Story Summary
Los Angeles Kings captain Drew Doughty has shared a childhood letter he wrote to Wayne Gretzky, the club’s former captain, when Doughty was five years old.
The two-page note offers an unusually personal glimpse of Doughty’s early attachment to hockey and the Kings. He told Gretzky that the Kings were his favourite team, recalled trying to stay awake to watch hockey as a two-year-old, and asked the NHL great for an autograph.
Doughty also wrote about his youth hockey experience, saying: “We don’t keep score, and the coaches always tell us we tied.” The letter included a request for Gretzky to say hello to former Kings goaltender Kelly Hrudey, while a postscript congratulated Gretzky on reaching 2,500 NHL points.
Key Facts
- Drew Doughty, the current Los Angeles Kings captain, shared a letter he sent to former Kings captain Wayne Gretzky when he was five years old.
- Doughty wrote that Gretzky was his favourite hockey player and that the Los Angeles Kings were his favourite team.
- The letter said Doughty’s mother had told him he used to cry in an effort to stay up late and watch hockey when he was two.
- Doughty asked Gretzky for an autograph and requested that he say hello to former Kings goaltender Kelly Hrudey.
- In the postscript, Doughty congratulated Gretzky on his 2,500th NHL point and mentioned that his grandmother had been at Parkwood Hospital in London, Ontario.
IHM Discussion
The letter is a small but telling connection between two Kings captains from different eras. Its appeal lies not in a new hockey development, but in the unfiltered voice of a five-year-old who already cared deeply about watching the game, collecting autographs and following the club.
Doughty’s note is especially striking because it is so specific. He did not simply identify Gretzky as a favourite player; he raised youth hockey, named Hrudey and passed along a family anecdote. The details make it feel like genuine correspondence rather than a polished keepsake created years later.
For Doughty, now a veteran defenceman and Kings captain, sharing the letter places his present role alongside an early memory of the franchise he supported as a child. It also preserves the straightforward enthusiasm of a young fan writing to one of hockey’s defining figures.
Why It Matters
The letter gives Kings followers a rare personal thread between the club’s past and present leadership. Gretzky’s time as captain remains part of the organisation’s history, while Doughty now carries that responsibility for Los Angeles.
It also underlines the human side of a long NHL career without overstating what the note means. Doughty’s childhood affection for the Kings is documented in his own words, and the letter shows how closely he was already following hockey before becoming a prominent figure within the organisation.
Fan Pulse
For Kings supporters, the strongest detail may be the lack of polish. Doughty’s five-year-old voice moves from youth hockey frustrations to autograph collecting, Hrudey and a family connection in London, Ontario. That range gives the letter its charm and makes the captain’s link to the club feel personal rather than ceremonial.
Mini Q&A
Who did Drew Doughty write to as a child?
Doughty wrote to Wayne Gretzky, the former Los Angeles Kings captain.
What did Doughty say about the Kings in the letter?
He wrote that the Los Angeles Kings were his favourite team.
What milestone did Doughty congratulate Gretzky on?
He congratulated Gretzky on reaching 2,500 NHL points.
Coach Mark Comment
The note shows an early fascination with the sport beyond simply watching it. Doughty was paying attention to games, players and his own youth-hockey environment, which is the kind of curiosity that often keeps young players engaged. The important point is not to draw a straight line from a childhood letter to an NHL career, but to recognise the genuine enthusiasm captured in it.
IHM Final View
Doughty’s letter to Gretzky is a warm piece of Kings history: a future club captain writing openly to a former one. Its value is in the details, from his favourite-team declaration to the request for a greeting for Hrudey, and in the reminder that even established NHL figures began as young fans of the game.