34 years ago today, Wayne Gretzky started a famous NHL tradition
On May 26th, 1988, the Edmonton Oilers defeated the Boston Bruins four games to none in the Stanley Cup Final to win their fourth championship in five years.
After Oilers captain Wayne Gretzky was presented with the Stanley Cup and the team did it's celebrating, he skated to centre ice and stood Lord Stanley up and told his teammates to surround him for a picture:
It was the first time a team had done such a thing in league history and what Gretzky and his teammates didn't know was that they were starting a tradition that would live on every year since and probably till the end of time. The team picture with the Stanley Cup has become one of the most famous moments done by championship-winning teams in sports.
It's reported that Wayne Gretzky first had the idea to do the team picture after because he knew it would be his last game as an Edmonton Oiler, and winning the Stanley Cup was just an added bonus. That summer, Gretzky was moved to the Los Angeles Kings in probably the most blockbuster trade in NHL history.
