NHL legend Wayne Gretzky came to Oakmont Country Club this week to support his daughter’s fiance, Dustin Johnson, as he competes in the U.S. Open.
But the nine-time Hart Trophy winner couldn’t stand to make the trip to the Pittsburgh area without visiting an old friend: the Stanley Cup.
Gretzky said he and his wife, Janet, “raided the little barbecue” at Penguins coach Mike Sullivan’s house Thursday night. Former Penguins winger and current assistant Rick Tocchet, a teammate of Gretzky’s with the Los Angeles Kings from 1994-96, also was there, along with a group of Penguins assistant coaches and, of course, the Cup.
“So that was fun,” he said.
Gretzky, who won four Stanley Cups of his own with the Edmonton Oilers, still holds the NHL scoring record with 2,857 career points. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1999.
The trip is the first to Pittsburgh for his wife, Janet, who is “thoroughly impressed by the architecture.”
They were equally impressed by the play of Johnson, who finished the first round without a bogey and sat near the top of the leaderboard throughout Friday.
“I really like his game plan and his focus on how he’s playing the golf course,” Wayne Gretzky said. “Obviously, when you get to the U.S. Open, it’s a tough course, especially this course is really difficult and he’s got a game plan.”
Gerry Dulac looks back on the second day of action at Oakmont. (Video by Matt Freed)
The couple plans to return to Oakmont the next two days as Johnson pursues his first major championship.
Gretzky, wearing a gray T-shirt, jeans and Aviator sunglasses, expressed his admiration for Pittsburgh as a sports city.
“I love it,” he said as he walked between the 17th and 18th holes at Oakmont. “Absolutely, it’s wonderful. All the way back to guys like Terry Bradshaw and Roberto Clemente and, of course, Mario [Lemieux]. And now the new young guys they have, and the U.S. Opens they’ve had here and [Arnold] Palmer.
“It’s a wonderful city. How can you beat it?”
He was not in town for the Penguins’ championship parade Wednesday because of Gordie Howe’s funeral in Detroit. Gretzky said Howe and Bobby Orr “are the two greatest players who ever played.”
“Funerals are tough, it’s a tough part about life,” Gretzky said. “Gordie lived a great life, he was 88-years-old, left behind some great family, great kids. There’s nothing better than being a good person, and Gordie Howe was a great person.”
Andy Wittry: awittry@post-gazette.com.
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