The jersey worn by Wayne Gretzky, the greatest ice hockey player of all time, in his final ever game will be auctioned in a single lot sale at Sotheby’s in New York at the end of this month.
In a sale on September 30 dubbed “The Great One” after the Canadian player’s nickname, the New York Rangers jersey is listed with an estimate available only on request (reportedly $2 million).
It is Gretzky’s 99 jersey from an April 18, 1999 New York Rangers match at Madison Square Garden, signed and dated by the player.
The blue top with red and white details was previously sold in June 2023 for $715,120 when it set the record as the most valuable American ice hockey jersey.
Sotheby’s have revealed that they were offered the jersey before that sale, but turned it down because they were unable to photomatch the shirt to the game. A feat they say they have now achieved.
Gretzky signed the jersey before giving it to his advisor and friend, Mike Barnett. Image courtesy of Sotheby’s.
In 2023, Grey Flannel Auctions sold it to set a new record for an American ice hockey shirt. It beat the $657,250 mark set by the 2013 sale of a jersey worn by Mike Eruzione in the 1980 US Olympic victory over the Soviet Union called “the Miracle on Ice”.
Wayne Gretzky was born in Brantford, Ontario, Canada in 1961 and was a professional ice hockey star from 1979 to 1999, representing the Indianapolis Racers, Edmonton Oilers, Los Angeles Kings, St Louis Blues and finally the New York Rangers.
He won four Stanley Cup titles (all with the Oilers) and numerous individual awards as he became the only player to ever score more than 200 points in a season, exceeding that total four times, He held 61 National Hockey League (NHL) records at his retirement and is credited with revolutionising the sport in the US.
In April 1999 Gretzky wore the 99 number one last time. The number was retired for all NHL teams after the game.
His team lost – 2 – 1 to the Pittsburgh Penguins – but the game was a festival to celebrate the greatest career in hockey history. Gretzky registered a point for an assist.
Gretzky gave the jersey (one of three he wore through the game) to Mike Barnett, a former player who became the player’s advisor and a hockey executive.
It was then owned by another collector, who gifted it to the New York Rangers museum at Madison Square Garden from 2016 to 2019. In 2023, Rob Gough, an actor, bought it at auction in 2023.
Brahm Wachter, Sotheby’s head of modern collectibles, said: “Few objects in the history of sport so perfectly embody both the end of an era and the enduring power of a singular career like this New York Rangers jersey from Wayne Gretzky’s final career game.”
The most valuable hockey jersey ever sold is Gretzky’s final Oilers shirt (like the Rangers shirt it was signed) that sold for $1.4 million in 2022.
Sports memorabilia is a booming market.
This month, Sotheby’s are expecting a Kobe Bryant basketball jersey to realise over $1 million. Last year, a Babe Ruth baseball jersey became the most valuable ever sports piece when it sold for $24.1 million.
