Hockey Biographies

Ballad of the Whiskey Robber tells the hilarious and improbable true story of Attila Ambrus, the Robin Hood of Eastern Europe. He's the onetime pelt smugger, goaltender (possibly the worst in the history of pro hockey), pen salesman, Zamboni driver, gravedigger, church painter, roulette addict, building superintendent, whiskey drinker, and native of Transylvania who's decided that the best thing to do with his time is to rob as many banks as possible.

In this jaw-dropping, darkly comedic memoir, a young woman comes of age in a dysfunctional Asian family whose members blamed their woes on ghosts and demons when in fact they should have been on antipsychotic meds.

In 1980 the Soviet Union had dominated the world of hockey for nearly 30 years. Nobody thought the USSR's hockey team could be beaten in the Winter Olympics. But US Hockey coach Herb Brooks didn't believe that. He pulled together a ragtag team of amateur hockey players and molded them into a team that could compete with the best teams in the world.

To most Canadians, the Molson name is part of the very fabric of Canada. Since 1786, when John Molson founded his first brewery in Montreal, it has become synonymous with beer, hockey, and philanthropy. Few realize, however, how close the family came in recent years to losing control of the enterprise. Back to Beer...and Hockey offers intimate details of the life and work of Eric Molson, who not only saved the company, but positioned it to thrive as a global brewery into the 21st century.

This immersive book is your passport to understanding and mastering every aspect of the game, taking you through a meticulously detailed exploration. Discover the origins of ice hockey, tracing its history from pioneering moments to its evolution into a global sensation. Unveil the game's milestones, rule changes, and groundbreaking innovations that shaped the sport into what it is today.

Tasked with finding common ground and building friendships between the world's two largest countries and arctic neighbors, a young Canadian diplomat finds himself on his first overseas assignment in Moscow, the Soviet capital. It's the early 1970s and a Cold War between communism and capitalism, the west and the east, is simmering-while the ice rink is just starting to heat up. Smith opts for sports diplomacy, throwing off his embassy black tie dress codes and donning the blue and white sweater of the Moscow Maple Leafs.

After breaking or tying more than 60 records in hockey, it's no wonder that Wayne Gretzky is known as "The Great One". Born in Brantford, Ontario, on January 26, 1961, in a nation obsessed with the sport, he threw himself into the game practically from the time he first laced up a pair of skates. When he retired from the NHL in 1999, he had led several teams to Stanley Cup victories, competed in the Olympics, and changed the way hockey was played forever.

In 1958, Willie O'Ree was a lot like any other player toiling in the minors. He was good. Good enough to have been signed by the Boston Bruins. Just not quite good enough to play in the NHL. Until January 18 of that year. O'Ree was finally called up, and when he stepped out onto the ice against the Montreal Canadiens, not only did he fulfill the childhood dream he shared with so many other Canadian kids, he did something that had never been done before. He broke hockey's color barrier. Just as his hero, Jackie Robinson, had done for baseball.

You're about to discover the incredibly inspirational story of hockey superstar Alex Ovechkin. If you're reading this, then you must be an Alex Ovechkin fan, like so many others. As a fan, you must wonder how this man is so talented and want to know more about him. Alex is considered as one of the greatest hockey players in the world, and it's been an honor to be able to watch him play throughout his young career.

In the early 2000s, 16-year-old Todd Davison and his older brother Wade were living the Canadian hockey dream—playing together in the Western Hockey League, a stepping-stone for many future NHL stars. Todd seemed destined to be one of them. But after facing off against Sidney Crosby at the Canada Winter Games in 2003, that dream became a nightmare when Todd's mysterious shoulder pain led to a devastating cancer diagnosis. His Last Shift: The Playbook of Todd Davison recounts the journey of an incredible young man as he comes to terms with his death long before his time.

Frank Zamboni created the ice-resurfacing machine, and ice-based sports would never be the same!

Qui était l'homme derrière le numéro 3 ?Pourquoi le retrait de son chandail est-il devenu un devoir de mémoire ? Émile « Butch » Bouchard, l'un des meilleurs défenseurs de la LNH et le premier capitaine francophone du Canadien de Montréal à s'imposer à ce titre, est un personnage iconique : joueur chevronné, certes, mais aussi apiculteur, homme d'affaires, restaurateur célèbre, père de famille et bon citoyen.

There are Leafs fans - and there’s the Ultimate Leafs Fan. No one had the time, money, or energy to follow their favorite team to every game of the season until Mike Wilson took a journey most fans can only dream about. These are the humorous, historical, and heart-wrenching stories of Leafs Nation.

In 2015, Russia’s Anti-Doping Centre was suspended by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) following revelations of an elaborate state-sponsored doping programme. Involving a nearly undetectable steroid delivery system known as ‘Duchesse cocktail’, tampering and switching of urine samples and a complex state-sanctioned cover-up, the programme was masterminded by Grigory Rodchenkov. The Rodchenkov Affair tells the full, unadulterated story that was first glimpsed in Bryan Fogel’s award-winning documentary and still continues to captivate and shock the world.

In this inspiring book, US Olympian and hockey star Kendall Coyne shares the grit and determination it took to break down barriers and achieve her dreams against tremendous odds, encouraging young people to follow their passions and never give up.

Près de cent ans après la mort de Georges Vézina, son nom est toujours connu des amateurs : malgré la quantité de grands joueurs qui ont défilé après lui, la Ligue nationale de hockey n’a jamais changé le nom du trophée Vézina, attribué annuellement au meilleur gardien de but. C’est dire à quel point il a marqué son époque. Avec lui, le Canadien a remporté ses deux premières coupes Stanley et conquis le cœur de milliers de spectateurs partout au pays

Ask a hockey fan if they have heard the wonderfully electric call of Nick Bonino's overtime-winning goal from the 2016 Stanley Cup Final, and they will almost surely answer with a resounding "Yes"! That's because video clips of the Hockey Night in Punjabi broadcast immediately went viral, amplifying the profile of Harnarayan Singh, the voice behind the call.

It is the greatest American underdog sports story ever told: how a team of college kids and unsigned amateurs, under the tutelage of legendary coach - and legendary taskmaster - Herb Brooks, beat the elite Soviet hockey team on their way to winning the gold medal at the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics. No one believed the scrappy Americans had a real shot at winning. Despite being undefeated, the US - the youngest team in the competition - were facing off against the four-time defending gold medalist Russians.

Men's hockey in Canada may hog the limelight, but interest in women's hockey has never been higher. The Role I Played is a memoir of Sami Jo Small's 10 years with Canada's National Women's Hockey Team. Beginning with her experience as a rookie at the first-ever women's Olympic hockey tournament in Nagano in 1998 and culminating with Canada's third straight Olympic gold medal in Vancouver in 2010, the veteran goaltender gives the listener behind-the-scenes insight into one of the most successful teams in sports history.

Picking up where the best seller The Russian Five left off, Vlad the Impaler will have listeners alternately laughing and in tears with dozens more memorable, untold stories and anecdotes from the Detroit Red Wings Stanley Cup championship season 25 years ago. The book includes a foreword by Hall of Fame defenseman Slava Fetisov, along with lengthy excerpts from interviews of several members of that team, from captain Steve Yzerman, teammates Brendan Shanahan, Nicklas Lidstrom, Sergei Fedorov, Igor Larionov, Slava Kozlov, and coach Scotty Bowman, among many others.