Since we'll be drawing a full body shot of the legendary Wayne Gretzky, we should first get a good look at his face. Here is a quick head sketch for reference.
To draw Wayne Gretzky, we should first sketch in some basic guide line. Using a 2H or harder pencil, lightly sketch in a stick figure shape such as this one. These lines do not have to be perfect, since they will be erased later on. He should be hunch over, since he'll be gliding his hockey stick in front of him. Simply draw a long curved C shaped line to represent the backside of his body. The bottom of the line should then curve downward slightly for the leg and have a foot shape at the bottom. The basic shape of the right leg should protrude from behind this line. He arms should be in front of his body with his right arm bent.
Let's work on his face first. Use the above headshot for reference. His head should be tilted down slightly, but his eye should be looking straight ahead. He has very light and thin eyebrows which are virtually indistinguishable from this distance. He has a long nose and his mouth has thin lips. Use your construction lines to help place the facial features.
Now draw the contours of his face and jaw line, as well as his right ear. He has a long chin, creating a long, smooth jaw line. His ear should rest slightly high on the head from this angle, the middle of which should align with his eyes.
Hockey players would be killed on the ice without their helmets. His helmet only covers his cranium and has 2 rows of square shaped ventilation holes around the top. Be sure to draw the strap that wraps beneath his chin.
Draw his massive shoulders, which appear large due to the amount of protective padding underneath the shirt. The left shoulder should be pointing towards the ground, and the right shoulder should be pointing upwards. Draw numerous creases in the fabric emerging from his chest. Draw a thick line of trim that encircles the shoulders, but make sure that is molds to the contours of the folds and wrinkles.
Now draw his arms. The left arm should be stretched towards the ground, and the right arm should be bent so that the elbow is pointing away from the body. The shirts worn by hockey players are very large and loose to allow for all the needed padding underneath. Be sure to draw many creases and folding merging into one another and wrapping around the arms. Do not worry about emblems or trim just yet. We will add that later.
Draw his massive hockey gloves. These things are huge so as to provide adequate protection from opponent's hockey sticks hitting the hands. The gloves are made in multiple section of padding. The largest section of padding should wrap around the wrist. Numerous smaller pieces wrap around the hands, and more pieces cover the thumb and fingers. The gloves should be clenched, as he will be holding a hockey stick. Notice how palm of the left glove is facing upwards, opposite that of the right glove.
Draw his long hockey stick in his hands, reaching down to the ice. It should extend towards us, well below the location of his feet. The handle is long and straight, but it curves sharply and widens as the end.
Go back to his upper body and draw his shirt. It should hang loosely in the front, but it should wrap high up on his waist with is far up his body from this perspective, since he is hunched over. His waist should almost be as high up as his left shoulder.
Draw his left leg, which should be perfectly straight and coming towards us. The leg should appear thick due to the padding. Sections of padding should wrap around the knee and angle.
Now draw his ice skate on his left foot. The shoe part should resemble a basic tennis shoes with laces crisscrossing over the top. Draw a couple laces blowing to the side. The metal skate beneath the shoe should be several inches tall and rounded on the front. It should not stick out beyond the side of the shoe on either side.
Draw his right leg trailing behind him. We should not see much of the leg, but we should be able to see the entire upper part of his skate.
Finally, go back to the e