Was Wayne Gretzky traded at a backgammon table?

Fact or fiction?

Was the Edmonton Oilers' Stanley Cup dynasty between 1984 and 1990 born on a backgammon table in 1978 as part of a bet? Depending who you ask, the answer is yes and no. There is a side to this legendary tale which leads to a yes answer, but others will tell you that the story behind the Gretzky "sale" to Edmonton by Indianapolis was simply an economic deal that was designed to bail out a failing franchise, and that money was earmarked to have taken care of Gretzky's former teammates so they would get their paychecks until the end of the 1978-79 season.

There is one indisputable fact -- Gretzky was moved by Indianapolis to Edmonton in what turned out to be the last year of play for the WHA, and the trade served as a significant building block in assembling one of the greatest teams in NHL history.

But the story behind the trade has always been a little murky.

In the summer of 1978, the 17-year-old Gretzky, who had been a Canadian icon since he was 6, signed a personal-services deal with Indianapolis owner Nelson Skalbania. But his Racers career would last just eight games. On Nov. 2, 1978, Gretzky would be the centerpiece of one of sports' strangest deals.

Indianapolis wasn't a thriving hockey metropolis, but Gretzky's possible new city, Edmonton, was. Edmonton was also one of those "destination" cities. The NHL was allegedly interested in moving one of its financially failing teams there in the mid 1970s, and Edmonton was very receptive to either getting a failed team or being part of an NHL-WHA merger.

Skalbania gave Oilers owner Peter Pocklington a chance to add a Canadian icon, Gretzky, which figured to bolster the Oilers' chances of getting into the NHL. There were two catches. Skalbania offered Gretzky's services to both Pocklington's Oilers and to the Winnipeg ownership group and "the Gretzky sweepstakes" would involve a game of backgammon. Winnipeg's owner, Michael Gobuty, backed off, but Pocklington did agree to Skalbania's backgammon challenge. Pocklington put up some of his artwork, while Skalbania is supposed to have anted up Gretzky.

Over the years, some people have said that Skalbania really did set down those parameters and others have said the "bet" was just a fable. But there is one man who said the trade really happened over a backgammon board.

"It all started in a private jet between Nelson Skalbania and Peter Pocklington, and it was a backgammon game with pretty high stakes as it turns out," said Larry Gordon, who was the Oilers' general manager in 1978. "Peter won that game and there was a wager made, some money exchanged hands and Wayne Gretzky, Eddie Mio and Peter Driscoll ended up in Edmonton Oilers uniforms.