Great Book

[SabreFaninNYC]

I am currently reading "Money Players The Amazing Rise and Fall of Bob Goodenow and the NHL Players Association". Its a book that talks about the recent strike and puts it in the historical context of the NHL and the NHLPA over its years of existence. If you ever wanted to know about the inner workings of the NHL over the years- this is a great book and I am not even to the strike yet!

Do any of you have any favorite hockey books I can raid Amazon for next?

[TBLightningFan]

Here's some reads you might enjoy!:

The Code: The Unwritten Rules Of Fighting And Retaliation In The NHL

http://www.amazon.com/Code-Unwritten-Rules...8661&sr=8-1

The Game

http://www.amazon.com/Game-Ken-Dryden/dp/0...2958478-8116602

Hockey: A People's History

http://www.amazon.com/Hockey-Peoples-Histo...2958478-8116602

America's Coach: Life Lessons & Wisdom for Gold Medal Success: A Biographical Journey of the Late Hockey Icon Herb Brooks

http://www.amazon.com/Americas-Coach-Lesso...2958478-8116602

And a children's book, which I don't actually expect you to read, but it's kinda funny my Lightning's coach wife wrote a children's book:

Hey Coach!

http://lightning.nhl.com/team/app?service=...&bcid=1605#

Hope these help....maybe you've already read some of them.

[JeffB]

I also recommend "The Game" by Dryden, along with "Home Game" also by Dryden.

http://www.amazon.com/Home-Game-Hockey-Lif...47&sr=1-162

I'm really interested in Russian/Soviet hockey and suggest "From Behind the Red Line" by Tod Harjte from 1992. He was the first North American player to play in the Soviet Elite League. It's available in Hardcover on Amazon for 62¢, so how can you go wrong?

http://www.amazon.com/Behind-Red-Line-Amer...3814&sr=8-1

I'm also about to read "King of Russia" about coach Dave King becoming the first Canadian to coach in Russia. Also of interest was Evgeni Malkin was on that team. Being a brand new book, it's slightly more expensive than pocket change. It's been a long time since I've read "From Behind the Red Line", so perhaps after reading this newer account of Russian hockey, it might be interesting to read it again and compare the differences, or lack of differences over time.

http://www.amazon.com/King-Russia-Russian-...4109&sr=1-1

"The Boys of Winter", about the 1980 USA Olympic team is a topic that never gets old.

http://www.amazon.com/Boys-Winter-Untold-O...505&sr=1-45

Another topic close to my heart is the World Hockey Association, which has a couple of books, including "The Rebel League: The Short and Unruly Life of the World Hockey Association"

http://www.amazon.com/Rebel-League-Unruly-...689&sr=1-91

I've got others on my shelf that I haven't read yet, including "Cold War : The Amazing Canada-Soviet Hockey Series of 1972"

http://www.amazon.com/Cold-War-Amazing-Can...7651698-8457413

and "Messier"

http://www.amazon.com/Messier-Jeff-Z-Klein...5481&sr=1-3

"When the Lights Went Out: How One Brawl Ended Hockey's Cold War and Changed the Game"

http://www.amazon.com/When-Lights-Went-Out...7651698-8457413

"The Best Game You Can Name"

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/077101459...id=1UVJFNZ0TL89

On the other hand...I don't recommend "Pavel Bure: The Riddle Of The Russian Rocket". Too much heresay without enough facts. Bure himself was not interviewed for the book. I just thought it was too much like an extended tabloid newspaper article in book form. This review from Amazon sums it up for me. "He was unable to get the assistance from key figures such as Brian Burke, Pat Quinn, key Canuck players, family and friends. As a resident of Vancouver who read most of the newspaper articles that were cited in this book, all Banks did was accumulate secondary sources that are available to the public into one abridged book."

For more reviews, you have got to check out http://www.hockeybookreviews.com/ the book reviews done by Joe Pelletier, the author of my new favorite place on the web, http://www.greatesthockeylegends.com/ , which I cannot recommend enough.

One final thing about Amazon, ALWAYS check to see about the availability of a book in hardcover AND paperback. For example, "From Behind the Red Line" is on Amazon from 62¢ to $27 in hardcover, while the price for the paperback is an astonishing $18 to $73!! I think I'd rather risk the 62 cents for the hardcover myself...

[SabreFaninNYC]

I also recommend Jonesy which I just ended up reading. Of course, with Bucci ghosting it focuses more on stat lines and +/- then I would have liked but overall it gives a good sense of Jonesy's career.

[syndony]

A really revealing look at the workings of a professional sports union and their battle with the league,I also like the fact that Dowbiggin's sources are some of the smartest and most articulate, from former players like goaltender Mike Liut (now a player agent but who in 1987 was the NHL's highest-paid goalie with an underwhelming $400,000 per year salary)to present and former coaches, managers and player agents like former Bruin Mike Gillis,

[Displaced Swede - FJC]

Bruce Dowbiggen is a great writer, he has a column in the Calgary Herald...

The BEST Hockey book i have read is

"Future Greats and Heartbreaks - The day in the life of an NHL Scout" by Gare Joyce...

The columbus blue jackets let him hang out with the scouts and the draft team of columbus for i beleive the 2006 Draft....it is a great read.

[greyraven8]

another place for finding books (especially used books) is bookfinder.com searches many, many book dealers.

another one is thriftbooks.com

one of my favourite hockey books is Dave Bidini's "Tropic of Hockey" - rec team player goes to unusual places to play hockey - shopping mall in Hong Kong, Dubai, Transylvania, etc.

"The Death of Hockey" is a critique of NHL overexpansion, bad marketing, etc.

"Net Worth" was on t.v. on CBC and is also a book - gives a history of some of the owners and how they shafted the players in the past.

"Roger's World" is a good book about one of the NHL's most innovative coaches.

"Hockey Night in Moscow" tells of the 1972 series Canada vs the soviets. came out in 1972 but doesn't have a canadian bias like much of the media at the time. deals with all the games in Canada and Russian on and off the ice, and the sociological impact the games had on Canada at the time.

In "Zamboni Rodeo" the author follows the Austin Ice Bats of the CHL and tells some of the ins and outs of minor league in the southern states. I bought a signed copy from the author last year; he has a website and may still personally have some copies left.

[guam64]

Another topic close to my heart is the World Hockey Association, which has a couple of books, including "The Rebel League: The Short and Unruly Life of the World Hockey Association"

http://www.amazon.com/Rebel-League-Unruly-...689&sr=1-91

Finished that book a few weeks ago and it was a pretty good read. One book I am trying to find right now is Future Greats and Heartbreaks by Gare Joyce, supposedly his best amongst a lot of the good stuff that he writes.

[ConcreteCharlie]

Yes I am eager to read that one.

I love "Without Fear," which has many authors really, the most prominent/recurring of which is Johnny Bower. Great book with great photos, sweet look back at the game's best goalies.

Another bargain rack special with great photos is "Hockey's Golden Era: Stars of the Original Six," which has tons of cool Harold Barkley photos. He was really brilliant, one of my favorite sports photographers in an era where it was really a series of artful improvisations instead of high technology.

I thought "The Code" was a lame, repetitive, glorifying attempt to venerate fighting. i don't have a problem with fighting, but a lot of the stuff in that book was laughable. It was about as informative (or maybe a little less) than the documentary "American Pimp," and not half as entertaining. I read it because Kevin Westgarth said he found very helpful as he found his way as an enforcer, normally Westy is a pretty cerebral guy but I thought the book was glame.