Wayne Gretzky admits using steroids to treat possible career-ending herniated thoracic disk injury in 1993

Modified Dec 26, 2023 07:21 GMT

In an insightful Christmas episode of the "Spittin Chiclets" podcast, hockey legend Wayne Gretzky admitted to using steroids to help him recover from a rare herniated thoracic disk injury, which could have ended his career.

During the 1992-93 season, Gretzky was into the fourth season with the LA Kings following his illustrious eight years with the Edmonton Oilers, where "The Great One" etched numerous records to his name and won four Stanley Cup titles.

In 1992, Wayne Gretzky endured a severe back injury that placed his glorious career in the red zone. "The Great One " revealed in the podcast that while lying on the ground at a restaurant in April or May of that year, he discovered a devastating back pain.

"This is really funny. So in April and May of that year, we went to Hawaii: Paul Coffey and his wife, Rick Tocchet and his wife, Janet and I. I was lying on the ground at a restaurant. And the girl came over and said,

"Hey, listen. He's going to have to leave, and I said, no, no, no, I got a back injury. I don't know what's wrong, and she was like, okay, and I was like, devastated. I had a pain in my side. That was so bad."

Gretzky revealed that he was experiencing great pain on the side of his back but wasn't sure what it was. He went to the doctor to have it checked out, but they couldn't identify whether it was due to a torn rib or cartilage because the doctors didn't know.

"I went to four doctors who checked, and they didn't know if I had a torn rib or cartilage or if they didn't; they had no idea."

On Sept. 14, the same year his son Trevor was born, Gretzky returned to the LA Kings' training camp. He revealed that after the training camp, he began to experience back pain that was so severe that he couldn't even move properly.

Following a visit to the doctors at the Kerlan-Jobe clinic, it was discovered that "The Great One" had a herniated disk:

"I went to four doctors who checked, and they didn't know if I had a torn rib or cartilage or if they didn't; they had no idea. And I went to training camp on the first day, September 14, when my son Trevor was born. And we're in Big Bear. And I said, I can't move," Gretzky said

"I went to this doctor at the Kerlan-Jobe clinic, and he said, I'm going to check your back. I said, It's not my back. It's my side. And I had a herniated disk."

Among the doctors Gretzky visited during that time, some advised him to have the surgery, while others advised him not to. Gretzky had a rare herniated disc, and the possibilities of him recovering from surgery were slim.

So, rather than having surgery, "The Great One" chose to recover through steroids and other therapies.

"And I said, Oh my gosh, and he said, Look, we'll put you on steroids. I went to the Karlan-Jobe clinic, and I did steroids for four months. I did everything I could. And you know, when I came back in January, I missed the first 40 games and the team I played really well."

Following the medication, therapy and ample amount of recovery time over surgery, the hernia disc size was minimized, which helped Gretzky skate again.

Wayne Gretzky returned to the ice with a bang

After being diagnosed with a serious herniated disc, "The Great One" returned to the ice with a bang. The LA Kings were one of the best teams during the 1992-93 season, and Wayne Gretzky had to miss the last 40 games of the season.

However, come playoffs, Gretzky was back to his old self and helped his team reach the 1993 Stanley Cup finals, where they lost to the Montreal Canadiens.

"I played really well. In the playoffs. Our team played unreal. It was an incredible run. We weren't as good as Toronto, and we weren't as good as Montreal. But we beat Toronto, and unfortunately, we lost three overtime games in Montreal. But it was one of the proudest moments of my career."

Wayne Gretzky notched up 65 points through 16 goals and 49 assists that year. In the NHL playoffs that year, he accumulated 40 points through 15 goals and 25 assists.