LOS ANGELES, Jan. 26 (UPI) -- The hockey world Wednesday celebrated the 50th birthday of Wayne Gretzky, while the man himself, considered the game's greatest player, said it was no big deal.
Current and former NHL players and coaches as well as fans in Canada, the United States and around the world took the occasion to gush fond remembrances of Gretzky's remarkable career, which ended in 1999 with the New York Rangers.