YORKTON - I am about to reveal one of my darkest secrets – as a youth I had dalliance with the Boston Bruins.
It was, as I look back now over some 50 years, a dark time.
I blame my dad though. You see he was a Montreal Canadians fan, so that of course pushed me to cheer for Toronto in defiance.
And, when I was seven, the Leafs even won a cup, although I was too young to take full advantage of the associated bragging rights that came with that Cup victory.
The Leafs weren’t the best after that, but the Bruins soon were as they had a hot shot kid named Bobby Orr show up, and there was the crazy cool goaltender mask of Gerry Cheevers, the flamboyant Derek Sanderson, and gritty John ‘Pie’ McKenzie and I strayed.
For a brief few years I cheered for Boston.
Thankfully Paul Henderson became Canada’s hero in the ’72 Summit Series, and I found my way home to follow the Leafs, along with a burgeoning interest in the fledgling Vancouver Canucks.
So why mention my dark history?
Well I found myself curious about a new book Triumph Books; Boston Bruins: Blood, Sweat & 100 Years by Richard A. Johnson, and Rusty Sullivan.
I don’t usually gravitate to books about non-Canadian teams, the interest is only sparked on occasion if not a team of interest, but there was that hockey skeleton in my closet wearing #4 and a large stylized ‘B’.
The book is one “in celebration of the Original Six franchise’s 100th season, the Boston Bruins present a visually stunning retrospective featuring hundreds of archival images and vivid, in-depth writing,” notes the publisher website.
“This official illustrated history tells the stories behind all the iconic moments, the legendary players and people, and so much more. Fans will treasure this commemorative book as a definitive portrait of Boston's rich hockey heritage.”
Now I will state emphatically, if you are a true Bruin follower, and you like to read even a little, this book is a ‘must-have’. It is gorgeous.
There are dozens of photos spanning the 100 years, and the stories are generally short, interspersed throughout. It is a book you can grab – maybe during a hockey game commercial -- read a story, peruse the photos, and leave until the next commercial break.
I will add here that players like Orr, Sanderson and Cheevers feature prominently here as you would well expect.
Over the years I have accumulated many sports books and while some are just as nice -- Picturing the Game: An Illustrated Story of Hockey by Don Weekes comes to mind – certainly none are nicer than this Bruin tome.
It is done in such a fashion one wishes every team with a significant history had an equivalent book – starting with Vancouver if I had a say.
While Bruins fans are going to love this one completely I’d suggest older NHL fans who recall the days of the original six will enjoy it too, as will most fans of the history of hockey and the NHL. Definitely a book that is worth watching for.
