Which NHL player has his number 99 retired league-wide?

Wayne Gretzky is the NHL player whose number 99 was retired league-wide.

The NHL retired No. 99 across the entire league at the 2000 NHL All-Star Game, making it unavailable to future players. The decision was inspired partly by Major League Baseball’s retirement of Jackie Robinson’s No. 42. Gretzky is the only player whose number the NHL has retired league-wide.

Gretzky wore No. 99 throughout his NHL career with the Edmonton Oilers, Los Angeles Kings, St. Louis Blues, and New York Rangers. His number was also retired separately by the Oilers and Kings, the two franchises for which he played the most significant portions of his career.

A common mix-up is confusing league-wide retirement with a team retirement. Mario Lemieux, Gordie Howe, and Bobby Orr have had numbers retired or honored by individual teams, but none has a number retired throughout the NHL. Gretzky’s statistical dominance explains the unique distinction: he finished with 894 regular-season goals and 2,857 points.