Customer Reviews

Original Six: True Stories from Hockey's Classic Era

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Before the Mighty Ducks of Disney and the Molson Center of Montreal and the Fleet Center of Boston there were the Gardens of New York and Boston and the Forum of Montreal. There were the "local" teams that so well reflected their respective cities and peoples. Teams and players became part of the fixtures of the city. Trades were catastrophic events. I remember the trade of Eddie Giacomin from the Rangers to the Red Wings. The chants of "EDDIE" were no more. What were the feelings of the Beantown fans when Espo was traded to the hated Rangers? Society and sport have changed and it is difficult to become attached to anything or anyone emotionally now. National marketing blitzes have rendered "local" teams a thing of the past.

Paul Quarrington has complied six stories (he penned the Bruins piece) centered on the Original Six era of the National Hockey League. These six stories take the reader back to the days when fans trully identified with their team. Two gems standout in this collection. The first is the Red Wings piece whose author recalls the days and nights spent with her grand father listening to Wings-Maple Leafs games. Each rooting for their own team. This is a wonderful piece on how these two people related to each other and the sport they so dearly loved.

The second gem is the New York Rangers' story. The Ranger fan has always been a different breed, withstanding decades of misses and near hits at achieving the Cup. This story embodies the real Ranger fan and the depth of the emotional attachment to the team. All Ranger fans will identify with this story.

For those hockey fans looking for something from the past "The Original Six" will bring them respite from the corporate sports world of today

This was a great book! I first bought it for my 5 year old daughter who became interested with the original 6 teams but in the end we both found it different than most hockey books. It told stories about these beyond thrilling players and it made me look at them with a different perspective and proved things that for me, were just random suggestions, but now are real facts. For example, the book proved that The Rocket, the best player of all time even though I never saw him play, really is the high temper man who never gives up and always sticks to what he honestly believes is true and honest.

This collection of stories on the original six NHL teams, brings the sport to life. Each team's story is written by a different author and Paul Quarrington edited this volume. His story is sadly, the weakest in the collection. The New York Ranger's story is the most poignant...a real twist at the end.

This one is for hockey fans that can't wait for a hockey fix until the start of next season.

The essay on Charles Gardiner (Chicago Black Hawks), by Dave Bidini, is a literary masterpiece worthy of the books 5-star rating all by itself. This is a very inspirational piece. Two of the other essays are very good (Canadiens and Bruins), and three are just OK (Wings, Leafs and Rangers). Also worthy of the 5-star rating are the wonderful illustrations by Sean Thompson(?) that front each essay. These color illustrations too, are almost alone worth the price of the book, but the artist, Thompson? (can't be sure) is given no real credit. If you're the guy, Mr. Thompson, congratulations, this is great work!