Iconic Gretzky statue moving to Rogers Place
The bronze statue of Wayne Gretzky that served as a pilgrimage for hockey fans and a reminder of the glory days of the Edmonton Oilers was taken down Thursday to prepare for its move to Rogers Place.
“It was sad, sad to see the blankets covering his face and them putting him down,” said Cory Kohlenberg, who came to watch with his son and daughter.
A gift to the Oilers from Molson Brewery, the statue was installed in 1989. Kohlenberg said he has taken “probably close to 100 pictures throughout my life with that statue.”
It may have been bittersweet for fans to watch the statue of Gretzky hoisting the Stanley Cup taken down, but it will make a triumphant return outside of Rogers Place.
“It was very important to us to find a publicly accessible location very similar to the one at Rexall where fans, whether you were going to a game or not, had the chance to get your picture taken, touch the statue and get close to it,” said Tim Shipton, vice-president of corporate communications with the Oilers Entertainment Group.
Before the statue is installed outside the Oilers Hall of Fame Room on 104 Avenue, it will return to the studio where it was originally cast.
It will be cleaned and prepared by the man who cast the statue nearly three decades earlier.
“It’s a real honour to have done this statue, cast it and to take it and move it to its new location. It really is an honour,” said Don Begg, who cast the statue for sculptor John Weaver. Weaver died in 2012.
Begg carefully directed a crew of workers who wrapped the statue in blankets and slowly lowered it into the back of a truck. The 431-kilogram statue will go to the Studio West Bronze Foundry and Art Gallery in Cochrane for a makeover.