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I know who the goalie is, says Wayne Gretzky

Posted: October 31, 2007
How precocious, as Wayne Gretzky blurts out "I know who the goalie is" that modeled for Ken Danby's "At the Crease". Like a first grader trying to garner the teacher's attention he finally reveals it to the world, a burden now off his chest. Last week, Leading with an opportunistic left hook, CanWest News Service asked Gretzky, if he would reveal the goalies identity. "Dennis Kemp is the name of the goalie," replied a Coyotes spokesman. Was this person on a speakerphone with the "Great One" during the interview? Oh, right - Wayne promised not to tell. I wonder how this anonymous Coyotes spokesperson found out? (2 minutes Mr. Gretzky for unsportsman like conduct). What right does Gretzky have divulging the identity of the goalie in this painting? The artist told him point blank, during a 2001 CTV Canada AM interview, "we don't say who it is". Gretzky responded: "You told me I'm not allowed to say it. But "The guy that was in the net was playing Junior B hockey for my dad in Brantford at the time," Gretzky said. And I remember seeing that picture for the first time, and I told Ken: 'I recognize that guy.' Because I recognized his style." Gretzky may be able to think fast on his skates and have an uncanny sense around the net, but he has a craving for attention that undermines any respect for the artist's wishes. If Danby wanted the world to know, he would have done so with a media release. Not even the young man who modeled for the goalie revealed his identity. I liken it to the citizen's of Gotham knowing Batman's identity. Somehow the super hero would become commonplace, a mere mortal; where the intention was to elevate the icon to a universal plateau for it's intended effect. To his death, the artist never divulged his subject's identity, insisting that At the Crease was "never intended to represent a particular player, but simply the personification of a goalie." Danby concluded, the experience taught him a crucial lesson: "I found myself understanding more and more that I should be responding on an intuitive plane rather than a conscious plane to my image-making. And I think that experience of At the Crease reinforced this." An anecdotal conversation appears on Danby's website. "One day a woman complimented me on my painting, At the Crease, which she referred to as 'that painting you did of the goalie, Ken Dryden.' She said that she had long had a print of it in her home and really enjoyed it. I thanked her, but also explained that, 'It isn't an image of Ken Dryden.' Looking puzzled she replied, 'Yes, it is.' I responded, 'No, it isn't.' After a long pause, she loudly explained, 'Yes, it is!' I quickly apologized, with the realization that she was right. It's really whoever one wants it to be." One other man knew Danby's secret. John Prigione was the Mad Hatters' statistician and son of the team's former owner. He helped Danby take photographs of the young goalie one night after a Mad Hatters' practice. He confirmed to CanWest Global News that it was true. Dennis Kemp was a talented junior goaltender who never made it to the NHL, but his willingness to work with the artist - and Danby's genius and execution - have made him not only a famous hockey player, but also a true hockey icon. The young goal tender Dennis Kemp is nowhere to be found to interview, so "At the Crease" still has a bit of mystery to it. We wish him well wherever he is, but for the wishes of Ken Danby, please continue to keep his secret.