Worst Hockey books ever

[FerrisRox]

Bump. Add Tales of a First-Round Nothing: My Life as an NHL Footnote by Terry Ryan.

Terry Ryan basically spends a few hundred pages trying to charm his old teammates by name-dropping, like, all of them. All the while simultaneously and retroactively convincing himself that his was a career not wasted. Because of like, the stories, man. His hockey fables were uninspiring and unintelligent. Nobody cares about your lame music tastes dude. Nobody cares about your ball hockey team. Nobody cares about your weak-ass high school crushes.

I totally disagree. I thought this was a fantastic read and a ton of fun.

 

[FerrisRox]

Str0ng disagree on this one. I really liked the behind-the-scenes look at the Bruins atmosphere.

Although might I recommend "They Don't Play Hockey in Heaven" by Ken Baker? Fantastic book of a similar type.

I second this. I thought Open Net was a great read and Plimpton does a good job of capturing the vibe of the locker room and the banter among the teammates and it serves as a great time capsule of that era of Bruins hockey.

I'll also second your recommendation of Baker's They Don't Play Hockey in Heaven. It's an excellent book and a great story.

 

[FerrisRox]

Ken Baker's story I enjoyed very much; his writing didn't seem forced and it provoked serious empathy. Plimpton's Open Net was one of his earliest titles, and it showed in his writing. By the time he got to Paper Lion, he was an accomplished author AND more experienced in establishing a comfortable relationship with his subject matter.

Plimpton wrote Paper Lion in 1966. Open Net was published in 1985 and chronicled his time at the 1977 Bruins training camp.

 

[JMCx4]

Plimpton wrote Paper Lion in 1966. Open Net was published in 1985 and chronicled his time at the 1977 Bruins training camp.

Thanks for the correction. So I guess Plimpton's story-telling skills deteriorated with time ... just like my internet search abilities ...

 

[JMCx4]

Wanted to bring this up as I read a few hockey books recently. Most were alright, and I'd add them to the hockey history book thread if I could find it (and if it's revived I'll be glad to add there). ...

I see you found the related thread. Thanks for resurrecting it.

 

[kaiser matias]

I see you found the related thread. Thanks for resurrecting it.

My pleasure. As noted there read some decent books as well, so wanted to share some pleasant thoughts as well.

 

[Sheppy]

I totally disagree. I thought this was a fantastic read and a ton of fun.

I'm with you on this one, I thought it was great.

 

[Tad Mikowsky]

Gonna go with Tie Domi’s.

Bought it for 4.99, never finished it. Just boils down to Tie Domi being the greatest human ever, according to Tie Domi

 

[The Panther]

Gonna go with Tie Domi’s.

Bought it for 4.99, never finished it. Just boils down to Tie Domi being the greatest human ever, according to Tie Domi

I mean, if Tie Domi doesn't rate a book, who does...?


Can someone tell my why there are English-language books about Dennis Maruk and Tie Domi, but there aren't any good ones about Maurice Richard or Mario Lemieux?

 

[JMCx4]

... Can someone tell my why there are English-language books about Dennis Maruk and Tie Domi, but there aren't any good ones about Maurice Richard or Mario Lemieux?

Because you haven't written one yet? You clearly have a passion for the subjects. Give it a go.

 

[The Panther]

Because you haven't written one yet? You clearly have a passion for the subjects. Give it a go.

For about six years, I've been stuck on starting a book about the Dynasty Oilers. The problem is I can't access the Edmonton newspaper archives for the time period from Tokyo. (The Edmonton Journal's archives are easily available from 1989 forward.) I've tried the newspapers directly and the Edmonton public library and university libraries. No go.

 

[JMCx4]

For about six years, I've been stuck on starting a book about the Dynasty Oilers. The problem is I can't access the Edmonton newspaper archives for the time period from Tokyo. (The Edmonton Journal's archives are easily available from 1989 forward.) I've tried the newspapers directly and the Edmonton public library and university libraries. No go.

Being an author is not an easy life. Being a hockey board poster has its hardships as well.

 

[sr edler]

Gonna go with Tie Domi’s.

Bought it for 4.99, never finished it. Just boils down to Tie Domi being the greatest human ever, according to Tie Domi

 

[sdf]

I love hockey but not so much to read books about it

 

[The Panther]

I love hockey but not so much to read books about it

Well, what do you read books about?

 

[Tarantula]

Gonna go with Tie Domi’s.

Bought it for 4.99, never finished it. Just boils down to Tie Domi being the greatest human ever, according to Tie Domi

Tie Domi has apparently written one more book then he has read.

 

[sr edler]

Tie Domi has apparently written one more book then he has read.

Apparently he comes from a family of writers

No Days Off: My Life with Type 1 Diabetes and Journey to the NHL (Max Domi autobiography)

 

[sdf]

Well, what do you read books about?

I once loved sci fi and fantasy, but now I no longer read books because these fictional stories have nothing to do with reality. And the real world itself is pretty pointless shit

 

[Gambitman]

I didn’t think the Lawrence Martin book on Mario was too bad.

 

[Fixxer]

I mean, if Tie Domi doesn't rate a book, who does...?


Can someone tell my why there are English-language books about Dennis Maruk and Tie Domi, but there aren't any good ones about Maurice Richard or Mario Lemieux?

There is one on Richard. I got in from club1909. I got to admit that I looked at it early on, but it's been put away for a while now. ------ Maurice Richard -- Reluctant Hero

 

[kaiser matias]

I mean, if Tie Domi doesn't rate a book, who does...?


Can someone tell my why there are English-language books about Dennis Maruk and Tie Domi, but there aren't any good ones about Maurice Richard or Mario Lemieux?

To partially answer your question, the trend of players releasing books recently would seemingly be a financial decision, as it is older players (many who largely missed the salary explosion of the 1990s) getting another source of revenue. That is my thought on it at least.

 

[The Panther]

I didn’t think the Lawrence Martin book on Mario was too bad.

The problem with this one is it's completely outdated, published as it was in the middle of his career.

 

[The Panther]

There is one on Richard. I got in from club1909. I got to admit that I looked at it early on, but it's been put away for a while now. ------ Maurice Richard -- Reluctant Hero

My issue here is that this seems to be more of a photo book with captions and anecdotes. I am looking for a detailed, biographical history.

 

[Fixxer]

My issue here is that this seems to be more of a photo book with captions and anecdotes. I am looking for a detailed, biographical history.

I liked things that covered what I didn't know about him, but it was pretty general and as you say, a photo collection...

 

[sr edler]

Well, what do you read books about?

There is literally everything under the sun you can read books about. I fail to see what's so special or intriguing about hockey players as individuals that would make one only or even predominantly interested in reading books about them. Only because someone made it to the NHL doesn't make me super curious about that person's life. Most hockey players come across as very normal boring people just playing a sport. Just because I enjoy hockey and its history doesn't necessarily make me interested in how superstitious X player is and what skate he ties first before entering the ice and how many fist bumps he makes on his goalie pads in every intermission. That's just totally uninteresting to me.

The Saku Koivu/Craig Rivet thing was fantastic though, but that's once in a million.