Outstanding example of the ticket stub from the NHL debut of Wayne Gretzky, considered by most to be the best hockey player of all time.  Gretzky earned his first NHL point on an assist in his October 10, 1979 debut in Chicago, as the Edmonton Oilers visited the Blackhawks. Debut ticket stubs from key Hall of Famers have been among the most highly sought-after collectibles in the hobby, and Gretzky stubs are no exception, with debut tickets reaching well into the five figure range.

The provenance of this particular stub is unique, in that it was used by a Chicago Blackhawks superfan. Skokie, IL resident Bob Gertenrich, nicknamed "Blackhawk Bob," attended virtually every Blackhawks home game beginning in 1966, and was a fixture at Chicago sporting events, to the point where he was profiled in the pages of Sports Illustrated.  Gertenrich, who passed away in the spring of this year, attended more than 2,000 consecutive Blackhawks games, including this one - and saved most of the tickets.  Graded VG 3 (MK) by PSA, the stub is lightly worn throughout.  "Blackhawk Bob" wrote the game details on the reverse, as he did with virtually every stub in his collection, which accounts for the MK qualifier.

One of the most important of all hockey debut ticket stubs, as owned by a Chicago Blackhawks Superfan, who used it to attend one of thousands of Chicago sporting events that brought him joy before his 2024 passing.