Doug Ford defends Wayne Gretzky in between Trump-bashings: 'Give the guy a break'
"He's the most patriotic Canadian there is."
Ontario Premier Doug Ford gives a press conference on March 4, 2025. Right: U.S. President Donald Trump and Wayne Gretzky pose together in a now-deleted Instagram post.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford didn't hold back in his latest press conference on Tuesday, going all in on U.S. President Donald Trump over the new tariffs that just hit Canada.
But despite unrelenting and unfiltered attacks on Trump and allies like Elon Musk, Ford pulled punches for one person — known Trump supporter Wayne Gretzky.
For nearly 40 minutes, Ford slammed Trump as the one responsible for "absolute chaos," warning that Ontario is ready to fight back with its own countermeasures — including pulling U.S. liquor from LCBO shelves and cutting off critical exports like electricity and minerals — and stating that Americans "only have President Trump to blame" for the fallout.
He called out Trump's attacks on Canada's sovereignty, his economic policies, even his foreign alliances. "I see President Trump cozying up to Putin. What a disaster that is," Ford said. "He attacks his closest friends and neighbours ... and who does he cozy up to? Putin. You've got to be kidding me."
He also took aim at Trump's economic record, arguing that these new tariffs on Canada would only backfire. "This is hurting his red states. And isn't it amazing? He had a mandate to lower costs, lower inflation, create more jobs, and it's working against him."
But then, just as the press conference was wrapping up, Ford threw in a curveball — jumping to the defence of none other than Canadian icon Wayne Gretzky.
The Great One has been under fire in Canada lately for his public support of Trump, especially after attending the president's victory party last fall and inauguration back in January, not to mention being seen sporting a "Make America Great Again" hat.
With Trump's recent comments about Canada — including attacks on its sovereignty with jokes about making it the 51st state — many Canadians have been quick to criticize Gretzky for standing by him. But Ford wasn't having any of it. As he was wrapping up a press conference filled with jabs and snipes at Trump, he made one final plea for Canadians to lay off the hockey player.
"One other thing I want to mention is my friend Wayne Gretzky," he said. "He's the most patriotic Canadian there is anywhere on the planet."
According to Ford, the hockey legend should be spared because he never gave up his Canadian passport, unlike other Canadian athletes who go to live in the U.S. and "hand in their Canadian passport and get an American passport to pay lower taxes."
"I talked to Wayne the other day, and he was so choked up talking to me," Ford added. "He is a patriot. He loves Canada. He never gave up his Canadian passport."
"So, you know folks, give the guy a break. Just give him a break."
Ford had a vastly different message, however, for another Canadian passport holder who now calls the U.S. home — Tesla CEO Elon Musk. The leader of Trump's controversial Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), whom Ford referred to as "Trump's right-hand man," spent part of his education at Queen's University in Kingston.
"Isn't it ironic that he got educated, part of his education was at Queen's? And he's attacking the country and the province that gave him the opportunity to go to Queen's University?" Ford asked. "They should be embarrassed that he went to Queen's. He should be embarrassed to attack the people that took care of him for a number of years with his family."
With the midterm elections still two years away, Ford made it clear he hopes American voters will hold Trump accountable when the time comes. "He needs to pay the price in the midterms. If I've gotta go down there and knock on the doors myself, I will," he joked.
In the end, Ford spent nearly 40 minutes tearing into Trump, his policies, his economic impact and his global alliances. But when it came to Gretzky, there was only one message: "Give the guy a break."
Love this? Check out our Narcity noticeboard for details on jobs, benefits, travel info and more!
AI tools may have been used to support the creation or distribution of this content; however, it has been carefully edited and fact-checked by a member of Narcity's Editorial team. For more information on our use of AI, please visit our Editorial Standards page.