Hockey history books?

Killion

Registered User
Feb 19, 2010
36,763
3,211
i was wondering what are the best in-depth history books are for the sports of hockey. not just for the fact I'm a fan but also I'm curious for my thesis I'm planning on exploring.

From a business perspective, Net Worth by Cruise/Griffiths is a must read (also made into a sort of "Movie of the Week" some time ago). Companion pieces to that book would be The Power of Two by Carl Brewer, Russ Conaways book on Alan Eagleson & several others that deal with the players association formation & subsequent pension & insurance scandals. One of the better yet lesser known books Ive read about players was about Brian "Spinner" Spencer called Gross Misconduct (also made into a movie btw). Id Trade Him Again by Peter Pocklington is amusing, as are dozens more by former GM's, players, coaches & team execs, beat & sports writers. Need to know what your thesis is about as its a pretty broad field.
 

Taoiseach

Go Hull Go!
May 14, 2011
1,537
1
Ottawa-Gatineau, NCR
A short list of my favourites would be the following;

Paul Kitchen - Win, Tie or Wrangle. An absolute must read. It's so much more than just a history of the Ottawa Senators, though it is the Senators Historian's holy book. This is pretty much required reading for anyone interested in pre-Stable 6 era hockey history.

Joan Finnigan (Frank's daughter, BTW) - Old Scores, New Goals. It's not as good as Paul Kitchen's book, but it's still definitely worth reading. It provides some different insights, as well as a history of the 1935-1955 'Senior Senators,' and the revival of the Senators.

William Brown - The Montreal Maroons.

Michael Hiam - Eddie Shore and That Old Time Hockey

Eric Whitehead - The Patricks: Hockey's Royal Family
- Cyclone Taylor

Frank Cosentino - The Renfrew Millionaires

D'Arcy Jenish - The Montreal Canadiens: 100 Years of Glory. This is the authoritative history of the Habs.

The SIHR's recent anthology 'Pucklore' is also necessary reading. Amongst other things (I'll admit to only being halfway through it, as I had trouble getting a copy), it has articles on the evolution of the goal net (Kitchen), The Philadelphia Quakers, and the first time NHL teams faced off in Europe, 1938. There's also an excellent article about how the Irish Montrealers were instrumental in luring French-Canadians into the realm of professional hockey, and how their relations within the Classical Colleges were the cause of this. A lot of French-Canadians got their starts with clubs such as the Montreal Shamrocks!

If you have a specific interest in the History of the Ottawa Senators, try to get your hands on the Ottawa Historical Society's pamphlets 'Match Penalty (Demise of the Senators)' by Shaun Bugyra, and 'The Dey Brothers' Rinks - Home to The Senators' by the eminent Paul Kitchen.
 

seventieslord

Student Of The Game
Mar 16, 2006
36,080
7,132
Regina, SK
I can second all of those recommendations. I have read Kitchen, Whitehead and Cosentino, and have skimmed the others and used them in research.
 

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