Marty McSorley protected Wayne Gretzky in Edmonton, won the Stanley Cup in 1987 and 1988, and went to Los Angeles with him in the 1988 trade. An undrafted defenseman who could also play forward, he finished his NHL career with 3,381 penalty minutes. Life after hockey never took him far from the spotlight.
Where is Marty McSorley now?
Marty McSorley has stayed in front of the camera. As of November 2026, his speaking agency, Blue Sky Sports & Entertainment, describes him as a TV analyst for Sportsnet who has also worked on Hockey Night in Canada, and books him for speaking engagements, autograph signings, and fan events. In the fourth season of the hockey comedy Shoresy, which premiered in January 2025, he was one of three former NHL players Bell Media named as guest stars, alongside Doug Gilmour and Sean Avery.
| Marty McSorley: then and now | |
|---|---|
| Known for | Wayne Gretzky’s protector in Edmonton and Los Angeles |
| Position | Defense and right wing, shoots right |
| Born | 18 May 1963, Hamilton, Ontario |
| Drafted | Undrafted |
| NHL career | 17 seasons, 961 games, six teams |
| Stanley Cups | 1987 and 1988, Edmonton Oilers |
| Last NHL season | 1999-00, Boston Bruins |
| Current role | TV analyst according to his agency, as of November 2026 |
| Latest screen role | Guest star, Shoresy season 4, January 2025 |
| Represented by | Blue Sky Sports & Entertainment |
The screen is not new to him. While still playing, he had small parts in Hollywood films, including Bad Boys (1995) and Con Air (1997). After his playing days, he coached the Springfield Falcons of the American Hockey League and moved into television work. In 2018, he published a memoir, Hell Bent, written with Kirstie McLellan Day. He has also been a regular guest on hockey podcasts, where the questions tend to come back to one subject: what it was like to look after Gretzky for close to a decade.
Wayne Gretzky’s bodyguard in Edmonton: two Stanley Cups
No NHL team drafted Marty McSorley. He came out of the Belleville Bulls in the OHL, signed with Pittsburgh as a free agent, and had 224 penalty minutes as a rookie in 1983-84. He joined Edmonton for the 1985-86 season, and his job on the best team in hockey was simple: make sure nobody took liberties with Wayne Gretzky.
He did it well enough to stay. McSorley played 160 regular season games for the Oilers over three seasons and was part of the teams that won the Stanley Cup in 1987 and 1988. In the 1987 playoffs, he added four goals and seven points in 21 games.
Marty McSorley in the Gretzky trade to Los Angeles
On 9 August 1988, the Oilers traded Gretzky to Los Angeles, and Marty McSorley and Mike Krushelnyski went with him. Edmonton received Jimmy Carson, Martin Gelinas, three first-round picks, and $15 million.
In Los Angeles, McSorley became more than a bodyguard. He had 350 penalty minutes in his first Kings season, and in 1990-91 his +48 plus-minus led the NHL, a mark he shared with Theo Fleury. His best offensive season came in 1992-93, with 15 goals and 41 points, the same season he set a career high of 399 penalty minutes. He also played for Pittsburgh, the New York Rangers, and San Jose before a second spell in Edmonton in 1998-99.
Marty McSorley’s illegal stick in the 1993 Stanley Cup Final
The 1993 Final is the series Kings fans still bring up. Los Angeles won Game 1 in Montreal, and on 3 June 1993 the Kings led Game 2 2-1 with 1:45 left in regulation. The Canadiens asked for a measurement of McSorley’s stick; they ruled the blade’s curve illegal, and he went to the penalty box.
Eric Desjardins tied the game on the power play and then scored 51 seconds into overtime. Montreal won the next three games as well and took the series 4-1. McSorley finished those playoffs with 10 points in 24 games. Gretzky has his own story about McSorley’s illegal stick.
How Marty McSorley’s NHL career ended in Boston
Marty McSorley signed with the Boston Bruins for the 1999-00 season and played 27 games. On 21 February 2000, in a game in Vancouver, he struck Donald Brashear of the Canucks in the head with his stick. The NHL suspended him for the rest of the season, and in October 2000 a British Columbia court found him guilty of assault with a weapon and gave him a conditional discharge with 18 months of probation. He never played another NHL game.
Marty McSorley’s NHL stats
| Season | Team | GP | G | A | P | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1983-84 | Pittsburgh | 72 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 224 |
| 1984-85 | Pittsburgh | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15 |
| 1985-86 | Edmonton | 59 | 11 | 12 | 23 | 265 |
| 1986-87 | Edmonton | 41 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 159 |
| 1987-88 | Edmonton | 60 | 9 | 17 | 26 | 223 |
| 1988-89 | Los Angeles | 66 | 10 | 17 | 27 | 350 |
| 1989-90 | Los Angeles | 75 | 15 | 21 | 36 | 322 |
| 1990-91 | Los Angeles | 61 | 7 | 32 | 39 | 221 |
| 1991-92 | Los Angeles | 71 | 7 | 22 | 29 | 268 |
| 1992-93 | Los Angeles | 81 | 15 | 26 | 41 | 399 |
| 1993-94 | Pittsburgh and Los Angeles | 65 | 7 | 24 | 31 | 194 |
| 1994-95 | Los Angeles | 41 | 3 | 18 | 21 | 83 |
| 1995-96 | Los Angeles and NY Rangers | 68 | 10 | 23 | 33 | 169 |
| 1996-97 | San Jose | 57 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 186 |
| 1997-98 | San Jose | 56 | 2 | 10 | 12 | 140 |
| 1998-99 | Edmonton | 46 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 101 |
| 1999-00 | Boston | 27 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 62 |
| Total | 961 | 108 | 251 | 359 | 3,381 |
Figures are from Hockey-Reference. He added 29 points and 374 penalty minutes in 115 playoff games.
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