1/3 R.I.P. Eddie Shack. “The Entertainer,” 4 Cups & one of hockey’s greatest characters, left us last night at age 83 following a battle w/ cancer. Sleep well, Eddie, your old pal/sparring partner John Ferguson is waiting for you upstairs. http://NHL.com  tribute to come.

2/2 Wayne Gretzky in “Eddie Shack: Hockey’s Most Entertaining Stories,” published last year: “Eddie had charisma that was above and beyond for a guy that was probably a third-line left-winger. …

3/3 Gretzky: “People loved (Shack) because they could tell he just played from his heart and I think that’s why fans and grandmothers and mothers loved him to death. They adored him because they enjoyed watching him play. … He’s a character and what you see is what you get.”