred to him. The most spectacular factor about him is his longevity.”
Ovechkin’s maturity was a think about that longevity, in response to Knuble.
“I feel Alex has simply stood the take a look at of time a little bit bit. You’re a younger man, you sort of reside onerous on and off the ice, after which while you’re older you notice, ‘I can not be doing this as a lot,'” he stated.
Finally hoisting one thing aside from a person trophy additionally helped.
“I feel profitable a Stanley Cup was actually large for him, too. I feel that was a giant feather in his cap. You do not wish to be a golfer that is by no means gained a significant, you realize?” Knuble stated. “I feel him profitable the group factor was simply principally the final field he wanted to verify.”
Ovechkin is now older (39) than Gretzky was (38) when Knuble performed with him in New York. The Capitals captain has matured, however Knuble nonetheless sees that spark of youth in his sport as he chases Gretzky’s report.
“It’s enjoyable to see him simply blissful, see him in his pleasure,” he stated. “I feel when he was youthful, the enjoyment that carried him was probably the most noticeable factor. Eventually you grow old and the enjoyment settles down a little bit bit, however nonetheless he performs with a lot of it.”
KNUBLE ADMITS THAT Ovechkin and Gretzky are “completely different in the best way they do their issues,” however share one key similarity: the best way the understood their obligations in promoting the game they love.
“Wayne was superb at being an envoy of the sport. He knew that it is tremendous inconvenient for him, however he’ll do it with a smile on his face. He’s not going to bitch about it. It’s his job to maneuver the sport ahead,” he stated. “Alex is fairly good about that stuff too. And it was onerous for him. He’s not a North American, however definitely Alex has been a fantastic ambassador of the sport right here.”
Part of being an envoy of the sport is inspiring subsequent generations to choose up a stick or watch a sport. Knuble stated each gamers achieved that in their careers.
“They’ve each been so good to the sport, to the NHL and nice function fashions for youths,” he stated. “Wayne revamped the sport in his approach. And then Ovi revamped it once more together with his approach — a little bit extra flash, a little bit extra flare. We all copied Wayne after which children right now copied Ovi.”
There have been different all-time gamers who starred of their respective eras, from Mario Lemieux to Sidney Crosby to Connor McDavid. But Knuble believes there’s one thing completely different about the best way Gretzky and Ovechkin have damaged by means of as sports activities celebrities.
“People coast to coast within the United States know who [Ovechkin] is, and what extra are you able to ask for, particularly as a hockey participant?” he stated. “You go to California and you may be on the seaside there taking part in volleyball and be like, ‘Who’s Alex Ovechkin?’ And they’re going to be like, ‘Oh, that Russian dude in D.C., proper? Hockey participant?’ If you may get that sort of factor, then that is a profitable athlete.”
As Knuble watches the Ovechkin report chase unfold, his ideas are with Gretzky. He believes The Great One has proven exemplary class in watching an all-time mark probably fall. Like Gordie Howe did when Gretzky chased his information, Gretzky has blessed Ovechkin’s personal report pursuit.
“Wayne’s such an envoy, saying, ‘Hey, I can not wait to see this come to fruition. I can not wait to see him chase it down. I’m going to be there and be thrilled for him when the time comes.’ And that is not a lie. That’s not bulls—. And it is simply nice,” Knuble stated. “The league is thrilled that one other generational participant has come by means of. It’s simply loopy that this even remotely had an opportunity to occur.”
Almost as loopy as an NHL veteran who kicked round with 5 completely different franchises being the one participant to have known as the highest two objective scorers in league historical past as his teammates.
“I used to be on the ice with each. Got sticks signed by each. Got to say that I spent with every of them,” he stated. “Again, I simply really feel so lucky.”
