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Sports & Nautical


  • Press Release
September 15, 2011
Hoboken, NJ

An award-winning writer sets the record straight on hockey's forgotten golden boy—Bobby Hull

In his prime, few could dispute Bobby Hull's athletic brilliance—the first to have five 50-goal seasons, the highest scorer on the 1976 Canada Cup team, the first to use the slapshot as a scoring weapon, and the first hockey player to sign a million-dollar contract. With his body-builder torso, and his 100 mph volleys across a rink, the world of hockey glory was his to lose. And he did. With his publicized marital troubles and his defection from the NHL to the WHA, Hull's star began to fall, leaving him broke and in exile from the game. In The Devil and Bobby Hull (Wiley; Hardcover; $26.95;  978-1-1180-6573-0; October 2011), this once great hockey player and pioneer is finally given his due.

Not only are Hull's remarkable on-ice achievements finally put in perspective, so, too, are his achievements off the rink—including endorsements for a wide array of products (rare for an NHL player) and his appearance on the cover of Sports Illustrated a record four times. And the book details how Hull's battle with the owners of the Chicago Blackhawks—challenging the reserve clause in his contract, a move that enabled him to move to the WHA—helped other players follow him.

  • The author places Hull squarely in the pantheon of other hockey greats, including Gordie Howe, Bobby Orr, and Wayne Gretzky—and makes the case that he is the game's most influential and important player
  • This is the full, unauthorized story of Hull's life—that doesn't sidestep the controversies (including the domestic violence tainting his private life)
  • Details Hull's recent reconciliation with the Chicago Blackhawks

A candid look at one of hockey's most gifted and controversial figures, The Devil and Bobby Hull tells the story of his extraordinary career and life—and why this remarkable man has not faded into oblivion.

 

A collection of humorous, insightful essays on hockey (and much else) from North America's leading commentator and observer of the game

One of the most recognized hockey media personalities, James Duthie is best known for hosting TSN's NHL hockey broadcasts and also for his more than decade-long sports column. In The Day I (Almost) Killed Two Gretzkys (Wiley; Paperback; $17.95;  978-1-1180-9608-6; October 2011), he brings his well-known sense of humour, deep hockey knowledge, and his passion for the game to hockey fans and readers everywhere. In his inimitable style, balancing humour with trenchant analysis, Duthie's essays travel all over the hockey map, covering the NHL, being a hockey parent, and hockey as it relates to life.

With many columns, snapshots of a moment in time, readers will relive, along with their author, the heroic, the tragic, and the heartwarming, including Sidney Crosby's first Stanley Cup final, Canada's gold medal win at the Olympics in 2002 and 2010, September 11th, and a son's first game as goalie.

  • Includes many, brand-new never before published articles, with new stories for the paperback edition
  • James Duthie was the national co-host for CTV/TSN's coverage of the 2010 Olympic Winter Games in Vancouver and appears on NHL Live on SiriusXM Satellite Radio

Now in a new paperback edition, this first-ever collection of many of Duthie's most popular, sometimes controversial columns will have his legion of print and on-air fans clamouring for more.

 An intimate, humorous look at Brian Kilrea's 60-year career in junior hockey

With more wins than any coach in junior hockey history, and a personality as large as his winning record, Brian Kilrea is more than a hockey legend, he's one of the most beloved figures in the game. With veteran sportswriter, James Duthie, Kilrea gives fans a rink-side view of his twenty-nine plus seasons as head coach and now general manager of the Ottawa 67s. With stories and comments from famous NHLers who played for Killer, readers will get a taste of Kilrea's hardnosed coaching style, the gritty often humorous reality of his life as a coach, riding on buses and in the locker room, as well as the knowledge and dedication that has made him last so long.

They Call Me Killer (Wiley; Paperback; $19.95;  978-1-1180-9609-3; November 2011) sheds light on Kilrea's early life as a centre for the Red Wings, what it was like to score the first-ever goal in the history of the L.A. Kings, and his two years with the New York Islanders. Loaded with anecdotes from a true hockey insider, the book offers fans an unvarnished look at the world of junior hockey—as it's played and lived, including its brutal practices, broken curfews, trades, and tirades.

  • Details Kilrea's role as a coach for the Ottawa 67s, how they won the Memorial Cup twice, and how he's been a mentor to young stars of the future
  • Includes anecdotes and interviews from coaches, trainers, and general managers, and NHLers like Bryan Trottier, Dennis Potvin, Mike Peca, Gary Roberts, Doug Wilson, Brian Campbell, Darren Pang, and many others
  • Brian Kilrea was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2003
  • James Duthie is best known for his work on TSN's The NHL on TSN and his coverage of the World Junior Championships

With a Foreword by lifelong friend, Don Cherry, They Call Me Killer is a fascinating, unforgettable look at the world of junior hockey and the man known as the most successful coach in junior hockey history.

 

From the youngest general manager in NHL history to veteran on-air hockey analyst—Gord Stellick has seen it all, and now tells it all

Few have been given the opportunity to be on both sides of the hockey rink—managing the Leafs and the Rangers and then regaling his legion of TV and radio fans with the colourful insider knowledge he's amassed—about blockbuster trades, NHL stars, and the talent that got away. But Gord Stellick has. In an almost forty-year career, he's one of the best known hockey personalities around. And Stellicktricity (Wiley; Hardcover; $24.95;  978-1-1180-7610-1; November 2011) captures the man, his career as the ultimate hockey insider, and insights and anecdotes on the game he loves so much.

Not only is the book crammed with details on hockey greats like Gretzky, Orr, Sakic, and Crosby, his NHL bosses (like Harold Ballard and Punch Imlach), but it also contains an inimitable look at Stellick's colleagues in the media. Destined to become a favourite of hockey fans everywhere, Stellicktricity not only covers every corner of the game of hockey but offers the author's unique view of other sports across North America.

  • Stellick is ubiquitous as a host, colour commentator, and analyst on hockey broadcasts and shows of all kinds in TV and radio
  • The book is loaded with Leafs content and brimming with anecdotes about legendary players, hockey management, and NHL characters (like Bob Goodenow and Wendel Clark)

By turns serious and funny, every page of Stellicktricity crackles with the wit and wisdom of a born raconteur—and the hard-headed, real world insights of a man who's lived and breathed the game of hockey for the better part of his life.

 

How a movie about minor league hockey became a box office hit-and an international cult classic

Even thirty-odd years after Slap Shot's release, diehard hockey fans can still recite scenes of dialogue by heart, making lines like "putting on the foil" just common argot for the devoted. Yet many may be surprised to learn that the true story behind the making of the film is as captivating as the film itself. In The Making of Slap Shot (Wiley; Hardcover; $24.95;  978-0-470-15941-5; November 2011), veteran sports writer Jonathon Jackson lets fans not only relive just how the film was made, but brings to light surprising facts (i.e., Al Pacino was the first choice for the role of Reggie Dunlop; almost every scene-even the absurd and unbelievable ones-depicts a real life event). With access to those involved in the making of the film, he brings to life some of the magic behind the creation of memorable scenes and characters, especially the Charleston Chiefs, one of the most popular fictional sports teams in history.

  • Based on interviews with over 50 cast members, production staff, and anyone of note involved in the film's creation

Destined to be a collectible and keepsake (along with the jerseys, bobbleheads, and other paraphernalia associated with the film), The Making of Slapshot is a must for fans eager to learn even more about their favorite film.

 

A history of the Boston Bruins in pictures, newly revised and updated to cover the spectacular 2010-2011 Stanley Cup-Winning Season!

A pictorial history of the Boston Bruins, Black and Gold (Wiley; Hardcover; $34.95;  978-1-1181-7278-0; December 2011)  is a tribute to one of the NHL's Original Six teams and hockey's most popular franchises. A storied team with a long and rich history spanning almost ninety years, the Bruins have been home to some of the greatest names in the sport, including legends like Ray Bourque, Cam Neely, Terry O'Reilly, Don Cherry, Bobby Orr, and Joe Thornton.

Featuring four decades of pictures from long-time team photographer Steve Babineau, and accompanying text by broadcaster Rob Simpson, Black and Gold documents the six-time Stanley Cup winning team, including magic moments from the past, star players and coaches, Bruins goalies, grinders, and the old Boston Garden.

  • Revised to commemorate the 2011 Winter Classic and the team's epic Stanley Cup victory
  • Packed with 32 all-new pages of iconic images and insightful commentary
  • Includes a Foreword by hockey great Don Cherry

This epic collection, featuring many never-before-seen photographs, is guaranteed to bring back memories for every Bruins fan who bleeds black and gold.

 

A veteran hockey writer takes on hockey culture and the NHL—addressing the game's most controversial issue

Whether it's on-ice fist fights or head shots into the glass, hockey has become a nightly news spectacle—with players pummeling and bashing each other across the ice like drunken gladiators. And while the NHL may actually condone on-ice violence as a ticket draw, diehard hockey fan and expert Adam Proteau argues against hockey's transformation into a thuggish blood sport. In Fighting the Good Fight (Wiley; Paperback; $21.95;  978-1-1180-9222-4; December 2011)  , Proteau sheds light on the many perspectives of those in and around the game, with interviews of current and former NHL stars, coaches, general managers, and league executives, as well as medical experts.

One of the most well-known media figures on the hockey scene today, famous for his funny, feisty observations as a writer for the Toronto Star and The Hockey News and commentator on CBC radio and TV, Adam Proteau is also one of the few mainstream media voices who is vehemently anti-fighting in hockey. Not only is his book a plea to the game's gatekeepers to finally clamp down on the runaway violence that permeates the sport even at its highest level, he offers realistic suggestions on ways to finally clean the game up.

  • Includes interviews with medical experts on head injuries and concussions, as well as with other members of the media
  • The author not only wages an attack on the value of fighting in hockey—but also on the establishment hockey culture

Covering the most polarizing issue in hockey today, Fighting the Good Fight gives hockey fans and sports lovers everywhere a reason to stamp their feet and whistle—at a rare display of eloquence and common sense.