53m •
2009
On August 9, 1988, the NHL was forever changed with the single stroke of a pen. The Edmonton Oilers, fresh off their fourth Stanley Cup victory in five years, signed a deal that sent Wayne Gretzky, a Canadian national treasure and the greatest hockey player ever to play the game, to the Los Angeles Kings in a multi-player, multi-million dollar deal. As bewildered Oiler fans struggled to make sense of the unthinkable, fans in Los Angeles were rushing to purchase season tickets at a rate so fast it overwhelmed the Kings box office. Overnight, a franchise largely overlooked in its 21-year existence was suddenly playing to sellout crowds and standing ovations, and a league often relegated to “little brother” status exploded from 21 teams to 30 in less than a decade.
Asylum Entertainment • US
ESPN Films • US
Budget: $0
Revenue: $0
2007•
6.0
1983•
5.0
2019•
7.0
2002•
6.6
2012•
0
2014•
6.5
1938•
6.0
2020•
0
2015•
10.0
2014•
5.8
2016•
6.3
2015•
6.7
2023•
0
2008•
6.8
2023•
5.0
2019•
6.8
