Peter Pocklington
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Peter Pocklington (b. November 18, 1943, in London, Ontario, Canada) is a Canadian business owner who has dabbled in politics. While he made his fortune in the meat packing industry, he was also the owner of the Edmonton Oilers and, as such, brought Wayne Gretzky to the team. They won five Stanley Cups from 1984 to 1990. Pocklington, however, traded Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings.
Contents |
[edit] Business controversy
As a business owner, Pocklington moved to bust unions and reduce the wages of his employees. During a 1986 strike at Gainers Foods in Edmonton striking workers attacked police who were attempting to protect buses carrying replacement workers to the now-closed Edmonton plant. Although the strike was eventually settled, Gainers never recovered and was eventually placed in receivership.
[edit] Owner of Oilers
As owner of the Oilers, Pocklington was criticized for paying himself $2 million CAD in annual management fees, especially after they missed the playoffs in 1992-93.
After his sports and meat packing difficulties, Pocklingon proceeded to involve himself in various other ventures, several in the United States. Among them were Golf Gear and Naturade.
[edit] Basil Pocklington
After the Edmonton Oilers won their first Stanley Cup in 1983-84, Peter Pocklington included his father, Basil Pocklington, on the list of people and players who were to have their names engraved on the trophy. The NHL did not check the validity of the names on the list, and the Cup was engraved as usual. After the mistake was discovered, NHL executives, via the Hockey Hall of Fame, had the engraver strike out the name of the senior Pocklington by engraving a series of Xs over his name. Of the 12 engraving errors that appear on the Stanley Cup, 11 of them are spelling errors. Basil Pocklington's is the only name that was covered. After this error, the NHL and Hockey Hall of Fame adopted policies to confirm the roster and the relation of the people on the engraving list to the championship team.
[edit] Gretzky Trade
On August 9, 1988, Pocklington shocked hockey fans by trading Gretzky to the Los Angeles Kings for Jimmy Carson, Martin Gelinas, $15 million cash, and the Kings' first-round draft picks in 1989, 1991 and 1993. The trade so upset Edmontonians that one lawmaker demanded the government block it, a man burned Pocklington in effigy, and Gretzky's bride, actress Janet Jones, was branded hockey's Yoko Ono.
There is debate as to whether Gretzky "jumped" or was "pushed." A book by former Kings owner Bruce McNall quotes Pocklington as saying Gretzky had become impossible to deal with since he began dating Jones, who let it be known that she was not going to live in Edmonton after they got married. Pocklington claims he has had only nice things to say about the couple, yet admitted the trade was a business decision that he would not hesitate to make again.
[edit] Other sports
He is also well known for his involvement in other sports. He was long time owner of a baseball team — the Pacific Coast League's Edmonton Trappers. He also owned soccer teams, such as the Edmonton Drillers in the North American Soccer League, Edmonton Brickmen of the Canadian Soccer League, and a later reincarnation of the Drillers in the National Professional Soccer League II. None of these teams remained in Edmonton long after his departure from ownership.
[edit] Politics
Pocklington ran as a candidate at the 1983 Progressive Conservative leadership convention finishing sixth. His policies were about strict adherence to the principles of free enterprise, with the main proposal being the replacement of progressive income tax with a flat tax. Pocklington fell far below his predictions of delegates, the only advisor close to predicting his number had jokingly guessed "99", a reference to the jersey number of Oilers' star Wayne Gretzky. He supported Brian Mulroney after the first ballot.
[edit] U.S. Citizenship Aspiration
He has been a resident of the United States since 1998. It was reported in November 2007 that Pocklington was seeking U.S. citizenship. On his website, Pocklington wrote he loves the U.S. because "they admire people who get out of bed early and make it happen."
