- Hardcover: 336 pages
- Publisher: Doubleday Canada; First Edition edition (Nov 20 2007)
- Language: English
- ISBN-10: 0385664400
- ISBN-13: 978-0385664400
- Product Dimensions: 22.9 x 16 x 2.5 cm
- Shipping Weight: 522 g
- Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (1 customer review)
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Amazon Bestsellers Rank:
#176,151 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #82 in Books > Biographies & Memoirs > Sports & Outdoors > Hockey
- #82 in Books > Sports > Biographies > Hockey
- See Complete Table of Contents
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Product Details |
Product Description
Product Description
“One of this continent’s master craftsmen of sporting prose” (Sports Illustrated) and three-time National Magazine Award-winner Gare Joyce goes undercover to learn the secrets of NHL scouts.
Veteran sports writer Gare Joyce realizes a long-held secret ambition as he spends a full season embedded as a hockey scout. Joyce’s year on the hockey beat is a steep learning curve for him; NHL scouts spend each season gathering information on players fighting it out to break into the world of professional hockey. They watch hundreds of games, speak to scores of players, parents, team-mates and other scouts, amassing profiles on all the top contenders. It’s a form of risk assessment–is this young hopeful deserving of a multi-million dollar contract?–and it can be a tough and thankless task. Scouts are ground into the game, picking up nuances of play that even the most committed fan would miss, but they are looking at more than just how well a kid can play. And come the final draft, only a tiny percentage of their full year’s work might matter.
Examining the amount of information gathered on the under-eighteen hopefuls, the scrutiny to which they are subjected, and the differences between the rigour of American and Canadian junior teams, Joyce opens a window on the life and methods of an NHL scout and penetrates the mysterious world of scouting as no one has before.
Veteran sports writer Gare Joyce realizes a long-held secret ambition as he spends a full season embedded as a hockey scout. Joyce’s year on the hockey beat is a steep learning curve for him; NHL scouts spend each season gathering information on players fighting it out to break into the world of professional hockey. They watch hundreds of games, speak to scores of players, parents, team-mates and other scouts, amassing profiles on all the top contenders. It’s a form of risk assessment–is this young hopeful deserving of a multi-million dollar contract?–and it can be a tough and thankless task. Scouts are ground into the game, picking up nuances of play that even the most committed fan would miss, but they are looking at more than just how well a kid can play. And come the final draft, only a tiny percentage of their full year’s work might matter.
Examining the amount of information gathered on the under-eighteen hopefuls, the scrutiny to which they are subjected, and the differences between the rigour of American and Canadian junior teams, Joyce opens a window on the life and methods of an NHL scout and penetrates the mysterious world of scouting as no one has before.
About the Author
Gare Joyce is a writer on the masthead of ESPN The Magazine. He is also a regular contributor to Christian Science Monitor, Canadian Geographic, Maclean’s, and The Walrus. Joyce has won three National Magazine Awards and is the author of three previous books, Sidney Crosby: Taking the Game by Storm, The Only Ticket Off the Island: Baseball in the Dominican Republic and When the Lights Went Out.
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Most helpful customer reviews
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Future Greats is a great read.,
By
This review is from: Future Greats and Heartbreaks: A Year Undercover in the Secret World of NHL Scouts (Paperback)
From the second I picked up this book I was hooked. Joyce intimately describes the year he spent following the game with regards to prospective players of the NHL. All access with the Blue Jackets during the 2006 draft to the U20's in Sweden to the junior games during the stretch run to the Memorial Cup the U18 tournament (the scouts mecca) and finally the 2007 draft in Columbus.Each series of events is meticulously described but in a way that gets to the point quickly and keeps the flow of the story going. Already fascinated by the junior process, this book gives insight into players lives leading up to the big day. I've never read anything that provides this level of access into a side of hockey that is shrouded in secrecy. A must read for any hockey fan but especially for a junior hockey fan.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews on Amazon.com (beta) Amazon.com:
4.2 out of 5 stars (4 customer reviews) 7 of 7 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
A True Inside/Behind the Scenes View of Hockey Scouting and Drafts,
By Sarah Weiler - Published on Amazon.com
This review is from: Future Greats and Heartbreaks: A Year Undercover in the Secret World of NHL Scouts (Hardcover)
If you are a hockey fan, I HIGHLY recommend this book. It shows you what teams go through to get the best players, and what players go through to be selected.Gare Joyce is a fantastic writer. He captures the inner workings of the hockey world like no one else, to date. I enjoyed this book from the preface through the acknowledgements. 2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
Very enjoyable,
By Kirk L. - Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
This review is from: Future Greats and Heartbreaks: A Year Undercover in the Secret World of NHL Scouts (Paperback)
As someone who is involved with the NHL draft each year, I found the book to be extremely enjoyable, insightful and an essential guide to how NHL scouts operate and do their jobs.Joyce spent myriad hours crafting this intimiate look at the much-lesser known side of professional sports and his stories and anecdotes are pure gold, especially his observations into the Columbus Blue Jackets war room prior to the 2006 draft. Although controversial at times with his characterizations of USA Hockey (and there are a few small inaccuracies, but nothing that detracts from the work overall), I also believe that if the shoe fits, wear it. Unlike Team Canada, USA Hockey seems to subordinate itself to the whims, egos and self-absorption of some of its best players and their families. The fact that Canada has owned the World U-20 Championships since USA won its first and only gold in '04 tells me that Joyce is onto something, even if the truth may hurt a bit as an American and supporter of USA Hockey. Anyway- he also appears to have been on the right track with Phil Kessel, who was recently traded to Toronto. The book is critical of Kessel and whether you agree or disagree with the assessment, Kessel is a fascinating and polarizing figure. It certainly provides some food for thought three years later, as the Wisconsin native and hockey phenom has left the Bruins for greener (about 27 million worth over five years) pastures. If you are an NHL draft fan, this is the one book you should not be without. 1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
4.0 out of 5 stars
Wow,
By canfan05 - Published on Amazon.com
Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)
Really detailed explanation on the work done behind the scenes by scouts in the NHL. Great little detaisl about some prospects (Kessel, Brassard). Great book!
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