EDMONTON, AB - Standing before a semi-circle of cameras and media members in the Oilers Hall of Fame Room on Wednesday, Oilers Entertainment Group Partner and Vice Chair Wayne Gretzky provided advice to this year's Hlinka Gretzky Cup players competing in Edmonton and Red Deer.
"We don't know the future for any of these kids but I would give them the same advice Gordie Howe gave me: you got to be the hardest working player every night. If you work hard, good things happen," said The Great One, who holds 40 all-time regular season NHL records.
Gretzky furthered his notion by relating it to a few of his former Oilers teammates.
"I've always found that guys who love the game the most work the hardest and put the most time in," he continued. "It's not a big secret why Mark Messier or Paul Coffey, why those guys are in the Hall of Fame: because they loved to play. Each and every game, the bigger the game, the more excited they got and the better they played.
"That's what you want to get out of kids."
BLOG: Gretzky offers advice to Hlinka Gretzky Cup players
"I would give them the same advice Gordie Howe gave me: you got to be the hardest working player every night. If you work hard, good things happen," said The Great One
