New history of world hockey sparkles

Originally published on IHWC.NET in 2003

By Lucas Aykroyd

Finally, here’s a book that both Don Cherry and Klaus Zaugg could love.

Most books about international hockey contain a bias toward either the North American or European game. Typically, authors just don’t know as much about the way hockey is played on the opposite side of the Atlantic. But the new 1,023-page book Kings of the Ice: A History of World Hockey bridges that gap with an experienced group of 15 writers representing most of the major hockey nations.

Kings of the Ice provides in-depth, beautifully photo-illustrated biographies of nearly 500 players and coaches who have distinguished themselves on their domestic rinks or in international competition. The details that emerge are fascinating.

Did you know that the legendary Czech netminder Jiri Holecek considered his Soviet counterpart Vladislav Tretiak to be an “average” goalie who would have ranked about fifth in Czechoslovakia in the 1970’s? Or that the only alcohol Bobby Holik has ever permitted himself to sample is Stanley Cup champagne?

Based solely on their recollections of the 1972 Summit Series, few North American fans could have guessed that Viktor Kuzkin was named to the all-time Dream Team of the USSR and Russia as selected by veteran players and sportswriters in 1996.

And even the most devout Boston Bruins fan from any corner of the globe would be unlikely to know that the supersitious Phil Esposito once forbade Derek Sanderson to change the cotton in his shin pads during an extended winning streak.

The section introductions are arranged chronologically with such titles as “1963-1972: The Russians March West” and “1991-1995: The NHL Expands Southward.” They provide tasty overviews of what was taking place at the World Championships as well as in the NHL at any given time, along with a special feature on 1972. Overall, the reader moves from the origins of the sport in 1843 to the Salt Lake City Olympics of 2002.

The book includes key statistics with each player profile, but doesn’t crunch numbers with the evangelical fervor of the Total Hockey encyclopedias.

The only notable weakness here occurs in the omission of some key Finnish figures. For instance, Lasse Oksanen played in 11 World Championships and three Olympics, and the SM-Liiga’s MVP trophy is named after this Tampere forward, but he receives no entry. Neither does Arto Javanainen, who retired from Assat Pori in 1995 holding such records as most career goals and points in the Finnish regular season (464 and 793).

On the other hand, with five contributors from the Russian publications Sovetskiy Sport and Sport Express, any lover of the CCCP crest will easily sate their cravings for information about the likes of Ivan Tregubov, Viktor Konovalenko and Sergei Shepelev.

Kings of the Ice is indispensable, a pure joy to read for any serious hockey fan. Priced at $54.95 US or $69.95 CDN, it can be ordered at www.ndepublishing.com or toll-free in North America at 1-800-675-1263. A CD-ROM version is also available.