T1B

I heard he got busted by New Jersey state police for running a multi-million dollar gambling ring.


Brutal

The story

I wonder who the NHL players are. Bad story, looks like Gretz had better look for a new assistant coach.

Kind of sucks. Doing drugs or fathering fun babies or whatever else players get mixed up is is one thing but players/coaches involved in gambling is just plain un-American.....or un-Canadian, I guess. I kind of stole that from Caretaker in "The Longest Yard" but man that sucks. Rick Tocchet was always one of my favorite players.....played hard, hit hard, fought hard, and could score plenty. You always wonder why guys like Nate Newton and Bam Morris get caught in east Texas with 150 lbs. of weed in the trunk........and now, guys like Tocchet getting busted for running gambling and who knows what else. Chances are, they blew all their money on booze, dope, whores, bad parlays, swampland in New Mexico, etc. and needed fast $$$. They're not the first....won't be the last. Who assists Gretz next, Tim Kerr?

I just saw Gretz under siege in a press scrum. Obviously, he can't comment on most of the juicy questions.

He said all of the betting was football related. Like that even matters when you're being charged for what? Racketeering & money laundering.. Good lord.

He could get 10-20 years for this.

It's a shame becuase not even 2 months ago...Leonard commented that Ricky would make a great head coach.

Gretzky's wife has been implicated as one of the people who placed wagers.

Of all the stupid things one could do, that's gotta rank right up there. :?

Dinsdale is trying to bring down the NHL in Main Street but this only hurts Tocchet and those players involved. They'll be dealt with accordingly. I'm not about to start point fingers at the entire league as being dirty. This isn't like the steroid issue in baseball unless it is proven that this guy has a long list of players involved. However, this isn't an on the ice issue like the McSorley or Bertuzzi incidents and nothing like the year and a half long lockout. Compared to those things, this is small potatoes. Tocchet will be brought down but the sport of hockey.

Shoalzie wrote:Dinsdale is trying to bring down the NHL in Main Street but this only hurts Tocchet and those players involved. They'll be dealt with accordingly. I'm not about to start point fingers at the entire league as being dirty. This isn't like the steroid issue in baseball unless it is proven that this guy has a long list of players involved. However, this isn't an on the ice issue like the McSorley or Bertuzzi incidents and nothing like the year and a half long lockout. Compared to those things, this is small potatoes. Tocchet will be brought down but the sport of hockey.

why would you sweat Duncedale?


NHL attendance is up bigtime this year.

Tocchet is a complete moron, and Janet Gretzky is a moron for placing bets with him. Ever hear of an offshore book?

Gretz is so chummy with Tocchet that he will not fire him.

I'm curious as to what the facts of the case really are. Did Tocchet just bet on games? Did Janet Gretzky bet in Wayne's place?


I' am not saying that it's right, or legal, but I've placed bets with a bookie. Half the guys I know have placed bets with a bookie.

I have a hard time believing that Gretz did not know what was going on. His best friend and his wife were both involved, how does he not know? And as Blitz alluded to, was Janet placing bets for someone else, perhaps someone so high-profile that he might not want it to be known that he was betting on games (also someone stupid enough to use his own wife)?? I also heard that an NHL owner was implicated in the betting ring, does the number 66 come to mind? I also heard that it wasn't just football that was bet on, and that the NJ state police have not stated that hockey was not involved. This could be bad. Very bad.

Cross Traffic wrote:Ever hear of an offshore book?

How about Vegas? How far is Phoenix from Sin City? Tocchet is a moron for doing this and when I hear that organized crime could be involved, that some serious shit. I'm praying that Gretz isn't involved but with his wife implicated, he becomes dirty by proxy.

Shoalzie wrote:How about Vegas? How far is Phoenix from Sin City?

This goes back to Tocchet's Philadelphia days, and Tocchet is being investigated for running the thing, not betting.

As for Gretzky, there was a clip of him in a media scrum last night and one of the reporters asked him if he was aware that his wife's name had been mentioned in the rumours... Gretzky kind of made this sheepish grin and chuckled out, "oh really, well I guess you'd have to ask her"... didn't seem as though he was as unaware as he intended to feign.

But regardless, I fail to see what the big deal is for the people placing bets, unless they're betting on the sport they're participating in. Tocchet is obviously a dirtbag if the connections to organized crime are truthful, but personally I don't have anything against a guy betting on a football or basketball game.

JD wrote:But regardless, I fail to see what the big deal is for the people placing bets, unless they're betting on the sport they're participating in. Tocchet is obviously a dirtbag if the connections to organized crime are truthful, but personally I don't have anything against a guy betting on a football or basketball game.

Exactly. I love how anyone wants to spin this into hockey's problem. Roenick was implicated for having gambling debts...how was that the NHL's problem? Guys with money like to play around with it. I heard Michael Jordan liked to partake in a few wagers in his day. Gambling can be a harmful thing it if become a bad habit but for rich guys making bets, it's pretty tame. I think Tocchet is in the worst shape out of this matter since he's the head of operation. The players involved, whoever they are, don't really deserve as much as just a wag of the finger for getting involved in a shady operation. If they just went to Vegas and placed bets, they wouldn't be brought into a mess like this.

Don't even have to go to Vegas, there are sportsbooks at the Nevada/Arizona/California border in Laughlin, about 5 hours from Phoenix by car, an hour plus by plane.

I'm wondering if Bettman is going to lay a suspension on him until this shit is cleared up.

Go ahead and add Roenick and the Bruins Travis Green to the list of NHL players who are also involved.

How in the hell does Gretz not know that his wife was betting $500 000 with Tocchet?
Other than he chose to stick his head into the desert sand...

Kings announced today during the game that they have no comment on JR's involvement (go figure) due to the legal issues.

1.7 mil over a 40 day period. Nice going Rick, enjoy the time in the NJ pen.

Cross Traffic wrote:Tocchet is a complete moron, and Janet Gretzky is a moron for placing bets with him. Ever hear of an offshore book?

It's the most run that "The Unknown Ingenue" has gotten in years!

props to you shoalz but i believe you are dead wrong. while hockey is my first and foremost love among all sports, i'm not nieve enough to say "as long as they didn't bet on hockey, its ok." wrong. tocchet was making tons of money on this shit, that's why he was in it, not like he was looking for a quick way to feed his family.

what if tocchet comes out on a poor streak and owes six figures? (hypothetically) even if they didn't bet on hockey? with the mob involved, all it takes is "rick, you owe us 6 figures, we're betting it all on the 'yotes losing tomorrow. you and gretz (also involved obviously) make it happen."

there's your problem. and it's only going to get worse, the investigation by both the feds and nhl is just beginning.

and if the feds are "just beginning" an investigation, well, grab your ankles and prepare for the worst. there is no such thing as "good behavior" or "early release" in the federal prison system (not like either will get that, but you get my gist.)

i'm a huge tocchet fan, and i hate the fucking argument that "you can shoot up on center ice and not face the same penalty." gambling compromises the integrity of any sport you are involved in. that's why they say DON'T BET ON ANYTHING not just don't bet on the sport you play in. you get involved in illegal betting (especially with the fucking mob) then everything is fair game.

hope this works out best for the sport of hockey. i'm not so optimistic right now.

p.s. the guys are not average joes betting on sports, they are all obviously HUGE players in the NHL. to those defending tocchet and gretz, please quit pretending these dudes are just average joes "betting on sports."

both tocchet and gretz had a financial interest, and the fact that the greatone got his wife involved in this is pretty pathetic to me, regardless of their financial wealth and celebrity status.

Screw_Michigan wrote:props to you shoalz but i believe you are dead wrong.

Props for what?

I can understand your stance. I don't like the idea of a borderline Hall-of-Fame player and assistant coach being involved in something that you'd see on 'The Sopranos'. I do think Gretzky deserves some heat for not only his wife being involved but for him to allow one of his best friends and employees to something like this. How does something like this go on during a hockey season? He's claiming ignorance in this but to have a guy who stands next to him behind the bench be living a double life is puzzling. If Tocchet is such a good friend and his wife is laying down bets with him, how is unaware of what's going on?

But again, as long as this doesn't really affect the actual game of hockey, this is only a matter between Tocchet and the feds. Players should be more responsible and not place bets in an illegal manner. It wouldn't shock me to hear Roenick is involved considering his connections to the Coyotes and to Gretzky and Tocchet...plus, it was made public that he had gambling debts. However, I can care less if players bet on sports. Just don't bet on hockey and throw games...that actually hurts the integrity of the game. Having the greatest player in the game's history involved in something very illegal is bad for hockey...I'll agree to that. However, this doesn't bring the entire league down and it's not like they're the #1 league in North America anyways. The diehards won't be scared away by this but I'm sure, like me, they'd prefer to not see stories like this come out about the sport.

SM, you're making a lot of assumptions about what peoples' degrees of involvement were. I would suggest that yours is the worst-case scenario.

And keep in mind what we're saying here: nobody's condoning Tocchet's alleged activities. Being involved with the mob in an illegal business is dirtbagish stuff... especially if it compromises the integrity of the sport he's involved in.

But I still reserve judgement for the bettors.

Great post, Screw. I hate disagreeing with JD and Shoalzie but even if Tocchet et al are only betting on football and basketball, it's still wrong for pros to be doing this. And this looks like a fairly sizeable operation so the temptation for involvement in hockey is far too great. That's why in all pro sports locker rooms, there are giant signs warning of gambling, regardless of sport. Athletes are just better off staying away from it.

Tocchet is one thing. But Gretzky is another. This guy has been the classiest athlete (aside from his little whining act at 2002 Olympics) for the last two decades or so. Media loves him, fans love him, Canadians revere him. Hell even most Americans know who he is and love this guy. For his name/image to be sulliled by this is my biggest fear in this whole thing.

Gretzky's involvement is the only thing that bothers me. He's the ultimate embassador of the sport and is all about intregity and class. For him to be involved in this hurts me as a fan and it's like punch in the gut for the sport. However, if he's a crook, he deserves to be punished. Tocchet is doing far worse things than just betting illegally. Getting involved in organized crime is a potentially dangerous situation. We already had to deal with some of things with Pavel Bure and the Russian mafia. We don't need guys like Rick Tocchet getting involved in shady stuff like this.

Reports circulating of Gretzky's involvement...it's not looking good for #99. I wish he'd be honest and not hide from the truth. If he did place bets, it's better to fess up now than to be nailed for purgery when this goes to trial. However, Pete Rose gambling didn't bring down baseball and Michael Jordan gambling didn't bring down basketball. Gretzky being involved probably kills his reputation and legacy more than it kills hockey. Hockey has more invested in Gretzky than other sports have had in other athletes. For the #1 guy to be involved in this is bad but this doesn't actually hurt the on ice product. If we find out that hundreds of players are betting on hockey and throwing games, then the league will face extinction.

http://sports.espn.go.com/nhl/news/story?id=2324402

Mustang wrote:I hate disagreeing with JD and Shoalzie but even if Tocchet et al are only betting on football and basketball, it's still wrong for pros to be doing this.

Stupid? Yes.
Wrong? We don't know yet.

Regarding Canadians' reverence for Wayne Gretzky: that's mostly reserved for Torontonians and Edmontonians. The dude's been nothing but a thorn in my side. Save for a couple instances with Team Canada, I've been cheering against him for most of my life.

This whole thing is an example of why it's dangerous to put so much reverence and importance on one person. We're all human and probably have some sort of dirt on us. Now people are shocked that this guy up on a pedestal may not be the angel he was portrayed to be... is it really that shocking? He is just a human being! Now Dion Phaneuf, on the other hand... :D

Ho ho ho The Teflon boy is looking pretty bad.

During a news conference Tuesday night, Gretzky said he had no knowledge of any gambling ring until Tocchet called him Monday night.

Yet just today:

State wiretaps in the unfolding NHL betting scandal caught Wayne Gretzky discussing the multimillion-dollar gambling operation run by his friend Rick Tocchet before the ring was dismantled Monday, according to law enforcement sources.

There is no evidence Gretzky made any bets, the sources said, but the secretly recorded phone calls show the hockey hall-of-famer knew about the gambling ring

Those two stories just don't add up.

So we're led to believe that Janet Gretzky dropped a cool $500 000 over the last six weeks. Give me a break. Wayner was dropping cash.

Hopefully, this will be a major distraction for an ailing Canadian olympic team. Every little bit counts!

Yeah, I just heard that on the radio. The Great One lied about his knowledge of the ring. The next shoe to drop will be that Janet was placing Wayne's bets for him. I heard she recently placed over $500,000 in bets. He's screwed. Sad fucking day for hockey and for sports in general. Think about this (and all the other scandals in sports) the next time your kid thinks pro athletes are role models. Even the Great One is not a role model. YOU have to be your kid's role model.

From a Steve Simmons article in todays sun.

Eventually, a man is judged by the company he keeps. Nelson Skalbania, the first owner to sign Gretzky to a professional contract, spent two years in prison for financial misappropriation. His next owner, Peter Pocklington, was scandal-ridden during his ownership of an Alberta company. After that, his Los Angeles friend, Bruce McNall, went to jail for defrauding banks of no less than $240 million US.

Now Rick Tocchet. Maybe his wife.

Sun Article

^^^ You can add Bertuzzi to that list. The Great One was so far up his ass. Add McSquirrly as well. They both did terrible things...and Wayne acted like they both walked on water.

The Rat Pack wrote:Hopefully, this will be a major distraction for an ailing Canadian olympic team. Every little bit counts!

You are soooo the biggest pussy in this forum. Thanks for the confirmation.

Whatever, dude. I think any poster who isn't Canadian would probably agree with me.

Anyway, it's true. The Canadian Olympic team is getting brittle on the blue line...and if the Bertuzzi & Gretzky scandal distract the team...good for everyone else.

Now go fuck yourself.

One thing Canada does have is depth we could make a team out of all the players that were left off Team Canada and still medal.

Yeah, but is it a gold medal? According to Wayne...anything less than a gold is a failure.

Which is a terrible thing to say.

JD wrote:

Mustang wrote:I hate disagreeing with JD and Shoalzie but even if Tocchet et al are only betting on football and basketball, it's still wrong for pros to be doing this.

Stupid? Yes.
Wrong? We don't know yet.

Regarding Canadians' reverence for Wayne Gretzky: that's mostly reserved for Torontonians and Edmontonians. The dude's been nothing but a thorn in my side. Save for a couple instances with Team Canada, I've been cheering against him for most of my life.

This whole thing is an example of why it's dangerous to put so much reverence and importance on one person. We're all human and probably have some sort of dirt on us. Now people are shocked that this guy up on a pedestal may not be the angel he was portrayed to be... is it really that shocking? He is just a human being! Now Dion Phaneuf, on the other hand... :D

Had to giggle a little about your feelings on Gretzky. But I've never read a negative word about that guy in over 20 years. Hmmm...maybe I missed the JD Journal (I do love watching the Toronto/rest of Canada rivalry....as well the Calgary/Edmonton thing). True, to idolize one person can be dangerous but in all the athletes, regardless of sports, and especially superstars, Gretzky has always come across as the classiest of them all. It is entertaining, though see him coach and berate officials during games. Jesus actually swears. But I have to admit I'm a bit shocked by his possible/likely involvement is something like this. And VERY disappointed.

Hell I live 3 blocks from Where he grew up and I am still pissed over the Game 6 1993 high stick no call.I feel sorry more for Walter that he has to go through this.

Anonymous sources strike again.

There is no verification that Gretzky discussed this 'gambling ring' with Tocchet and was caught on tape. In fact, Gretzky has said publicly that that conversation never took place. So who do you beleive.....somebody who hasn't mis-stepped ONCE in almost 30 years in the spotlight, or an anonymous source? Who do you think has more to lose if their statement turns out false? Not the anonymous source. I'll take Gretzky's word on this until I actually hear or see a legitimate transcript of this alleged conversation.

All you people clucking your tongues about "ooooo, Wayne Gretzky placed a bet" need to check yourselves. It's a bigger deal in the States because gambling is illegal (but you can own a semi-auto AR-15.....go figure).

Is it because your own lives are filled with failure and bitterness that you try to bring good peple down? Nothing gets the media (and pathetic media sheep, the no life couch potatoes) salivating like a smudge on the white knight's armour.

Gretzky won't be implicated in anything, and Rick Tocchet will get about 5 years at Club Fed. Tocchet should be the focal point here, not Wayne Gretzky.

Gretzkys on list of highest rollers

Call them the Great Betskys.

Hockey icon Wayne Gretzky, under scrutiny after his wife, Janet Jones, was implicated in a sports betting ring, has lost more than $2 million in Las Vegas casinos, an insider said.

Gretzky, head coach of the Phoenix Coyotes, has a credit line that allows him to bet up to $25,000 per hand but plays well below that level, I'm told.

"Anyone who bets $25,000 a hand is a whale. Less than half of 1 percent bet at that level," a casino executive said. "At $25,000, you've got a credit line of $1 million. At that level, you can demand anything you want."

Gretzky's wife normally plays at the $1,000-a-hand level, a source said. Both usually play blackjack. The couple often plays in the MGM Grand Mansion, where guests must risk $250,000 over two or three days to stay in the high-roller suites.

Didn't his wife hold a press conference to say: "I've never seen him place a bet except on a horserace"

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
more un-named 'sources'.


You're just jealous the corner store won't let you trade your food stamps for scratch and win tickets.

Gambling is not illegal. Running a gambiling ring is.

Are you Yanks that hard pressed to bring people higher than you down, that now Wayne Gretzky is crucified for excercising his God given right as an American to put 50 bones on black? Wagging your fingers and saying 'shame on him' for doubling down on a 10?!?!?!

Keep screeching, Yanks.....just don't wreck any hotel rooms when you come back from Italy without a hockey medal.

al? wrote: Keep screeching, Yanks.....just don't wreck any hotel rooms when you come back from Italy without a hockey medal.

BWAH!

Riggety RACK! that sheeit!

RACK Al?

I'm straight up sick of the story. Our media is waiting for Gretz to hang himself by fessing up for something he may or may not have done. Tocchet is the one that broke the law but they are swarming around the Gretzky camp because he's a big name. The sports media resorts to tabloid journalism much too often in stories like this. I'm not trying to defend Gretzky...but what do I have to do defend him for? He didn't break a law. This is the biggest non-story to come around in a long time.

al? wrote:Keep screeching, Yanks.....just don't wreck any hotel rooms when you come back from Italy without a hockey medal.

Don't be so hard on old Uncle Sam, there, al... they'll come back with a silver in the women's tournament.