HOCKEYCENTRAL CELEBRATES GRETZKY’S 50TH WITH A SPECIAL BIRTHDAY BASH PRESENTATION

Nick Kypreos goes one-on-one with the Great One during 30-min Hockeycentral special

TORONTO (January 25, 2011) – Hockeycentral is your destination to celebrate Wayne Gretzky’s 50th birthday with the special presentation 99 turns 50 on Wednesday, January 26 at 7 p.m. (ET)/4 p.m. (PT) on the Rogers Sportsnet East, Ontario, West and Pacific channels.

Sportsnet ONE will also air the entire special at 10 p.m. (ET)/7 p.m. (PT) and Hockeycentral Tonight on Sportsnet Ontario at 11 p.m. (ET).

Hockeycentral analyst Nick Kypreos sat down with the Gretzky to discuss everything from turning 50, meeting Major League Baseball scouts interested in his son Trevor and if he is interested taking over for Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment President and CEO Richard Peddie. In addition, Kypreos also speaks with the “Great One” about how his 92-goal season should have been a 100-goal campaign.

“The year I got 92 goals, I think the hard part for me is I think I only got one goal in the last eight games,” said Gretzky in his interview with Kypreos. “And when I look back at it, I think, wow, I had a chance to get 100 goals and I blew it myself.”

The HC special, hosted by Daren Millard, will feature Hockeycentral analysts Doug MacLean, Mike Brophy, and John Shannon sharing their thoughts about coaching against and covering Gretzky’s legendary 20-year career. Plus, Sportsnet analysts Denis Potvin, Charlie Simmer, John Garrett and Louie DeBrusk all share their memories of facing the NHL’s all-time leading scorer.

Sportsnet Connected will air part of the special during the primetime edition at 10 p.m. (ET)/10:30 p.m. (MT)/9:30 p.m. (PT) while sportsnet.ca will present the entire un-filtered interview between Kypreos and Gretzky. The website will also offer a feature story on Gretzky from columnist Mark Spector with a gallery of snapshots from his career.

To help celebrate the Great One turning 50, Sportsnet has created a virtual birthday card which can be found on its facebook page: http://facebook.com/rogerssportsnet. Gretzky fans are encouraged to post their birthday wishes and favourite memories of number 99 right on the page.

For all the scores, highlights, breaking news and inside stories from the Edmonton Oilers and the entire NHL tune in to Hockeycentral Tonight, Sportsnet Connected and log on to sportsnet.ca.

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