The house where Peter Pocklington traded Wayne Gretzky is on Edmonton's tax auction list.
Pocklington was the Oilers' first owner, holding the team from 1976 to 1998 through five Stanley Cups, and remains best known in Edmonton for the 1988 trade that sent Gretzky to Los Angeles.
The property at 8638 Saskatchewan Drive NW, overlooking Hawrelak Park and the river valley, is one of nearly 300 properties the City may offer at public auction on October 29 at City Hall.
Before anyone gets ideas: you can't buy it for the unpaid taxes.
How the auction actually works
Every property is auctioned at fair market value, set as a reserve bid determined by an independent appraisal.
On top of the purchase price, the buyer pays the outstanding taxes and any other outstanding fees.
"You can find out what the property taxes are that are owing, but you certainly can't purchase this property for that," realtor Sally Munro of Century 21 Masters told Global News.
The City's assessed value on the lot is $2.7 million, which for 2026 works out to a municipal property tax bill of more than $28,000.
Municipalities in Alberta hold these auctions under the Municipal Government Act to recover taxes on properties in arrears for more than two tax years. Proceeds go first to the outstanding tax balance, then to creditors.
The list is advertised in the Edmonton Journal between 10 and 20 days before the auction, and the City Assessor can adjourn the auction for up to 60 days.
It might not sell, and it might not go at all
Anyone can stop the process. The owner or any interested party can pay the outstanding taxes, penalties and associated costs before the auction, and the property comes off the list.
Plenty don't sell either. Twenty-six properties on the 2026 list also appeared on the City's 2023 list.
For scale, the 2023 auction list carried 753 properties representing more than $8 million in outstanding taxes.
Anyone planning to bid should review the Public Auction Listing and appraisal reports the morning of the auction to confirm a property is still available.
The City always gets paid
Munro was blunt about how this works.
"One thing I know about property taxes in the City of Edmonton: they take priority over everything," she said. "They always collect their money, their fees. They always charge interest. Even as a senior, if you postpone your taxes, they will put a caveat on your home."
A Tax Recovery Notification is a caveat registered on the Certificate of Title. It doesn't take the property, but it starts the clock.
The house
Built in 1940. Seven bedrooms, eight bathrooms, an outdoor pool, hot tub and patio, in the Windsor Park enclave.
The listing describes it as a redevelopment or renovation opportunity, and the layout reflects when it was built rather than how people live now. The kitchen has been updated, with a large window facing the river.
It's currently listed at $1.98 million. It first came to market in early 2023 at $3.2 million, fell to $2.9 million, dropped another $500,000 to $2.4 million in August 2024, and has come down again since.
What happened inside it
Pocklington owned the Oilers through the dynasty era that produced five Stanley Cups with Gretzky, Mark Messier, Jari Kurri and Paul Coffey.
Some of Edmonton's most consequential hockey deals were negotiated in this house, including the one nobody in the city has forgotten.
"I love all the history of Edmonton and I love the history of this property," Munro said. "Peter lived here many years, definitely through the iconic five Stanley Cups."
In 1982, Pocklington was shot in the home after being held hostage by a gunman for nearly 12 hours.
He sold the house to a businessman in 1991. Now 84, he lives in Palm Springs.
If you want to bid
The auction is October 29 at Edmonton City Hall, starting at 10 a.m.
Read the Terms and Conditions of Sale first. Properties sell as-is, the reserve is fair market value, and the outstanding taxes and fees are yours on top of the bid.
The full listing and the appraisal reports are on the City's tax sale auction page, and the list is finalized the morning of.
Sources
Tax Sale Auction — City of Edmonton
2026 Tax Public Auction List — City of Edmonton
Municipal Government Act, Chapter M-26, RSA 2000, Part 10, Division 8
Comments
Conversation