It’s Mixed Emotions for Oilers

It was another hockey game, but it also wasn’t. To the Edmonton Oilers, Sunday night’s game against the Kings was a broiling vortex of emotions.

Here was the Oilers’ former captain, their current foe; their former leader, their current nemesis; their former close friend . . .

Although reporters had quizzed the Kings’ players about the distraction of Gretzky nearing Gordie Howe’s all-time scoring record, when it finally happened Sunday night at the sold-out Northlands Coliseum, it seemed the Oilers had been the more distracted.

The Kings’ thoughts were on winning the game, which they did, 5-4. When Gretzky got the record-breaking goal in the third period, the Kings swarmed the ice in celebration.

As the game was stopped with 53 seconds left for an awards ceremony, the entire King team stood by on the ice at a kind of respectful attention, whereas the Oilers slouched and slumped at their bench, not wanting to watch, but desperate to participate. For they knew that it had been them, not the Kings, who for 10 years had provided Gretzky that rare hockey climate that allowed him to compile his impressive scoring statistics.

While the Oilers acknowledged Gretzky’s achievement with the presentation of a diamond bracelet, the team honored him later in a more meaningful fashion. The players who had been his teammates through Edmonton’s often-stormy history all reserved the highest sort of praise for him--the kind of praise that comes from men in your own profession, men who labored alongside you and, clearly, men who harbor a sincere admiration for your accomplishments.

In the nearly-empty Oiler locker room after the game, players were saying how they hated to lose the game, but also how glad they were for Gretzky.

Mark Messier, Edmonton’s team captain, wrestled with the awkward words that spilled out as he tried to explain what Gretzky has meant to the city, the organization and to his former teammates.

Eventually Messier abandoned his search for eloquence and put it this way:

“We came from a (expletive) expansion organization that went on to win four Stanley Cups,” Messier said. “He had a big part of it. No one here is ever going to forget it . . . or him.”

Messier and Gretzky had locked in a sweaty and sincere embrace during the on-ice ceremony to commemorate the record. Words were whispered. But, for them, the emotions rendered words inadequate.

“We didn’t need any words,” Messier said, struggling with his anger at the loss and his joy for his friend’s accomplishments. “It’s obvious how Wayne and I feel about each other.”

Edmonton defenseman Charlie Huddy, a harsh and relentless player on the ice, seemed washed with sentiment when he spoke of Gretzky.

“When I think about all we went through together . . . “ he said, shaking his head. “Wayne will always be a part of it here.”