This is the most comprehensive children's book ever written about the history of hockey, from the Canadian perspective. Kids who are passionate about hockey want to know everything there is to know about the game; this book delves into the history of the sport as a whole, rather than focusing on just one era or star player. The book's dynamic design includes sidebars, benchmarks, stats, captions, a quiz, and a glossary, giving children the option to pick up the book and casually thumb through it to glean interesting hockey facts; they can also dive into the captivating narrative that ties the landmark events and heroes of the game together. Targeted at children from ages 8 - 12, this book will also be enjoyed by many generations of hockey buffs; perfect for parents and their children to explore together!
The game has endured since the days before there was the internet, television and even radio, through two world wars, a deadly flu and the Great Depression. In 1994, the elected leaders of our country finally recognized what everyone had known for a long time: that hockey is Canada. With the National Sports of Canada Act, hockey was acknowledged by Parliament as this nations official winter sport. Like us, our government sees that hockey is a thread that runs from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific, a sport that links us as Canadians. The Act does make us think about a great game and the many people who have made it so. It reminds us of street hockey and the Stanley Cup, of heroes the game has known for more than 100 years. It leads us back to the days of long ago, to the recollections of our parents and grand-parents, and into our libraries to discover more. The National Sports of Canada Act reminds us of hockeys place in our culture and our hearts. And because the game is woven into so much of our culture, studying the history of hockey is, in many ways, studying the history of Canada with a glorious past and a very exciting future, just like the country it calls home. This is the story of hockey in Canada.
About the Author
Born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, author and hockey enthusiast Dave Stubbs has been a newspaper sports writer since 1976, with stories syndicated coast-to-coast. He was inspired to become a writer by his Grade 10 English teacher at John Rennie High School in Pointe Claire who, until a few years ago, was still marking up Dave's columns and sending them to him. A great deal of Dave's work, including contributions to Remembering Guy Lafleur and Canadiens Legends: Montreal's Hockey Heroes (Raincoast), has focused on the history of hockey and legends of the game. Dave covers sports for the Montreal Gazette, and in 2008 was named Canada's sportswriter of the year, winning the George Gross Award for excellence in print journalism for his coverage of the NHL and the Beijing Olympics.
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For every one who plays in the NHL, there are thousands who play hockey just for the love of the game, fun and for fitness. But its in community hockey, or casual games of shinny, where many of the best players in the world take their first strides toward a career in the NHL professional hockeys best league. One such example is Sheldon Souray, a native Métis and one of a dozen aboriginal Canadians who has played in the NHL. Souray learned to skate and play hockey on Fishing Lake, Alberta, shooting pucks into snowbanks before his parents enrolled him in minor hockey in Edmonton. The defenceman was drafted into the NHL by New Jersey in 1994, and in 2000 was traded to Montreal. The odds were greatly against Souray, as they are today against anyone who hopes to play in the NHL. Players must have exceptional talent, supportive parents, excellent coaches, and be willing to work long hours on improving their skills in every area while keeping good grades at school. Sometimes, players must be prepared to move away from home at a young age to play on a junior or university team where they can be scouted or seen by men who are hired by NHL clubs to identify the talent that they believe could one day best help their teams. For the select few who are chosen, playing in the NHL is the dream of a lifetime. The NHL, with its central scouting bureau, grades junior-age talent in North America and Europe and ranks it on a long list. Its from this list that the NHLs 30 teams annually choose players like Sidney Crosby of Pittsburgh and Alexander Ovechkin of Washington, two of the leagues most impressive rookies in 200506. The entry draft is televised, and it can be an emotional moment when a player steps onto the stage and pulls on the sweater and cap of the team thats drafted him. The player then usually returns to his junior team and moves up to a minorpro club, part of the NHL teams farm system, to further develop his skills. The dream is complete when he finally gets the call to play in the NHL.
