Gretzky's greatest accomplishment with the Rangers was leading them to the 1997 Eastern Conference finals, where they lost 4–1 to the Flyers, who were then led by Eric Lindros. Mark Messier, a former Oiler teammate of Gretzky's, left in the summer of 1997 and the team failed in a bid to replace him with Colorado Avalanche superstar Joe Sakic. Did Wayne Gretzky win four Stanley Cups in a row? Contrary to popular belief, Wayne Gretzky did not win four Stanley Cups in a row. He almost achieved this, but was off by one season. He won the Stanley Cup back-to-back in the 1983-84 and 1984-85 seasons, followed by another back-to-back victory from 1986-87 and 1987-88. Canada. NHL Draft. 6th overall, 1994. Edmonton Oilers. Playing career. 1994–2014. Ryan Alexander Borden Smyth (born February 21, 1976) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played most of his career for the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). He was especially known for playing in the style of a power forward. While that’s a nice haul, the Kings were essentially betting the farm on immediate success. They sent center Jimmy Carson and forward Martin Gélinas to the Oilers along with first-round picks in 1989, 1991, and 1993. Oh, and they threw in $15 million just to seal things. The Oilers went on to win another Stanley Cup without Wayne Gretzky. Five players -- Bobby Orr, Bernie Parent, Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Sidney Crosby-- have won it twice. Roy was the youngest to win; he was 20 when he did so with the Canadiens in 1986. Get all the latest Wayne Gretzky news, stats, performance, facts, history, and biography. Also, Get Wayne Gretzky's latest career stats, wins, championships, rings and more at NHL Sportskeeda. The 1993 N.H.L. playoffs were a period of wondrous discovery for many Angelenos, never mind that the Kings had been in Los Angeles for 26 years and Wayne Gretzky had been a King for five. It was the closest the Leafs have gotten to the Stanley Cup final since 1967 and it ended with the Gretzky high stick and Gretzky overtime winner in Game 6 and a Gretzky hat trick in Game 7. Gretzky was traded to the Los Angeles Kings after the 1987-88 season. Gretzky didn't win the Stanley Cup after leaving the Oilers, but he did set nearly every record in the NHL. Many of these Ten of these U.S. franchises came into existence (including teams that relocated) after the Gretzky trade, and five of them went on to win the Stanley Cup. The California Hockey Boom The Gretzky trade had a particularly significant impact on hockey in California, as the number of people participating in the sport in the state skyrocketed from MCfnj.