Wayne Gretzky statue grossly vandalized outside Edmonton Oilers arena

The Oilers had an extremely tough night with the loss of Leon Draisaitl, Connor McDavid, and Stuart Skinner with injury that may have animated fans - but this is truly disgusting on many levels.

According to multiple posts from Edmonton news outlets this morning, the statue of Wayne Gretzky hoisting the Stanley Cup was vandalized. Out of respect to the legend and because of the disgusting content, we have chosen not to show the picture.

It's a shocking sight to see on a statue in Edmonton, dedicated to a legend of the Oilers and the NHL.

The statue outside Rogers Place commemorates Gretzky's legacy and that of the 80's Oilers dynasty. The statue is over 9 feet tall and 950 pounds, a massive symbol that makes this vandalism very deliberate.

Gretzky has been at the center of debate in the last few months, especially around the time of his appearance at the 4 Nations Faceoff.

Gretzky faced criticism for not wearing a Canada jersey, but the Oilers legend did send gifts to Canada's locker room after their tournament win.

Additionally, Wayne has as in the news in the last week for filing a major lawsuit against a former business partner for making fraudulent claims on a weight loss gum product.

Hopefully things begin to look up for the Great One, who is taking heat on plenty of sides for plenty of issues at the moment. This display of vandalism surely can't feel too good on Gretz's ego.