Friday, October 11, 2013

 Today, I'm looking at Don't Call Me Goon: Hockey's Greatest Enforcers, Gunslingers, and Bad Boys, by Greg Oliver & Richard Kamchen.

Hockey has had fighters and “goons” since the game started. Names like Bad Joe Hall and Eddie Shack lit up the ice in the past, and every team has had their lists of fighters. In many cases, the fighters are the most popular players on the team, more so than the top scorers and playmakers.

This book starts with highlights of the early days of pugilism. It seamlessly moves into the Original Six days, and post-expansion, including a section about the Broad Street Bullies in Philadelphia. Oh yes, they were brutal days in the late 60s and the 70s.

Moving into the 80s, every team had their stock of fighters, and some could argue that the 1980s brought out some of the best fighters and goons ever seen. While we will never be able to completely and accurately compare Joe Hall with someone like Marty McSorley or Bob Probert, we can, for certain, debate the fights between the latter.

With further expansion in the 90s, plus retirement, new fighters found more roster spots opened up, and they too are featured. Brian McGrattan and Arron Asham are just two of the “new age” fighters. However, today's fighters have to be able to play the game to some level, or they find themselves relegated to the minors in many cases.

Time will tell if “the goon” is truly out of the league for good. Many desire just that, while others would never want to see that day.


Special thanks to Sara Dunn at ECW Press for making this book available for reviewing purposes.









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