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The Great Gretzky Heist of 2022

April 11, 2022, 12:56 PM ET [0 Comments]
Shawn Gates
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Vicarious pain. We know it well don’t we?

- The second-hand embarrassment of seeing a friend crash and burn hitting on someone in the most cringe-worthy way possible.

- The sudden realization your bud is very obviously misjudging how a joke coming from them at eight years old is about to land with their father (“What’s the difference between snow men and snow women?”)

- Seeing anyone else take a shot below the belt (we all go into the fetal position, RIGHT?)


It’s not happening to us, but man do we feel it.

Cue yours' truly stumbling across the story of one Aron Gratias of northern Saskatchewan and the gut punch that came with the apparent theft of thousands of dollars’ worth of Wayne Gretzky memorabilia. Ughhh….

As reported by Colleen Silverthorn of CBC News , Gratias, who was in the process of moving communities, had chosen to store the expansive collection of jerseys, sticks, cards and other memorabilia in a storage container among other pieces of houseware that would eventually be relocated. Two weekends ago, a gutting find awaited his father in law as he checked in of the family’s belongings: the locks on the container had been cut. Aron’s wife confirmed his worse fears upon her visit: all the memorabilia had been removed, while other equally valuable home items were left untouched.

Among the stolen items were:

- 19 Autographed jerseys
- Large sized autographed pictures and paintings
- Autographed sticks and encased autographed pucks
- Approximately 10,000 cards, 2200 of which were Gretzky (including a graded PSA 8 rookie and many autographed cards)
- 1979 Gretzky Mattel dolls
- Autographed, and non-auto’d, figurines
- Team Canada autographed photos

It would not be unreasonable to estimate the financial loss as being well into the six figure range financially. Just a heartbreaking loss for a die-hard collector with eyes on passing these treasures, and the stories connected to them, down to his grandkids when the day came. Hopefully with the story being shared across North America and Europe a miracle may see Aron with some of his gear back. As for us all: let’s keep our stuff safe, ok?


Positive vibes and love to you and yours my friends. Let’s all take care of each other, ok?



If you or someone you know is in crisis and suicidal, please reach out! You are not alone, people care, and people want to help! You are loved and worth the time! Go here to Wikipedia for a list of international suicide crisis hotlines and reach out to the appropriate one.


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Do you have a piece of treasured memorabilia that has a great story behind it? Let me know and you can be featured in an article. Doesn't matter how big or small the piece is, how valuable it may be, or whether it's a common item or more oddball. If you think it has a story, contact me via the information below and we'll chat. In the meantime, check out some previous "Display Case" articles via the links below to see what others have submitted in the past...
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Shawn Gates

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Facebook: ShawnMcShawn
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