RIP Walter Gretzky, the Great One's father, hockey's dad, October 8, 1938 – March 4, 2021.
Wayne gives his dad most of the credit for his success...Wayne said, "Some say I have a 'sixth sense' . . . Baloney, I've just learned to guess what's going to happen next. It's anticipation. It's not God-given, it's Wally-given. He used to stand on the blue line and say to me, 'Watch, this is how everybody else does it.' Then he'd shoot a puck along the boards and into the corner and then go chasing after it. Then he'd come back and say, 'Now, this is how the smart player does it.' He'd shoot it into the corner again, only this time he cut across to the other side and picked it up over there. Who says anticipation can't be taught?"
Walter was appointed as a Member of the Order of Ontario in 2002.
He was named a Member of the Order of Canada on December 28, 2007, "for his contributions to minor hockey in Canada and for his dedication to helping a myriad of local, provincial, and national charities."
On February 12, 2010, he carried the Olympic Torch during the Olympic Relay on the last day of the relay, hours before the opening ceremonies in Vancouver, British Columbia, where Wayne later lit the Olympic Flame.