Author: Gilles Gratton
Publisher: ECW Press
ISBN: 1773050680
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 260

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Book Description
One of hockeyÕs most colourful characters, from hockeyÕs most colourful era, tells all Gilles Gratton was not a typical pro hockey player. He refused to don his equipment and man his net if the planets were not properly aligned. He skated naked at practice. He created one of hockeyÕs most famous goalie masks based on his astrological sign. He fought with coaches and management, speaking his mind to his detriment. Sex, drugs, and rock ÕnÕ roll ruled his life, not stopping pucks. Truthfully? He never really wanted to be an NHL goaltender; he wanted to be Tibetan monk. And so, he quit hockey to seek enlightenment. Now, in his autobiography, Gratton teams up with author Greg Oliver to tell his wild and at times, yes, loony story: from his early days in Montreal, where his brother Norm Gratton became an NHL player, too; through his stints with the OHAÕs Oshawa Generals, the Ottawa Nationals and Toronto Toros of the rogue WHA, and the St. Louis Blues and New York Rangers in the NHL.

Author: Greg Oliver
Publisher: ECW Press
ISBN: 1770904212
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 290

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Book Description
Professional hockey enforcers—popularly known as “goons”—finally get their due in this rollicking look at the players who have perfected the art of making mayhem. Whether they are called upon to duke it out with a fellow troublemaker or intimidate an opponent’s top scorer, these are the men who get the crowds to their feet, the sports radio shows buzzing, and the TV audience spilling their beers in excitement. Old timers like Joe Hall and Red Horner are profiled here, along with legendary heavy hitters Tiger Williams, Stu Grimson, and Bob Probert, fan favorites Tie Domi and Georges Laroque, and contemporary hockey stars Arron Asham and Brian McGrattan. The book also delves into the intense debate over the issue of violence on the ice as well as the personal and professional dramas of the NHL’s bad boys: the suspensions, the concussions, and the constant controversy of their role in the game.

Author: John “Alexander” Arezzi
Publisher: ECW Press
ISBN: 177305693X
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 264

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Book Description
A man with three different names ties together the stars of professional wrestling, country music, and the New York Mets. John Arezzi was a lifelong Mets fan who dreamed of a job in baseball. In 1981, he took a job with the Mets Class A team in North Carolina. But Arezzi had another love: professional wrestling. He ran a fan club for the villainous “Classy” Freddie Blassie as a teenager, then progressed to wrestling photographer, and finally even stepped into the ring himself as John Anthony. Eventually he escaped to pursue a new life in altogether different world: country music. After adopting a new name, John Alexander, his many accomplishments include discovering both Patty Loveless and (decades later) Kelsea Ballerini. But wrestling is tough to shake … In the 1990s, Arezzi hosted the pioneering radio talk show Pro Wrestling Spotlight. He also ran the first major conventions, assembling a wrestling who’s who to meet with fans. He promoted shows, both at home and abroad, and was a key figure behind importing lucha libre into America. Mat Memories is Arezzi’s chance to hold the mic, and he holds nothing back — he names names and tells the untold behind-the-scenes stories: from the ring, the stage, and the diamond.

Author: George Grimm
Publisher: Sports Publishing
ISBN: 9781510722309
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 384

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Book Description
We Did Everything But Win: An Oral History of the Emile Francis Era New York Rangers (1964–1976) is an entertaining account of one of the most exciting and unforgettable periods in the history of the Broadway Blueshirts as told by Francis as well as several of his players. George Grimm chronicles each season of the Francis era when “The Cat” transformed them from perennial league doormats to a team that made it to the Stanley Cup playoffs for nine consecutive seasons, including a Finals appearance in 1972. There are also chapters detailing Emile’s playing career and his hiring as general manager as well as the aftermath of his dismissal and an analysis of his tenure behind the bench and as GM. It was during those years that the National Hockey League doubled in size and the Rangers moved into a brand-new Madison Square Garden. As the popularity of the National Hockey League skyrocketed, who could forget the Rangers’ battles on the ice with Boston’s Big Bad Bruins and Philadelphia’s Broad Street Bullies and showdowns with the Montreal Canadiens and Chicago Black Hawks? All the great moments are here including a heart-stopping, triple-overtime victory in the 1971 playoffs and Vic Hadfield’s 50th goal the following season. We Did Everything But Win is a tribute to the Rangers of that era; Jacques Plante and Marcel Paille, Eddie Giacomin and Gilles Villemure, Harry Howell and Jim “The Chief” Neilson, “The Old Smoothies,” the “G-A-G Line,” and the “Bulldog Line.” It’s the story of colorful players with nicknames like “Boomer,” “Stemmer,” and “Sarge” and fan favorites such as Brad Park, Rod Gilbert, Jean Ratelle, Walt Tkaczuk. It’s all here—the highs and the lows, the inspiring victories, the devastating losses, and the funny moments along the way.

Author: Russ Cohen
Publisher: Triumph Books
ISBN: 160078917X
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 369

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Book Description
Most New York Rangers fans have taken in a game or two at MadisonSquareGarden, have seen highlights of a young Mike Richter, and know how the Broadway Blueshirts got their nickname. But only real fans know about the Curse of 1940, can name the players in "The Bread Line," or remember "The Save." 100 Things New York Rangers Fans Should Know & Do Before They Die is the ultimate resource guide for true fans of New York Rangers hockey. Whether you're a die-hard booster from the days of Emile Francis or a new supporter of head coach Alain Vigneault, these are the 100 things every fan needs to know and do in their lifetime. Authors Adam Raider and Russ Cohen have collected every essential piece of Rangers knowledge and trivia, as well as must-do activities, and ranked them all, providing an entertaining and easy-to-follow checklist for any Rangers fan.

Author: Greg Oliver
Publisher: Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
ISBN: 9781499156362
Category : Ducks
Languages : en
Pages : 0

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Book Description
Take to the ice with a fowl who can fly for a fun story of hockey in the hinterland!

Author: Steve Zipay
Publisher: Triumph Books
ISBN: 161749318X
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 177

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Book Description
The Good, the Bad, & the Ugly includes the best and worst teams and players of all time, the most clutch performances and performers, the biggest choke jobs and chokers, great comebacks and blown leads, plus overrated and underrated players and coaches. What Is a Rangers game like? Steve Zipay knows...

Author: Greg Oliver
Publisher: ReadHowYouWant
ISBN: 9781459652422
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 766

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Book Description
Founded by Greg Oliver and John Powell, SLAM! Wrestling (http: //slam.canoe.ca/Slam/Wrestling/home.html) changed the way North America's true favorite pastime was presented on the web. With the backing of Sun Media and Canoe, SLAM! Wrestling brought pure journalism to the muddy waters of the pro wrestling media coverage. Never in the Internet Age had the squared circle been viewed with a keen eye by reporters and analysts who broke down the philosophy of wrestling and feted its legends, while also not being afraid to show the very human side of the locker rooms that are hidden from the plain eye inside the world's biggest arenas."SLAM! Wrestling" takes readers on a journey through SLAM! Wrestling's first dozen years and the often all - too real world of professional wrestling. From WWE to the independent leagues that dot North America's landscape, "SLAM! Wrestling" gives the unique view of the reporter's eye as history unfolds, including interviews with ''Stone Cold'' Steve Austin, John Cena, ''The Rock'' Dwayne Johnson, Trish Stratus and many others.Plus, for the first time ever, SLAM! Wrestling's writers take you behind the scenes and share their insights into what made the site stand out as one of the most respected sources for information in all of the Internet wrestling community. From the celebration of WrestleMania XVIII in Toronto, to the tragic death of Owen Hart and many others, SLAM! Wrestling has covered it all and now brings the history of the mat wars straight to your bookshelf.

Author: Denis M. Crawford
Publisher: McFarland
ISBN: 1476684324
Category : Sports & Recreation
Languages : en
Pages : 245

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Book Description
One of the most influential sportsmen of the late 20th century, Johnny F. Bassett's marketing wizardry belied his impact on professional hockey and football. A Canadian showman with a Barnumesque flair for spectacle, Bassett challenged the orthodoxy of sports, building sporting utopias in the fatally flawed World Football League, World Hockey Association, and United States Football League. He catered to the common fan, demanded fair treatment of athletes, and forced the sporting establishment to change the way it did business, often to his own detriment. Drawing on archival research and interviews with Bassett's contemporaries, this comprehensive biography chronicles his life in and around professional sports: his quixotic attempt to compete with the Maple Leafs; his stunning coup in signing three members of the reigning Super Bowl champions for his WFL team; his battles with the Canadian government over American football; his audacious marketing of hockey in Alabama; and his rivalry with Donald Trump for the soul of the USFL.

Author: Floyd Conner
Publisher: Potomac Books, Inc.
ISBN: 159797336X
Category : Reference
Languages : en
Pages : 271

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Book Description
The history of hockey is filled with the bizarre, the unexpected, and the hard to believe. Hockey's Most Wanted™ chronicles 700 of the most outrageous players, coaches, and owners in hockey history. In humorous detail, Floyd Conner describes hockey’s top-ten strange plays, inept players, bizarre nicknames, craziest fans, colorful characters, unlikely heroes, odious owners, worst coaches, beleaguered officials, most brutal fights, and more. Learn why Dave Reece was nicknamed “the Human Sieve,” and find out which goalie once gave up fifteen goals in a game. Meet the player who was whistled for a record sixty-seven penalty minutes in a single game and another who played in the National Hockey League for five years before scoring his first goal. Imagine scoring the winning goal in the seventh and deciding game of the Stanley Cup—for the opposing team—or how it felt to be the defenseman traded for a net. You can find all this and more in Hockey's Most Wanted™, a book that every hockey fan will enjoy.