Hockey Books

Dick Irvin's book makes you a a priviledged listener to the stories of great and not so great NHL coaches. You read the thoughts and

philosophies of Mike Keenan, Harry Neale, Barry Melrose, Jacques Demers, and of course, the inimitable Don Cherry. Read how some of these coaches struggled with acceptance from players, fans and management; victory and, ultimately, defeat. A must read for hockey fans with a knowledge of the game and interesting to those

who are new to it.

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Dick Irvin's book makes you a a priviledged listener of the stories of great and not so great NHL coaches. You hear the thoughts and philosophies of Mike Keenan, Harry Neale, Barry Melrose, Jacques Demers, and of course, the inimitable Don Cherry. Read how some of these coaches struggled with acceptance, victory and, ultimately, defeat. A great read for hockey fans with a knowledge of the game and interesting to those who are new to it.

Irvin's anecdotal style serves the subject well, but the true authors are the coaches themselves. The book allows the coaches tell their tales, some tall, most of them funny and occasionally a dark one as well. If you are looking for a book on strategy, forget it, this book is about coaching in the NHL from a more stylistic perspective. In many cases, this is a study of the psychology of the men behind the benches and the cast of characters that they have stumbled across over the years. If you like a good yarn about how the game is played at the professional level, this book will be a favorite

THIS IS ABOUT THE START OF THE 4 STANLEY CUPS IN A ROW BY THE N Y ISLANDERS. THE AUTHOR ALAN HAHN, DESCRIBES HOW THE TEAM WAS ASSEMBLED PLAYER BY PLAYER AND THEN GIVES US A DETAILED SUMMARY OF HOW THE ISLANDERS CAPTURED THEIR FIRST CUP. I REALLY ENJOYED THIS BOOK AND FOUND IT TO INTERESTING AND ENTERTAINING. CAN'T WAIT TO READ HIS OTHER BOOK, FISH STICKS. A MUST READ FOR ALL ISLANDER AND HOCKEY FANS.

This book is a must read for all current and former Islander fans. So many great memories were rehashed while reading this book. The only problem I had with this book was that it had to end. By the way, not only should fans read this book, it should be required reading material for all current islanders' players. The book will bring you back to a better time and place when there were no ads on the boards, no half naked 16 year old girls skating between whistles, no instigation penalties, and most importantly, when the NY Rangers did not have the means to buy a Stanley Cup. Too bad hockey turned into the traveling circus as it is today.

Really, really enjoyed reading this book. From the foreword to the last page, the story of how the 1980 New York Islanders captured the Stanley Cup really comes alive. I felt the goosebumps of a 10 year old kid all over again as I read this book. My only regret: it's a bit short.

Do you like hockey? Well if you do then the book Brady, Brady and The Runaway Goalie by Mary Shaw and Chuck Temple is a great book for you. I chose to read the book because it had an interesting title and it was a hockey book. It is about a boy named Brady and another boy named Chester. They love hockey they play for a team called the Ice Hogs. They are playing against nasty team called the Dragoons. The whole team was in the locker room right before the game and guess what they were missing? Chester their goalie. I think you should never be scared and always do your best. Did they find Chester and did they win? Well you have to read the book to find out what happened.

The Dragoons were the chippiest players in the league. While most teams practiced very hard and tried to win by being good, the Dragoons won games by hitting their opponents while the referee's back was turned or spraying snow in the goalie's face. No one liked to play against the Dragoons.

It's no wonder that when the Icehogs were scheduled to play against the un defeated Dragoons, they were nervous. No one wanted to get hurt. Everyone just wanted to have fun and play some good hockey.

Of all the Icehogs, Chester the goalie was the most nervous. He knew how the Dragoons played and wanted the Icehogs to win. But in order to beat the Dragoons, they'd have to have a great goalie. Chester wasn't so sure that he could do the job.

If you have a young hockey fan in your house, this Canadian children's book series is charming. Best for kids preschool to early elementary, these are simple stories about a little boy who's so crazy about hockey that they have to say his name twice to get his attention. While the adventures all involve his youth hockey team, the Icehogs, they are really about friendship, teamwork, and the everyday troubles of typical grade school kids - Brady Brady always seems to have just the right solution for his team mates. Even though they aren't great literature, my 4 and 5 year old love them and want to hear them over and over.

I loved this book. It was not only entertaining, but it gave a lot of insight into the workings of the legal field in pro sports as well as television and entertainment. I found myself thinking "I'd forgotten all about that" or "Is that how that came about?", and the hockey names from the past that I'd long since forgotten were brought back to the present by the writing of Mr. Swados. This was well worth the time it took to read it!

Hockey fans who are avid followers of the sport will surely recognize the name of Robert O. Swados, who has been a league owner, executive, and franchise builder in the professional hockey world for over forth years. Counsel In The Grease: A Big League Player In The Hockey Wars provides a strong memoir of his encounters with coaches, players, and owners alike, describing the many changes he's observed in the sport since his initial involvement in the 1960s, and his up and down years with the National Hockey League. A lively set of insights on the sports world as a whole makes Counsel In The Grease a highly recommended pick indeed.

Good grief Robert, who was your fact checker?? Understandably this book was written by an aging old employee of the Sabres so a pass is given to him on his recollection of facts but GEEZ somebody at the publishing company should have checked this over before releasing this. Where do I begin? OK, Joe Daley was NOT traded for Roger Crozier...that was Tom Webster, Pat Lafontaine did not suffer his concussion against the Bruins, it was the Penguins, the Atlanta Flames entered the NHL in 1972 not 1974, the Capitals entered in 1974 not 1972, Floyd Smith was not the coach when Tony McKegney was drafted, Swados says he attended a game at the Copps Coliseum in Hamilton in 1981 and then in the next paragraph he says the building didn't exist in the early 1990's, which is it? Gil Perreault was not drafted in the Fall of 1969, Willie O'Ree was long out of the NHL (1960-61) when the Knox's had Oakland Seals ties, the Sabres did not play their first game in 1969, Dave Forman died in 1987 so how did you call him and ask for advice in the 1990's? The Buffalo Braves did not make the playoffs in the first 3 years etc. Facts like this should have been checked by SOMEBODY! All this and I'm only half way through the book. I'm all for telling the TRUE story of the Buffalo Sabres but find somebody who knows what's going on. What's Paul Wieland doing these days? John B.

I was very pleased, item was as described and it made my husband very happy when I gave it to him!
Thank you

This book is necessary for all true hockey fans. The book tells the stories of some of the great stars of the game from today and yesterday. The best part of the book is that it is written in their own words.

This is a great book for us hockey fans. The stories are short and interesting. Notable players from the history of hockey as well as current players are featured. Let's face it, we want to know everything about our favorite players, some of these stories are surprising.

It should have been clear to me from the other reviews, but I was somewhat disappointed at the beginning-level orientation of this book, and the overall sparseness of material. It is well-written, has a few wonderful Olympic anecdotes and some terrific Nagano pictures, but is clearly written for a young reader who is a complete novice in hockey. It's too young for my 12-year-old daughter (and me), in that there is just not enough content to make it hold our interest, even though we are die-hard women's hockey fans in this household. A keeper if one must have everything written about women's hockey, and a good book if it's for a new player or younger girl interested in ice hockey. I do wonder how many readers there are who BOTH need such a basic introduction to hockey AND will appreciate the Olympic info. Maybe this book was trying to do too much.

I really enjoyed reading this book. Since I already knew a lot of the basic hockey information from playing, my favorite parts were when Katie and Tricia told about their first hand experiances growing up as female hockey players, and winning Olymipic gold! Although I didn't need the info on the basics of hockey, they were writen in a very easy to understand way. If you want to learn how to play, definatly read that part of the book. I found this to be a very inspiring book. The pictures were great, and they showed how amazing it is to be a part of a team, something they focused on in their book. I hope anyone who sees this book buys it right away and reads it.

Tricia and Katie have written this based more towards the beginner type player. There are many great tips on both playing and equipment. Each player (Tricia and Katie) shares her thoughts throughout the book on various subjects such as the way they play and approach the game and the type of equipment preferred. Perhaps the best feature in the book, in my opinion, is the references to their fellow Olympic teammates and the insert pictures. That alone made the book worthwhile to me. :-) Overall, the book is well worth the asking price. You can't go wrong with something written by TWO gold medalists! :-)

I'd recommend this book to all beginners and general fans of Team USA.

If you are a hockey fan this book's for you! There will never be another hockey tournament again like the Canadian-Russian series of 1987 and this book captures all the action and behind the scenes drama of what is considered by many as the best and most exciting hockey series ever played. I thoroughly enjoyed this book and if you have any interest in the sport of hockey, you will too!

You owe it to yourself to check this out if you're a hockey nerd who loves the history of the game like I do.

As part of the trip to Canada, it was on the menu to read a good hockey book. I purchased this book before the trip in hopes of it being a worthy read. It is always disappointing to read bad material on vacation. Fortunately, this book did not disappoint. I remember this Canada Cup as a child. Unclear memories, but a hazy moment stands out. I remember the goal. I was just a child, but it left a mark of Canadian Hockey pride. We beat the Russians. This book took me back to childhood. It took me back to simpler time in hockey. Ken Dryden states that the best hockey was played during our childhoods. This was the time of the biggest stars. This book left me with chills at moments. It is a Canadian hockey fan's delight.

"My life changed in the time it took the sinister Dr. Zero to rub out his archenemy, the equally fiendish and always annoying Captain Doobie."

Not exactly the opening I was expecting for a novel about lost love and second chances. Erik Cagle's novel Gross Misconduct tells the story of Aury Treadway, a teenager growing up in the 1980's with big dreams of playing professional hockey and overcoming his bad luck with girls. It begins to seem like Aury will get both after meeting Jennifer, but then life...and a knee injury...gets in the way of his desires for the future. Years later, Aury begins to see an opportunity to reclaim his old dream of professional hockey, and has finally settled in to a stable life. Or so he thinks, until Jennifer reappears in his life.

The novel is told from the first person perspective. This perspective works well during the narration of the early parts of Aury's life. Cagle captures the vibe of high school in the 1980's well. And those of us that survived high school in that era can enjoy with a knowing chuckle several of the pop culture references. Both the main characters and the supporting characters develop unique personalities through Cagle's excellent use of dialogue in these scenes, and you quickly develop an attachment to them as if they were your own high school pals.

Unfortunately, the first person perspective doesn't carry the same weight as the timeline progresses. The casual, conversational language of the first part of the book gives way to a more formal, deliberate style. The characters don't seem to actually mature throughout the book. Rather, they come across as their teen selves attempting to act older. For example, Victory (Vic) Tattersall's false disinterest and pseudo-intellectual quips are funny as a teenager, but he doesn't seem to move beyond that as an adult.

Scenes involving intimacy are surprisingly abrupt considering the plot. Most are reduced to little more than a few sentences, and generally don't really provide a lot of insight into the characters or move the plot forward.

Fortunately, the strong beginning engages the reader to care about these characters, and you will want to follow it through to the end. While not surprising, the ending is gratifying for the reader. This novel will appeal to readers that enjoy character-driven narratives with fully developed characters.

I would have liked to have given this a 3.5, but the Amazon rating system doesn't really offer a lot of flexibility.

... for the past two nights, I've been reading Stephenie Meyer's bestseller "Twilight," and oddly, despite the complete disparity in subject matter, I can't help but be reminded of "Gross Misconduct," which I read a few months back. Both revolve around a high-school romance between two engaging and memorable characters. Both depict a first love that is as intense and powerful as is the desperate drive to stay together despite impossible odds. I think that anyone who's ever felt as though they'd been rendered helpless by their love for someone else could relate to Cagle's tale -- hockey fan or not!

This is a new writer with great promise. I read the book in one sitting on a snowy Saturday. Look for a lot more from Erik Cagle. Great read!

I haven't read many books about hockey coaching, but after recieving this book, I'm pretty happy with it. It teaches you the basic shooting principles and spends some time on each type of shot. Then it goes into sections about buildings skills for each type of offensive play your team might need to work on: 1-1's, setting up plays, etc. A good variety of drills are offerred in this book and the nice thing is you can photocopy them out one by one because they are restricted to facing pages - so that you don't have to carry the whole book around. I'll be using these drills with my kids roller-hockey team and I think it will help.

Santa dropped this one in my stocking. It's great, particularly if you are searching for half-ice drills -- about half of the 75 drills are designed for half-ice. The strength of this book is its emphasis on puck movement to create scoring chances. The corollary is also true -- by emphasizing movement on the attack, goaltenders also improve their positioning and mobility. The drills are well-suited to kids aged 9 and up. I have shared the book with other coaches and, perhaps the strongest endorsement --my house league hockey association has ordered copies for all of our coaches!

Not only does this book provide you with detailed drills , it backs it up with specifics on what areas the drill works on , and highlights. It also has well written introductions on individual areas and the skills needed to to become a better offensive player , well worth the time to read and digest the knowledge it provides .

awsom

i read it and it taught me every thing about hocke

Cam Neely does a good job of explaining the basics of hockey for the beginning fan. He shares his enthusiasm for the game well with the reader, and the book is very easy to follow. The plentiful photos and diagrams help explain all of the concepts and rules of the game. He discusses the basic positions and strategies, describes the NHL in detail and gives a good history of the league, and gives guidelines for learning to play. The writing style is simple and straightforward, but also a little redundant. I would definitely recommend this book for someone who is just discovering the game of hockey and wants to learn more about it. If you're already a fan and want to learn more about strategies and other aspects of the game, pass this one by. I've been following hockey for several years and wanted to learn more details about the game, but I was somewhat disappointed by the lack of depth in this book, as I already knew most of the information. But as I said, it's a great guide for new fans.