The overturning of the International Ice Hockey Federation’s ban of Russian participation continues to be the dominant topic in the hockey world, especially with the first tournament already around the corner in the 2027 World Junior Championship in Alberta.
So as Wayne Gretzky met with the media on behalf of Upper Deck to announce a new partnership between the two, with Gretzky now a legacy partner with the trading card company, it felt inevitable for one of the faces of Canadian hockey to weigh in on the subject.
“Nobody likes war, right?” Gretzky said to the media. “We definitely don’t want to see this. We hope it ends. We wish it didn’t start. I understand the stance the Prime Minister has taken, and good for him. He’s made that stance and he’s made it clear, and I think a lot of the players and the people of Canada feel the same way.”
This comes just days after Canadian prime minister Mark Carney announced that Russia and Belarus will be barred from competing in Canada as long as the war between Russia and Ukraine is ongoing. The federal government said in a statement released on Tuesday that they would use all of their immigration powers to prevent Russian and Belarussian ath...