ATLANTA — He doesn’t quite fit the mold of the current youth movement — fact is, there never was a mold for this one — but Wayne Gretzky would suit up one more time for the Rangers if the opportunity arises.
“If there was a Winter Classic in New York and they had a legends game, I’d be there in a minute,” No. 99 told Slap Shots by phone on Thursday. “I don’t play in old-timers’ games except for the [2003 Heritage Classic] in Edmonton, because they’re for old-timers, but I’d be there in a minute if the Rangers had one.”
The calendar can be a liar. The Great Gretzky may not be an old-timer, but he’s turning 50 on Wednesday, and yep, the kid who turned heads and NHL defensemen as a teenager will celebrate a milestone that demands his reflection pretty much because that’s what everyone else is demanding of him.
“I’m not making that big a thing of it, to me it’s another birthday, but I understand it might have some special significance to a lot of other people,” Gretzky said. “It seems like yesterday I was 17 years old, playing in an All-Star Game with Gordie Howe next to me, and I remember thinking, ‘Wow, my right wing is 50.’ And he was still about the best player in the WHA.
“When my dad turned 50, I thought he was really old,” he said. “And that’s probably the way our two youngest [7-year-old Emma and 10-year-old Tristan] think about me. What can I say? That’s the way it is.”
The way it is for Gretzky is that he and his wife Janet are civilian parents to their five children, including 22-year-old Paulina, 20-year-old Ty and 18-year-old Trevor, who all used to scamper into the lower press box at the Garden and draw with crayons while their dad played Broadway for the final three years of his career before the curtain came down with the April 13, 1999 Great Goodbye.
“They’re all doing great. Janet and I are in L.A., and it’s home,” Gretzky said. “I don’t look back at all, because when you do that, you miss too much that’s going on.”
Gretzky has not had an official role in or with the league since his departure from the Coyotes’ organization that did not come without some smudges. But
No. 99 said he harbors no grudges toward the NHL or anyone connected with it.
“Every day I was a part of the NHL was an honor for me, and even though I don’t have an official position now, I’m still in it, I’m still involved with hockey,” Gretzky said. “I keep in touch with my friends. We talk all the time about what’s going in the league. I guess I just don’t have a contract.
“Life goes on,” he said. “There’s a changing of the guard. I have nothing but fond memories. Everything I have in life is because of hockey. Like I say, I feel as if I’m still part of it all, but without the stress. I can sleep every night without tossing and turning over losing.
“What I miss most is walking into the room and seeing guys like Ulfie [Samuelsson] and sharing all the inside stuff with the guys. To me, it was always about the guys, Mess [Mark Messier] and Kevin Lowe and MacT [Craig MacTavish] and Leetchie and Ricky [Mike Richter] and Gravy [Adam Graves], just so many great teammates who I shared so much with,” Gretzky said. “That’s what made it so special.
“Now I watch and I know that our game is in great shape. I’m such a fan of guys like [Alex] Ovechkin and [Sidney] Crosby and [Steven] Stamkos, who aren’t only great players, but they play hard and with passion every night. I see guys like Taylor Hall come into the league. We’ve got great players in our game.”
It’s his game. Gretzky’s game. For the final three years of a career memorialized in the record books and in everyone’s mind’s eye, he brought everything that was left of that game to our town.
“The best three years of my life,” Gretzky said. “The friends we made, the culture and the excitement of the city, getting the chance to play in front of the most passionate fans in the world, I’m so grateful for the opportunity,” Gretzky said. “My only regret is that the first year [1996-97] when we made it to the conference finals, we just had so many injuries we couldn’t get through them, and then when Potsy [Alexander Karpovtsev] lost his mom and went back to Russia for the funeral before the third game against Philly, we were done.
“With Mess and Leetchie [Brian Leetch] and Ricky and Gravy, we had so much experience, I really think we would have given Detroit a run for their money in the Finals.”
But as far as regrets, they are few. The Great One doesn’t need an angel in search of his wings to teach him that he’s lived a wonderful life.
“I’ve been blessed,” Gretzky said. “I have a great family, great friends, my dad is doing great, I’m healthy. And I’m looking forward to whatever comes next.”
On Wednesday, it’s No. 50 for No. 99. Somehow, that rolls pretty easily off the tongue.
larry.brooks@nypost.com