TBC: Cutting Edge

I'll be the first to admit that I've likely forgotten more about hockey than what I know. That's not to say that I should stop learning, but it does reinforce the importance to keep learning and reading about the game. I enjoy the history of the game when presented in a fun way, player biographies often bring insight, and I'm always looking for something that will give me better understanding of how the game is presented. Thanks to Arsenal Pulp Press, I was given an opportunity to read a book that has yet to hit bookstore shelves about a topic I admittedly have very little knowledge. Teebz's Book Club is proud to review Cutting Edge: Hockey as Queer Culture, written by Daniel Gawthrop and published by Arsenal Pulp Press. Gawthrop examines the game from every angle when it comes to LGBTQ+ culture in hockey, and I feel that this book could help the hockey world understand its own shortcomings with respect to the LGBTQ+ community that Gawthrop puts under the microscope with this book.

From the Arsenal Pulp Press website, "Daniel Gawthrop (he/him) is the author of six non-fiction books, including The Trial of Pope Benedict and The Rice Queen Diaries (both Arsenal Pulp Press), and one novel, Double Karma (Cormorant Books). A co-founder of the Cutting Edges, Vancouver's LGBTQ+ hockey association, he has written extensively about hockey for numerous publications. He lives in New Westminster, BC." Gawthrop also plays hockey with the Cutting Edges hockey team, worked as a reporter for the Hope Standard and Vancouver Sun, freelanced as a journalist, and served as a communications representative for the Canadian Union of Public Employees in his storied and illustrious career. He continues to advocate for LGBTQ+ causes and events.

Before I get into discussing Cutting Edge, I want to make it clear that I, as a cisgender, white, straight male, wasn't sure what I was going to read when I started flipping pages. My anger towards the NHL and their defence of players who spoke out about Pride Night festivities still burns when the NHL pumps its own tired about inclusivity while my exposure to women's hockey where same-sex relationships are often seen has allowed me to gain better understanding of some of the challenges that gay and lesbian hockey players face, but my depth of that understanding is barely surface deep as I haven't faced the same discrimination or had the same experiences as the LGBTQ+ community in hockey. My hope was that Cutting Edge would build on the admittedly little knowledge I had. That's where we'll begin.

Gawthrop doesn't waste any time in Cutting Edge by looking at one of the most well-known hockey figures in history in Hobey Baker by turning his story on its side by connecting the dots that could lead one to seeing Baker in a different light. While the evidence is there to possibly have one of hockey's best players as a gay man, no one has ever said that about Baker. Could Baker have been the first homosexual man in the sport's history? There's enough evidence to make one wonder based upon what's presented in Chapter One!

Gawthrop takes us through the history of hockey's whiter-than-white past, introducing the reader to where Gawthrop began to take an interest in the game. I won't give way which team's grace and beauty dazzled the young writer, but it would be two players who captured Gawthrop's attention for very different reasons, giving him enough thought-provoking material to fill early chapters in Cutting Edge!

Gawthrop does an excellent job in introducing readers to the Cutting Edges hockey team, exposing why many gay men move away from hockey while growing up, displaying the often-toxic hypermasculinity found in the game, examining the constant brutal ways masculinity is portrayed in the game, and providing enough evidence of each of these issues through the first hundred pages that you may question where else Gawthrop can go in his writing. From there, Gawthrop showed how he found his niche in the hockey world, how others navigated the hockey world despite numerous negative stereotypes shown towards the LGBTQ+ community, and how the NHL world struggled to accept the LGBTQ+ community when facing it.

I was often left amazed and, quite frankly, proud of how the LGBTQ+ community handled the gatekeeping and toxic masuclinity it faced throughout hockey's existence, particularly at the NHL level. Gawthrop himself faced a number of realizations as he also grew as a person and writer to have a better understanding of the game's nuances during this time, and his reflection upon himself is walked in-step with the reader as issues like sexual abuse, hazing, and mental health situations are better examined and understood.

Reading the chapters about women's hockey growing and having more BIPOC players in both men's and women's hockey, Gawthrop faded into the background, allowing others to have a more prominent voice. This was evident in Chapter 16: Breaking the Hockey Binary where Gawthrop shared the experiences and stories told by Harrison Browne and Jessica Platt, two transgender players, including what they had to overcome to be professional hockey players. It was here that Gawthrop realized the Cutting Edges had been describing itself as a "gay men's hockey team" despite being welcome to all, and trans player Sam Punzo didn't know if he'd be welcome, stating,

"'I think when you don't institutionalize [who the orgnaization is for] and you don't have language in it, it's left to interpretation, and it kind of creates a bit of ambiguity,' he explained. ''Gay men's hockey,' even though the intention behind it was to be inclusive, does send a message that it's not inclusive. In order to clarify, someone sould have to reach out or know somebody to be like, 'Oh, no, everyone's welcome.' Well, you'd have to know that. So, yeah, I think the [wording] change was huge, and times change. The description now, thirty years from now might not work too, right? But that's why we evolve and contonue to grow.'"

That comment from Punzo stuck with me as I finished reading Cutting Edge because Punzo is correct in that our language will change over the next thirty years as we become more knoweldgeable and have a better understanding of how to describe people who don't fit into a preconceived category. We should want to evolve, to change, and to be better so that everyone has a chance to be their best selves.

After all, aren't we told that hockey is supposed to be for everyone?

Overall, Cutting Edge: Hockey as Queer Culture is a book that doesn't shy away from the hard questions needed to be asked about sexuality, gender, and how they fit into the game of hockey. Daniel Gawthrop doesn't demand the reader abandon one's beliefs as much as he simply asks the reader to have an open mind about the discussions he generates. It took me about a week to get through Cutting Edge simply because I had to put the book down at points to process what I had read, but these moments allowed me reflect on the topics that Gawthrop framed. Because this book is another important step in understanding what hockey can do and where hockey can be better for everyone, Cutting Edge: Hockey as Queer Culture absolutely deserves the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

Cutting Edge: Hockey as Queer Culture will be released on September 8, 2026, and you can order a copy of the book from the linked Arsenal Pulp Press site above. It took me picking this book a few times to get through all the chapters that Daniel Gawthrop wrote, and the topics in those chapters are intended for a mature audience with the occasional unsavoury word used. In saying that, Cutting Edge should be read by everyone in the game of hockey in order gain a better understanding of how to be inclusive of the LGBTQ+ community!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

TBC: Book Of Jerseys

If there's one thing that piques my interest in the hockey world, it's the fashion and design that goes into jerseys. Call them what you want - jerseys, sweaters, tarps, whatever - but the colours and designs used by teams become the identity of that franchise. Think of the Fisherman's legacy when it comes to the New York Islanders or how the bleu-blanc-et-rouge is synonymous with the Montreal Canadiens. It's those team identities that fans embrace when cheering for their favorite teams, so finding collections of amazing jerseys is always a treat. In saying that, Teebz's Book Club had a chance to review the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys, written by Steve Milton and published by Firefly Book, and their collection of jerseys might be unparalleled for the number of teams and leagues it covers!

From the 49thshelf.com website, "Steve Milton has over forty years' experience as a sportswriter and writes for the Hamilton Spectator. He has won numerous Ontario Newspaper Awards and has been both a Gemini and National Newspaper Award finalist. He is the author of more than twenty books and is a member of both the Skate Canada Hall of Fame and the Canadian Football Hall of Fame. He lives in Hamilton, Ontario." It should be noted that Milton retired from the Hamilton Spectator in 2023 after 38 years at the newspaper, and now spends his summers covering the Hamilton Tiger-Cats and FC Forge as a Multiplatform Columnist for Hamilton Sports Group, writing for both club's websites while lending his expertise to the Ticats Audio Network and the Forge Audio Network. He has also appeared on various programs for CTV and TSN in his career where he provided sports coverage, and he also wrote for The Sporting News.

I'll be honest when I say I did very little reading when I first went through the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys. The pictures of some of the jerseys are amazing in showing details like puck marks and holes when it comes to how beat up these integral pieces of the uniform get, but it was downright amazing to see jerseys that I had never seen before. Brian Leetch's jersey from the Cheshire High School Rams, Rod Langway's jersey from the Randolph High School Blue Devils, and Harry Howell's WHA jersey from the New York Golden Blades were all featured in the first section of legendary players, and I had never seen these jerseys in such vivid colour and resolution!

The international section of jerseys in the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys is a treasure trove of amazing images. Jörgen Jönsson's Färjestads BK jersey from the 1998 Spengler Cup is a gorgeous artifact, Constant Priondolo's jersey from Italy's Alleghe Sile Caldaie has an interesting story to it, and Cammi Granato's jersey from the NWHL's Vancouver Griffins is a sight to behold! Each jersey displayed in the book comes with a write-up about the player who wore the jersey, giving some insight on the career of the player whose jersey is part of the Hockey Hall of Fame. For some of the lesser-known players, it was very interesting to learn about their careers!

The section in the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys about all-star game jerseys has tidbits of information from the NHL All-Star Games that are featured, but it's the minor-league and junior all-star game jerseys where there are some gems. The "Champions" section is loaded with interesting jerseys, but it's the "Hockey Hodgepodge" section that captured my attention. There are many interesting sweaters in this section that probably could have had their own books such as the Edmonton Flyers, the Riverdale Skeeters, the Des Moines Oak Leafs, and the Preston Rivulettes! This book is filled with history!

One of the interesting bits of history came from the All-Star Game section where it seems that the NHL was helping other leagues by giving them their old jerseys! Milton wrote of the 1972 NHL All-Star Game jerseys and the Robbie Irons' 1973 IHL All-Star Game jersey,

"Irons' IHL All-Star sweater is of the same vintage and style as Ed Giacomin's NHL Eastern Conference All-Star sweater, a design that the NHL had used for several years, ending in 1972."

Could you imagine the NHL sending their old jerseys to the AHL or ECHL today when they changed designs? I completely understand the IHL not having piles of money to outfit their all-stars every year back in the early-1970s, but to wear another league's sweaters seems a little crazy. Of course, hockey at both levels was all sorts of crazy back in the 1970s so maybe I shouldn't be all that surprised that this sort of clothing swap happened. If I hadn't read the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys, I wouldn't have known about this fact!

Overall, the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys is a feast for the eyes when it comes to all the jerseys shown on its 192 pages. I would have liked to have seen more information about the jerseys and that part of their careers pertaining to those players who wore them, but there's enough information about a number of players that I didn't know to make the profiles worth it. Because of the great pictures, the chosen jerseys and the historical nature of those jerseys, and the info about the players, the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys certainly deserves the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

The Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys was released on August 30, 2012, so copies of the book should be available at libraries and local bookstores. The book is easy to read with no crass language and zero controversial stories, and the sections are filled with amazing images with each two-page set having a photo and a write-up, making the book easy to put down if one needs a break. In saying that, I read the Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Jerseys very quickly because of its easy-to-read nature, and it is absolutely recommended for all hockey fans, especially those who love hockey jerseys and hockey history!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

TBC: Home And Away

If there's one thing that will always remain as a constant in my life, it's my undying, unwavering support for anything that goes against the Toronto Maple Leafs. As long as the Leafs continue their streak of not capturing the Stanley Cup nor appearing in a Stanley Cup Final, I will remain fairly content in my pursuits of hockey stories. To this degree, it would should be weird to some that I would voluntarily pick up a book that's primarily about one player's career wearing the Maple Leafs logo, but I had a specific reason for doing so. Because of this, Teebz's Book Club is proud to review Home and Away, written by Mats Sundin and Amy Stuart and published by Simon & Schuster Canada. There's no doubt in my mind that Mats Sundin is one of the greatest players that Sweden has ever produced and his accolades from his storied career are many, but I had another reason to read this book.

From his Simon & Schuster biography, "Mats Sundin is the longest-serving captain not born in North America in NHL history. He enjoyed a prolific eighteen-season NHL career as well as a superb international career playing for Sweden, his homeland. When he was selected by the Quebec Nordiques in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft, he became the first European-born player ever drafted first overall. The Nordiques traded him to the Toronto Maple Leafs, and the rest is hockey history. At the time of his retirement, Sundin stood as the Toronto Maple Leafs’ all-time franchise leader in goals and points. A quiet leader, the durable Sundin is regarded as one of the finest Swedes to have played in the National Hockey League, and one of the greatest Toronto Maple Leafs of all time." Mats, his wife Josephine, and his three children live in Sweden and visit Toronto often.

From her biography on the Simon & Schuster website, "Amy Stuart's fourth novel, A Death at the Party, emerged as a longstanding #1 bestseller. She is the author of three other bestselling novels — Still Mine, Still Water, and Still Here — which have been optioned for television by Lark/NBC Universal. Amy's other love is hockey. She is one of only four women head coaches in the GTHL, the world's largest youth competitive hockey league. She was born in Toronto, where she still lives with her husband and their three sons. They also spend much of their time on Prince Edward Island, where Amy's family is originally from." In 2019, Amy founded Writerscape, an online community for hopeful and emerging writers if you're looking for a place to hone your writing skills, and you can follow Amy on Twitter and on Goodreads to stay up-to-date on everything!

As stated above, I fully admit that I had very little interest in reading about Sundin's time with the Maple Leafs. I was interested in learning about his life, but that 13-year section of his career mattered little to me when I started reading. I actually was looking to see on how he and Swedish teammates reacted after losing to Belarus at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, but what I found in reading Home and Away is that Mats Sundin, despite his Maple Leafs career, is a man who never forgot his roots, loved his family, and loved playing hockey.

Home and Away is a memoir of Mats' life, from his time growing up as the middle child in the Sundin family to closing out his career with the Vancouver Canucks. I'm not sure if it's Sundin's disposition or Stuart's writing style, but the entire book is very positive which seems odd considering that hockey is about players and teams clashing. Add in agents and general managers who clash during contract negotiations and personal relationships, and I expected a few stories where Sundin didn't have a good interaction with someone. That reality, though, is a very positive memoir contained in Home and Away which may speak further to Sundin's character.

What is clear throughout Home and Away is Mats' sense of loyalty and devotion. He was extremely devoted in his career to his teams and teammates including turning down offers to leave Toronto via trades in pursuit of a Stanley Cup, and he was always in contact with his family and quick to have them at his side. For a man who grew up in the small Swedish town of Sollentuna, the sense of home and family was something that Sundin carried throughout his career that I never knew he carried. It was refreshing to read just how close he is with his family no matter how far away he was chasing his dreams.

One thing I wasn't aware of as I read Home and Away was Mats Sundin playing in a youth tournament in Winnipeg! Sundin played in the Manitoba capital in 1986 as his team from Sweden attended a tournament here. He was billeted with a family, and it sounds as though Mats enjoyed Winnipeg during this experience. He writes,

"Winnipeg, and Canada, felt both different and the same as home. The weather was warm and the days were long. People were friendly, but far more outgoing. In Sweden, we couldn't drive until we turned eighteen, so it was a shock to see out fellow sixteen-year-olds behind the wheel. My host player drove me to a local mall, where we met up with groups of kids eating at the food court and shopping for clothes. I couldn't believe how sophisticated they seemed in comparison to us. My host family took good care of me."

I went looking for newspaper articles of this tournament where Sweden "ended up winning every game by a large margin," but I found nothing. Nevertheless, it's pretty cool to think that Winnipeg was Sundin's first North American experience for culture, and he seemed to enjoy his short stay based on his story in Home and Away.

Overall, I enjoyed reading Home and Away as I really knew little about Mats Sundin. From growing up in Sollentuna to playing with Nacka HK and Djurgården IF in Sweden to landing in Quebec, Toronto, and Vancouver as an NHL player, there are all sorts of interesting stories in Home and Away. He does address each of the three Olympiads he took part in so 2002 gets discussed, but I really wanted more details. My unreasonable expectations aside, the book is an excellent look at Mats Sundin's life and career, and Home and Away absolutely deserves the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

Home and Away was released on October 22, 2024, so copies of the book should be available at libraries and local bookstores. The book is easy to read with very minimal crass language and no outrageous stories for parents of younger hockey fans to consider, and the chapters are short and concise, making the book easy to put down if one needs a break. In saying that, I read Home and Away very quickly because of its easy-to-read nature, and it is absolutely recommended for all hockey fans, especially Toronto Maple Leafs fans!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

TBC: Tales From The Dressing Room

If you know anything about the weather that Winnipeg seems to always get on this May long weekend, it's that the weather is usually cold with intermittent spells of rain. Not surprisingly, this weekend has followed that trend, but that has allowed me to crack the spine on another book that I've been wanting to read. In saying that, Teebz's Book Club is proud to review Pierre Gervais: Tales From The Dressing Room, written by Mathais Brunet and published by Ovation Medias. Mathias spoke with the Montreal Canadiens' former equipment manager about everything he saw and experienced while working for the Canadiens, compiling them into this book. If you're looking for a unique perspective on a hockey club's culture, front office, and players, Tales From The Dressing Room is a book you want to read!

From the cover of Tales From The Dressing Room, "After a 35-year career in the Canadiens’ dressing room, Pierre Gervais has seen first-hand many moments that punctuated the history of the Habs. From his beginnings alongside Eddy Palchak to the Stanley Cup victories of 1986 and 1993, not to mention his participation in the 2002, 2006, 2010 and 2014 Olympic Games, Pierre Gervais has had the pleasure of rubbing shoulders with several NHL stars and executives in the course of his career. But beyond all that, he has developed special relationships with many of them and allows us, through these pages, to get to know the inner workings of the National Hockey League by giving us unpublished and unexpected stories from behind the scenes of professional hockey." Gervais retired on on April 29, 2022.

Also from Tales From The Dressing Room, "Mathias Brunet has been a journalist at La Presse since 1994. This is his thirteenth book, ten of which are about the world of hockey. He has also written a dozen documentaries, two of which were nominated for the Gémeaux awards. He is also a collaborator at BPM 91.9 Sports since 2015." He continues to cover hockey for La Presse after covering the Montreal Canadiens for ten years, and has a podcast with Simon Boisvert called Mathias and the Serpent. He has also written hockey books about Michel Bergeron, Dave Morissette, Mario Tremblay, and a year behind the scenes with the Canadiens.

Tales From The Dressing Room isn't going to be a tell-all of things that the Montreal Canadiens never wanted published, but Pierre Gervais does have moments where he shares his opinion on certain players and people involved with the Montreal Canadiens. A lot of what was written isn't going to shock or surprise anyone, but he did provide a few facts about the team and certain players that may not be known.

I found Gervais' perspectives in Tales From The Dressing Room to be rather unique because it was almost entirely through his equipment manager lens. His interactions with other teams and players, specifically when working with Team Canada, were almost exclusively through other equipment managers rather than with the players. It was neat to see how these equipment managers trade information about players in order to ensure everything goes smoothly!

One of the things that one will discover in reading Tales From The Dressing Room is that Pierre Gervais is an educated wine connoisseur! He and a handful of Canadiens players became very interested in wine during their careers, and Gervais became the person that many players consulted when it came to wine. In one passage, he writes,

"The guys would look to me to make their choices. José (Théodore) would even call me when he was at the restaurant. He'd read the wine list and ask me which one to choose! I helped him build his cellar. When the 2000 Bordeaux - a great vintage - came out, I had found some for him as far away as Vancouver."

Who would have guessed that the guy in charge of order sticks, jerseys, and supplies for the Montreal Canadiens was also ordering wine for players like Théodore, Saku Koivu, and Mark Recchi, helping them build their wine cellars? That's one of the interesting things you'll learn about Pierre Gervais in Tales From The Dressing Room!

I will say that the release of Tales From The Dressing Room caused a bit of an uproar with the Montreal Canadiens as they tried to walk back some of the statements made by Pierre Gervais in the book after it was released. I want to be clear that not everything he stated may be true, but it is a retelling of his perceptions and interactions with various people involved with Montreal Canadiens over his years as an equipment manager. One can argue that how he framed certain people may not be accurate, but these are his experiences.

Overall, I found Tales From The Dressing Room an interesting read that gave some insight into a job that I always thought I could do. Pierre Gervais has 35 years of experience with the Canadiens and 45 years of experience in total, so he certainly is a subject matter expert. His experiences with personnel who worked and played for the Montreal Canadiens and Team Canada was interesting to read, and the short chapters curated by Mathias Brunet made Tales From The Dressing Room easy to read. Because of Gervais' stories and experiences and Brunet's writing, Pierre Gervais: Tales From The Dressing Room deserves the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

Tales From The Dressing Room was first printed in French and released on November 11, 2022 before being translated to English by the start of 2023. In saying this, copies of the book in either or both languages may be available at libraries and local bookstores. The book is easy to read without crass language for parents of younger hockey fans to consider, but there are references to alcohol. In saying that, Pierre Gervais: Tales From The Dressing Room is recommended reading for all hockey fans, especially Montreal Canadiens fans!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

TBC: Fabric Of The Game

Being that I am a hockey fan, I have a bit of a hockey jersey collection that features teams from a number of leagues. Most are customized with names and numbers on the back, but some are not as I have yet to make a commitment on those jerseys. In saying that, though, there's a pile of history and market research that goes into the logos and colours that a lot of people sweep aside because "it looks cool". Today, we dive into the history a little more as Teebz's Book Club is proud to review Fabric of the Game written by Chris Creamer and Todd Radom and published by Sports Publishing. Chris and Todd are big players in the world of sports logos and designs, so getting their takes on 32 NHL teams was something I had to read!

From his bio on the Sports Publishing website, "Chris Creamer is a writer, historian, and world-renowned expert on sports logos and uniforms based in the Toronto area. His passion for logos resulted in the creation of SportsLogos.Net, an ongoing 20+ year project dedicated to the history of team logos and uniforms. He has worked closely with the National Hockey League acting as a historical consultant for their centennial season celebration, written for NHL.com, the Buffalo News, and has been featured or quoted in several publications including The Hockey News, Washington Post, Toronto Star, and Sporting News."

Also from his bio on the Sports Publishing website, "Todd Radom is a graphic designer, sports branding expert, and writer. His work includes the official logos for Super Bowl XXXVIII, the 2009 NBA All-Star Game, the graphic identities of multiple Major League Baseball teams — including the Washington Nationals and Los Angeles Angels — and league and team identity and branding for the BIG3 basketball league. He has provided commentary about sports logos and branding for ESPN, National Public Radio, and the New York Times. In addition, he has been profiled or quoted in numerous publications including the Washington Post, Philadelphia Inquirer, Chicago Tribune, Sports Illustrated, The Athletic, and Sporting News. Radom is the author of Winning Ugly: A Visual History of Baseball's Most Unique Uniforms." Radom also contributed to Paul Lukas' Uni-Watch.

Being that I like jerseys and history, Fabric of the Game seemed like a perfect book for me as those two subjects intersected thanks to the knowledge possessed by authors Creamer and Radom. They delivered in a big way with good chunks of history added for each team, some excellent photographs depicting the logos and jerseys for each team, and other interesting tidbits of information that hockey historians will love. In short, Fabric of the Game delivers nicely on its subtitle of "The Stories Behind the NHL's Names, Logos, and Uniforms".

If there is a quibble, the history-loving side of me wanted more. I know that may not have been possible in order to prevent Fabric of the Game from turning into a set of encyclopedias, but there were small snippets that needed deeper analyses for some of the teams. The authors make reference to Seattle nearly being the landing spot for the Pittsburgh Penguins in their chapter on the Kraken, but that's not explored in any way. HBIC went down that path, but I was hoping for more interesting facts about this topic and others in the book.

Don't let that discourage you from reading Fabric of the Game, though. There are so many good pieces of information contained between the covers that it's worth the read, and the photographs of older NHL jerseys may have you asking why some teams changed designs at all. One of the fun facts that Creamer and Radom included in the book about each team are the names they almost chose, and the Columbus Blue Jackets almost had another name. They write,

"A Name the Team Contest, sponsored by the Central Ohio-based restaurant chain Wendy's, launched in July 1997, with more than ninety Columbus-area restaurants distributing entry blanks. Dave Thomas, the chain's ubiquitous founder and pitchman, watched 'Frostys' according to a Wendy's spokes-person, a joking tribute to their signature frozen dessert."

How funny would that have been has the Blue Jackets debuted as the Columbus Frostys? All jokes aside, the two names that came back from the NHL that were approved were Blue Jackets and Justice, and we know which option the franchise chose. Facts like this are littered throughout the book about team names, logos, and jersey design, making Fabric of the Game a great addition to a hockey fan's library.

Overall, Fabric of the Game has enough information and images on its 280 pages to satiate hockey jersey fans, hockey history fans, and hockey jersey history fans. Creamer and Radom don't go into 100 years of history for the Original Six teams, but they give you enough to understand how the team name was chosen, the designs worn and the history behind them, and how the logos came to be. Again, it's not an encyclopedic look at the teams, but it's a fantastic resource for hockey fans to have at their fingertips. Because of the history, photographs, and information on its pages, Fabric of the Game absolutely is deserving of the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

Fabric of the Game was first printed in November 2020, so you should be able to find copies at libraries and local bookstores. Online retailers also have the book if you're seeking a copy. Everything contained within the book is easy to read without any concerns for parents of younger hockey fans if they were thinking about getting this book for a younger reader. Parents may end up with lots of questions about some of the older hockey topics, but Fabric of the Game is recommended reading for all hockey fans of all ages!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

TBC: Tales From The Bus Leagues

If you've ever had a chance to sit and chat with a professional hockey player in a less-formal setting, you know that all players have about a million stories from their careers they enjoy telling. Minor-league hockey players always seem to have more of the crazier stories thanks to there being less cameras and eyeballs on them, so I couldn't pass up the opportunity to add another great read to the library that is all about one man's hockey experiences. Teebz's Book Club is proud to review Tales from the Bus Leagues, written and published by Jamie McKinven. This book is one hundred stories from Jamie's life where hockey was his only concern as he played in the NCAA, the ECHL, the CHL, and in Europe over the course of his career, and the end result is a book where I couldn't turn pages fast enough when it came to reading about these stops in his career!

Jamie McKinven's biography comes from his Queen's University page where he serves as the women's hockey assistant coach! That biography reads, "Jamie is in his 9th season as an Assistant Coach with the team where he specializes in working primarily with the defense and on defensive systems and tactics on top of individual skill development & data/analytics. A Kingston, Ontario native, McKinven played NCAA Division I hockey at Clarkson University, earning the Fran Narigan Award for excellence in academics, athletics, and humanitarianism in his senior year. Following his collegiate career, he played professionally in the ECHL, Central Hockey League, and Europe. After his playing career, McKinven served as Assistant Coach and Director of Player Development for the Kingston Voyageurs Jr. A Hockey Club and as a skill development specialist with FL Sports Inc. and McKinven Hockey Development & Consulting." It should also be noted that he's written three books about hockey including Tales from the Bus Leagues!

Tales from the Bus Leagues takes you through Jamie McKinven's career, starting in junior hockey in Ottawa to his university days in Potsdam, New York to playing in hockey hotbeds such as Shreveport, Amarillo, Augusta, and more! McKinven's experiences are documented along the way as he includes lessons learned in and around the game, pranks pulled and experienced, teammates that made his career memorable, and some of the more memorable events and people that make Tales from the Bus Leagues a funny and enjoyable read!

You might be asking who McKinven played with or against that you know, and there were some notable names who skated in the leagues he did. Former NHL defender Grant Clitsome is the victim of a McKinven prank in one story, former NHL centerman Craig Conroy rewards McKinven and his teammates for their hockey skills, and former NHL forward David Desharnais was an opponent at one point. McKinven tells the story of Mike Sgroi who might be the scariest man on skates, and he talks about fighting the much larger Joel Irving, a Montreal Canadiens prospect. Through it all, McKinven ensures the humourous look at his career continues in Tales from the Bus Leagues.

What kept me hooked into Tales from the Bus Leagues early on was McKinven's experience in Serbia. During his time over there, the former Yugoslavia had broken up and there were still remnants of the war that went on all around Belgrade where he was playing. Rather than focusing on the conditions in and around Belgrade, McKinven spoke of the culture and people with very high regard. He writes,

"Considering that Serbians have been living with the constant presence of war and conflict for centuries, it makes complete sense that they would be extremely proud people. Family, religion and deep-rooted cultural values are what have guided the Serbians through their darkest days. It's the foundation of their perserverance, something we, as Canadians, were lax and somewhat absentminded about. It wasn't that we didn't appreciate the importance of these values. It was more that we never had to rely on them for survival."

That's a profound statement from a guy who was there to play hockey, but his experiences there and the teammates he befriended in Belgrade were reminders that he was stranger in a foreign land. I appreciate his cultural perspective on his time in Serbia, and I'm glad he wrote about it with such clarity, honesty, and transparency.

There are a range of hilarious and entertaining stories in Tales from the Bus Leagues that include McKinven's experiences as a hockey player at The Masters, life as a university student-athlete, bus trips on two different continents, run-ins with coaches, and a pile of other stories that came from his career in the minor leagues. Some are admittedly childish in nature, but they're all part of Jamie McKinven's experience in being a minor-league professional hockey player!

Overall, Tales from the Bus Leagues is a fun read that should generate a smile during some of the stories thanks to the craziness in which McKinven and his teammates indulge. McKinven makes it clear that anyone who is a minor-league hockey player isn't playing for the money, and this is a lesson repeated in a number of the stories. What should be remembered, though, is that McKinven has had himself a lifetime of experiences doing what he loved, and it's easy to award Tales from the Bus Leagues the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

Tales from the Bus Leagues was released back in 2015, so you can likely find it on library shelves right now. I read the eBook version that is linked above, and it was easy to get into the book as it's funny, has short stories that last only a few pages at most, and is all about hockey. McKinven's stories occasionally contain some strong language, so it'd be recommended for older teens and adult hockey fans. However, Tales from the Bus Leagues is an excellent, fun read with great hockey stories, and it comes highly recommended!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

TBC: We Want Fish Sticks

If you've followed this blog for any length of time, you likely know that I'm a fan of the infamous New York Islanders' Fisherman jersey. That's not to say that I'm not fan of the traditional Islanders jersey nor am I trying to compare the two in terms of which one is better, but I always thought the Islanders were ahead of their time when the Fisherman debuted. The fact that the jerseys lasted for just two seasons after Islanders fans demanded the team go back to the original logo didn't get the jersey any sort of time to become part of the identity, and today's book looks at that as Teebz's Book Club is proud to review We Want Fish Sticks: The Bizarre and Infamous Rebranding of the New York Islanders, written by Nicholas Hirshon and published by University of Nebraska Press. If you were looking for a direct examination into the reasons why the Fisherman jersey failed, this book pulls back the curtain on what happened in Nassau County!

From his biography on his website, Nicholas Hirshon, a former New York City journalist, is an associate professor of communication at William Paterson University in Wayne, New Jersey. He holds a Bachelor's in Journalism from St. John's University, a Master's in Journalism from Columbia University, and a Ph.D. in Mass Communication from Ohio University. Hirshon won an AEJMC Promising Professors Award in 2014 and the Society of Professional Journalists' New Jersey Journalism Educator of the Year Award in 2019. In 2015, his Ohio University students nominated him for a Graduate Associate Outstanding Teaching Award, and he became the first journalism instructor to win the award in eight years. He has published three books on New York City sports in his career.

We Want Fish Sticks is the kind of writing I appreciate because it feels like Hirshon pulled no punches in his quest to understand and illustrate the reasons why the New York Islanders' logo and jersey redesign in the mid-1990s failed so spectacularly. He doesn't sugar-coat stories nor does he soften the words he chooses to describe some of the evidence he provides. In what feels like a journalistic style, Hirshon simply states things matter-of-factly and lets readers come to their own conclusions through the evidence he presents.

For me, the key to We Want Fish Sticks being a credible and reliable source of information about an era that happened thirty years ago is that Hirshon spoke to "fifty-three hockey insiders" about that 1995-97 period of Islanders hockey. While Hirshon admittedly constructed the narrative of the book, these fifty-three insiders gave Hirshon their honest thoughts about that era in Islanders history. Players spoke of wearing the Fisherman jersey. Designers spoke of the process it took to get the logo and jersey onto NHL players. Others simply gave stories that seemed larger than life. In the end, We Want Fish Sticks is an incredible look inside the rebranding process of an NHL team.

Hirshon makes it clear in We Want Fish Sticks that there were missteps at almost every key point in the rebranding of the New York Islanders. Whether it be rushing to get it into production from the design aspect, ignoring market research, having a less-than-competitive NHL team, hiring the wrong people, absentee owners, and a con man who was eventually thrown in jail, all of these factors seemed to contribute to the Fisherman's failure. It wasn't one major problem, but We Want Fish Sticks points to the Islanders' rebrand failing due to death by a thousand cuts with the mistakes made.

Not surprisingly, Hirshon illustrates this well when he wrote,

"Within the franchise the logo quickly became a scapegoat for the Islanders' poor play. Only two months into the season the team already had two four-game losing streaks, and the players' dislike for the jerseys had them searching for other motivations to get through a long season. Rich Pilon said that he stayed driven by focusing on the men sitting beside him on the bench. "You put the jersey on for the team, so to look past that when you're wearing that jersey that I didn't care for on my side - lots of players didn't either - then you're playing for teammates, right?"

That kind of recap about how the first two months of wearing the Fisherman went likely doesn't give anyone a good feeling. One could say that the jerseys had nothing to do with how the team played which is true, but it seems like the Fisherman logo was emblematic of the problems behind the logo within the Islanders' franchise.

We Want Fish Sticks isn't all doom and gloom, though. Hirshon spoke of some of the positives that the franchise experienced during this time period as well. The emergence of players like Žigmund Pálffy and Travis Green gave fans hope for better times, and the acquisitions of Bryan Smolinski and Mathieu Schneider bolstered a lineup that needed some star power. Victories over the hated New York Rangers were celebrated by all Islanders fans, and people were jubilant over John Spano's reported puchase of the team until they weren't. We Want Fish Sticks highlights all of this and the fallout.

Overall, We Want Fish Sticks is an incredible look at the four-year period where the idea of an Islanders' rebrand began to its inception to its eventual end. Hirshon's interviews and research gives fans an incredible look into the NHL branding process while following the rather sad fortunes of the Fisherman Islanders jersey. We Want Fish Sticks won't change my view on the Fisherman jersey nor will it prompt me to sell the one I have, but Hirshon's incredible look at the New York Islanders' most forgettable period of time in their history is absolutely deserving of the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

We Want Fish Sticks was published in 2018, but it can still be ordered through the University of Nebraska Press website if one wants a copy. Alternatively, you might be able to find a copy at your local bookstore or library. No matter where you find a copy, We Want Fish Sticks is a good read for all hockey fans, especially New York Islanders fans, and is recommended for all without any of the mocking chants!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

TBC: Certified Beauties

It has been a pleasure to have had the opportunities to read some great books over the last week that has allowed us to interview great authors on The Hockey Show. While I'm completely aware of the need for these authors to promote their books to help sales, it's been a better experience getting to know the people writing these books through our conversations. That holds true for today's book review as Teebz's Book Club is proud to review Certified Beauties: More of Hockey's Greatest Untold Stories, written by James Duthie and published by HarperCollins Publishers Ltd. If you were a fan of James Duthie's book, Beauties, this is the second book that he's written that deals with all the stories that hockey players trade behind the scenes about their craziest experiences and often hard-to-believe moments off the ice. If you need a good hockey story, Certified Beauties has a pile of them from the players themselves!

You already know James Duthie from his hockey work on TSN, but there's a lot more to James Duthie than just his TV work. James is an eight-time Canadian Screen Award winner, he has co-hosted Olympic Daytime coverage, he'll be heading to Milano-Cortina for men’s hockey coverage at another Olympic Games, he is an Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame inductee, he holds the key to city in Ottawa, he hosts TSN's coverage of The Masters and the CFL, he appeared in Goon 2 as some character named "James Duthie", he's a Carleton University grad, and he's the author of of a number of books including two that I have reviewed here on HBIC in The Guy on the Left and Beauties, and a third book today. James and his family live in Aurora, Ontario.

For everyone that has sat through a hockey interview where the same clichés and statements have been made by countless players, you know it gets a little repetitive. That's where Certified Beauties comes in because I'm quite certain the stories told by the players in this book haven't been heard by fans anywhere. Some may be known, but there are so many entertaining, funny, and heartfelt stories in Certified Beauties that you'll likely find yourself wanting to read the next one as soon as you finish a story! That happened to me!

The players who contributed stories are many with the likes of Kevin Bieksa, Darcy Hordichuk, Blake Coleman, Sam Gagner, Emma Maltais, Brady and Matthew Tkachuk, and Ray Whitney to name a few, but there were some amazing chapters about Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau and Gardiner MacDougall and the UNB Reds that truly illustrate how good the game of hockey can be when great people set their minds on making the world a better place. For all the laughs that are contained within the covers of Certified Beauties, the chapters that tugged on the heart strings will remain with you.

I do want to make a special mention of the chapter that is entirely devoted to Johnny and Matthew Gaudreau because it's their family and friends who contribute the stories about them to Certified Beauties. From these stories, you can tell that these two men were special in their own ways. It's hard to know that these two incredible men who cherished their time away from the game with the people they loved more the game of hockey were taken from us at such a young age, but the words used to describe them by their families and friends will give you new persepctive on these two wonderful men.

You might be wondering what kind of stories are found in Certified Beauties, and I'm here to say that the stories you'll read range from funny to "that couldn't possibly have happened". For example, Duthie has a funny story from current Maple Leafs GM Brad Treliving about his time playing in the now-defunct Western Professional Hockey League for the Waco Wizards. He writes,

"The lights go out for the opening night introductions. Dramatic music plays. High above the rink, the wizard is hooked up to a wire and descends dramatically toward ice. He's waving his wand, pumping up the crowd. And then, 20 feet above centre ice, he passes out."

Can you imagine seeing a mascot descending from the rafters, pumping the crowd up, and then he just passes out? And the show must go on, so the opening night ceremony just continues until they finally realize that the wizard, lying at centre ice, has suddenly stopped being a willing participant! What did Brad do? What did his teammates do? Thankfully, there's a happy ending to Treliving's story, but Certified Beauties is packed with fun stories like this!

Overall, Certified Beauties can be rated as a beauty as the chapters are short with funny and heartfelt stories, so it makes it easy to put the book down if one needs a break. Duthie doesn't editorialize in the book often if at all, allowing the players' stories to shine through as though they were telling them to readers themselves. As such, it's an enjoyable read with some chuckles and the occasional tug at the heart strings, and, for these reasons, it's easy to award Certified Beauties with the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

Certified Beauties was released on October 21, 2025, so you can find it on bookstore shelves and library shelves right now, assuming that there are copies remaining. This book would be a perfect Christmas gift for your older hockey fan as it does contain some strong language at times. Due to this, Certified Beauties is strongly recommended for older teens and adult hockey fans. However, the book is an excellent read with great stories, and Certified Beauties by James Duthie is highly recommended for your hockey fans and your bookshelf!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

The Hockey Show - Episode 688

The Hockey Show, Canada's only campus-produced radio show that strictly talks hockey, is back tonight with another guest who has made waves nationally, internationally, and certainly within his hometown of Ottawa. He was recently here in Winnipeg for a big event, and he'll be off to other places soon with the work that he does for TSN as one of their top sportscasters and program hosts! Before he does that, though, he'll talk to our hosts about his new book, some of the fun he had in writing it, his recent Winnipeg experience, and much more in a fun chat with one of this country's best media people tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT!

You may have been expecting more sledge hockey talk tonight, but we had a few scheduling quirks happen, allowing us to pivot to the gentlemen to the left! Teebz and Jason are proud, honoured, privileged, humbled, and pleased to welcome TSN's James Duthie back to the show! James appeared back in 2015 when he was promoting The Guy On The Left, and we're having him back tonight to chat about his new book, Certified Beauties published by HarperCollins! James has collected a ton of great stories from hockey players about some of the more memorable things they've done while playing the game, and the result is an incredible book full of laughs, smiles, a few tears, and some wild moments. We'll talk to him about some of these stories, the characters who gave him stories, some of his non-hockey work, and we lob a few fun, softball questions his way for a laugh! It's a busy hour with James Duthie talking about his new book, Certified Beauties, tonight on The Hockey Show at 5:30pm CT on one of 101.5 FM, Channel 718 on MTS TV, or via UMFM.com!

If you live outside Winnipeg and want to listen, we have options! The UMFM website's streaming player works well if you want to listen online. We also recommend Radio Garden if you need an easy-to-use online stream. If you're more of an app person, we recommend you use the TuneIn app found on the App Store or Google Play Store. It's a solid app.

If you have questions, you can email all show queries and comments to hockeyshow@umfm.com! Tweet me anytime with questions you may have by hitting me up at @TeebzHBIC on Twitter! I'm here to listen to you, so make your voice heard! And because both Teebz and Jason are on the butterfly app where things are less noisy, you can find Teebz here and Jason here on Bluesky!

Tonight, Teebz and Jason sit down with one of Canada's most decorated sportscasters in TSN's James Duthie to talk about his new book, Certified Beauties and discuss some of the stories he was told, some of the people he interviewed, and much more exclusively on 101.5 UMFM and on the UMFM.com web stream!

PODCAST: November 27, 2025: Episode 687

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

Friday Night In A Bookstore

I'm far from being Ben Stiller in any aspect of my life, so the title of this article might be a little misleading if you were thinking I did some sort of variation on A Night at the Museum. I assure you I wasn't locked in a bookstore nor was I interacting with various displays, but I did spend a few hours at a bookstore this evening listening to the man pictured to the left as TSN's James Duthie is in town for the CFL's Grey Cup festivities! James was at the McNally Robinson location in Grant Park where he was talking about and signing copies of his new book, Certified Beauties published by Harper Collins Canada, while entertaining the dozens of folks who showed up to meet him. It was a fun night of story-telling from one of Canada's best story-tellers, and I'm glad I made Friday plans to visit a local bookstore!

The Hockey Show on UMFM was lucky enough to have James on as a guest back in 2015, and we had an incredible chat about the book he had published back then, The Guy on the Left, and everything that he covered in that book. I still feel that's one of the best interviews we've done on the show due to how honest and funny James was, and I'll always be grateful for the time and interview he gave to our show.

Tonight's chat about Certified Beauties felt a lot like that as James answered a lot of questions about how the book came about, how he got some of the stories from the players he spoke with, and some of his favorite stories. He spoke about meeting with Roberto Luongo for one of his TSN parody clips which has led to the two having a strong friendship, he was honest about loving the opportunity he gets in covering The Masters golf tournament, and he even broke some news about the media coverage at the upcoming Milano-Cortina Olympics!

After the formal talk about Certified Beauties, James spent time signing his books for everyone in line while chatting with them about everything. His interest in why people were buying the book, their connections to hockey, and the excitement they had in meeting him was felt by all, and he volunteered for every opportunity to be in a photo with someone. It was certainly an absolute pleasure to speak with him when my moment arrived, and it's very possible that something fun may come out of that discussion between us!

I've been told and certainly have heard a number of times in my life that one shouldn't meet his or her heroes. I don't think it would be fair that I use that word with James Duthie because I feel like he's more than that. He's a genuine, fun-loving, entertaining guy who works in sports media and enjoys his work on a daily basis. He speaks to you like a neighbour when you're out in the yard - friendly, good discussion with lots of smiles and laughs. Yes, he works on TSN and he'll likely be recognized no matter where he goes in Canada, but he doesn't carry himself in that manner in any way whatsoever.

James will likely be busy getting prepared for the Grey Cup game this weekend so I'm not sure if there will be other chances where people could meet him around Winnipeg, but his personality and fun-loving self is on display on the pages of The Guy on the Left while his love of heart-warming and entertaining hockey stories comes through in spades in both Beauties and Certified Beauties. With the holiday season approaching, these three books and his fourth book, The Day I (Almost) Killed Two Gretzkys, would make great gifts for the hockey fans in your life! Find them at your local bookstore today!

I never thought I'd be writing about hanging out at a bookstore on a Friday and enjoying every moment of it, but it was certainly worth it to meet James Duthie and listen to him speak about his experiences!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

TBC: We Breed Lions

In the last few weeks, I have found myself reading more books about hockey. Part of that reason is due to the guests we're featuring on The Hockey Show, but I've been rediscovering my love of reading as I learn about different topics within the stories about hockey. I've been lucky enough, since starting Teebz's Book Club, to find books that are impossible to put down due to the writing and the topics contained within the covers. Our book today is one of those books as Teebz's Book Club is proud to review We Breed Lions written by Rick Westhead and published by Random House Canada. Westhead pulls no punches as he analyzes Canada's hockey culture and how we, as a country, act shocked when crimes happen within hockey like the Hockey Canada sexual assault trial when the warning signs have always been there. If one wants a sobering view of the game we hold so dear, Rick Westhead's newest book will deliver that in spades.

From his Penguin Random House biography, "Rick Westhead is TSN's Senior Correspondent and a two-time winner of Canadian sports writer of the year, presented by Sport Media Canada. Canadian Journalists for Freedom of Expression recognized him in 2023 with the Arnold Amber Award for Investigative Journalism. Westhead breaks news of consequence and has won six Canadian Screen Awards for his original features for various TSN properties. In 2025, he was recognized for his 'fearless reporting' by The Hockey News in its list of 100 People of Power and Influence in hockey. Prior to joining TSN, Westhead served as a foreign correspondent for the Toronto Star, where he reported on the ground in countries including Afghanistan, China, and Saudi Arabia." Rick and his family live in the GTA with his family, and plays pick-up hockey when he's not investigating a new story for TSN.

It shouldn't be surprising that We Breed Lions begins by talking about the 2018 Hockey Canada sexual assault case as Rick Westhead put in long hours uncovering and investigating claims made by both the plaintiff and the defendants. In doing so, Westhead uses the opportunity to pull back the curtain on the hockey system in Canada in the chapters following as he examines and exposes criminal behaviours and abhorrent activity at every level throughout Canada.

The staggering amount of questionable behaviour that is revealed in We Breed Lions should have every hockey parent, every league convener, every coach, every general manager, and every player asking how the game has failed so badly. The number of people in the game of hockey that Westhead interviews in the book who corroborate the allegations made should have everyone worried about the state of the game. We Breed Lions will be a "must-read" book for years to come if one hopes to see any change in the game.

The topics covered by Westhead in We Breed Lions are all problems known to hockey fans, but ones that no one brings up. He covers sexual assault, rape, hazing, bullying, the "what happens in the room stays in the room" secrecy among teams, alcohol and drug abuse, exploitation of power and intimidation, how people turn a blind eye to the listed crimes, and how teams cover up any illicit activity committed by anyone associated with the team. Westhead makes it clear this happens from the NHL level right down to minor hockey, and he speaks to many former players, coaches, and executives who make it clear that all of this is happening in hockey today.

It's not all doom and gloom in We Breed Lions, though, as Westhead brings forth examples of hockey where people are doing good. There's an excellent story about Sweden and how their hockey culture is tied closely to family. It's a chapter that gives one hope that hockey can still be good, and it's reinforced by the Alliston Hornets and their head coach Travis Chapman who are trying to teach young hockey players about overcoming weaknesses, respect, camraderie, and being a good teammate without using fear, intimindation, and shame.

Frankly, it was hard to read some passages that Westhead included in We Breed Lions, but these passages are the catalyst to changing the culture. Murray Walter, a lawyer in Swift Current, spoke to Westhead of the 1989 sexual assault allegations against Broncos' players Brian Sakic and Wade Smith. Walter told Westhead,

"Athletes were protected by community leaders because they were good hockey players, because people thought they were special. This case was amiscarriage of justice, and even today, no one has really had to stand up and be held accountable. As soon as [those] players were charged, people in our community who had influence started pulling the strings to help the players. At one point, a guidance counsellor at high school whose husband was on the board of the Broncos called this young girl into her office and tried to convince her that these [players] were nice boys who wouldn't have committed sexual assault. Imagine."

How sickening is it that a female guidance counsellor is downplaying the idea that these two players couldn't have committed sexual assault because they "were nice boys" to the victim of that sexual assault? Yet stories like this are told throughout We Breed Lions with only names and locations being changed. The protection and secrecy afforded to hockey players because they play hockey would have most FBI and CIA agents envious. And yet it happens every day.

Honestly, there are many words that I could use to describe We Breed Lions - compelling, powerful, sobering, explosive - but the one word that keeps coming to mind is "necessary". Westhead has made it clear that the crimes and repugnant behaviour in and around the game of hockey have gone on for far too long, and it's time for a major change. I suspect many still in the game will deny the reporting done by Westhead, but he brings all the receipts in his conversations with those people he interviewed, and they often reveal more than just what was asked of their observances and experiences.

I cannot say enough good things about We Breed Lions, and it really should be on everyone's bookshelf across the planet if one has any vested interest in the game of hockey. The topics that Westhead brings to light are difficult to talk about in any circumstance, but his willingness not to turn away from difficult discussions and to keep these topics in the public's eye is why he is Canada's premiere investigative journalist when it comes to hockey. I don't have enough space here to go over each and every chapter of the book and sing Westhead's praises, but because he has tackled these subjects with honesty and integrity while writing about them exceptionally well, it should come as no surprise that We Breed Lions is absolutely and entirely deserving of the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

We Breed Lions was released on November 4, 2025, so you can find it on bookstore shelves and library shelves right now, assuming that there are copies remaining. This book would be a perfect Christmas gift for your older hockey fan and is absolutely must-read material for all hockey fans! As a warning, the material contained within the covers is of an adult nature and there are some expletives used at times, so this book is strongly recommended for older teens and adult hockey fans. However, the book is a phenomenal read, and We Breed Lions by Rick Westhead is highly recommended for your bookshelf!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!

TBC: The Pittsburgh Penguins

I'll be honest in saying that there aren't a lot of books that I've read where the complete history of a team is both described and brought to life through pictures. For some teams, their histories would occupy volumes of books as there would be all sorts of key moments in those franchises' histories. For others, the stories would be shorter, but there still would be big moments. For a franchise like the Pittsburgh Penguins, they have reached the highest of highs and the lowest of lows in their history, and one man has been following this team since 1983. In knowing this, Teebz's Book Club is proud to review The Pittsburgh Penguins: An Illustrated Timeline written by Dave Molinari and published by Reedy Press. Molinari's new book pulls the key moments from the Penguins' history by describing those moments and illustrating them with pictures from a number of sources to compile what might be the best historical look at the Penguins franchise since its start in 1967.

From his biography on the Reed Press site, "Dave Molinari has covered the Pittsburgh Penguins for more than four decades, primarily for The Pittsburgh Press from 1983 through 1992 and the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette from 1993 until mid-2019. He is a native of Western Pennsylvania and was the 2009 recipient of the Elmer Ferguson Memorial Award, which is tantamount to induction into the writers' wing of the Hockey Hall of Fame. He is the only Pittsburgh-based writer to be so honored." Molinari is a Penn State graduate, and wrote for the DK Pittsburgh Sports site before moving to be the Penguins beat writer for Pittsburgh Hockey Now. Dave and his wife, Debbie, have three children - Kelsey, Jeremy, and Jessica - and live in Mt. Lebanon, Pennsylvania. He can be followed on Twitter through @MolinariPGH.

Being that the Penguins got started in 1967 and Dave Molinari started covering them in 1983, there are definitely a number of moments early in the franchise's existence where Molinari wasn't present. What makes The Pittsburgh Penguins: An Illustrated Timeline so good is that Molinari went back and used newspaper and photo archives to bring forth those key moments in the team's history. Among some of the key early moments in team history are the Pittsburgh Penguins' first game, the team's first win, and the first hat trick in franchise history.

Where The Pittsburgh Penguins: An Illustrated Timeline really shines in this writer's opinon is the titled illustrated timeline in that the pictures in this book are worth the price alone. Molinari chose photos that some may have seen, but many photos are ones that fans living outside the greater Pittsburgh area have not seen. Being a lifelong Penguins fan, I thought I would recognize a number of the images in The Pittsburgh Penguins: An Illustrated Timeline, but reading the book quickly became an effort to get to the next page to see what Molinari wrote and the images that illustrated his chosen moments.

Make no mistake that Dave Molinari's writing in The Pittsburgh Penguins: An Illustrated Timeline is still among the best sportswriting in North America, and some of the chosen quotations from Penguins players that Molinari uses in his descriptions of key moments are priceless. One such quotation came from Kevin Stevens who had thoughts about Darius Kasparaitis's Game Seven overtime goal against the Buffalo Sabres on May 10, 2001. Molinari writes,

"'I haven't seen [Kasparaitis] score a goal in practice, never mind in a game,' left winger Kevin Stevens said. 'If I had to pick one guy, he'd be the least [likely] to score.' Fair, on all counts, but none of that mattered when Kasparaitis joined a rush and took a pass from Robert Lang before throwing a shot past the glove of Sabres goalie Dominik Hasek to end the series. 'We're here and we're celebrating, so it means somebody scored,' Kasparaitis said. 'Guys started hugging me, so it means I did it.'"

For the record, that was the only goal that Kasparaitis scored in that postseason run by the Penguins, and it was just the fourth goal he scored in 94 games that season. Clearly, Kevin Stevens knew what he was talking about when it came to Kasparaitis's scoring talents!

Jokes aside, there are incredible write-ups for each of the 159 moments that Dave Molinari aside, and a lot of them contain history, quotations, and statistics that may not be known to even the most die-hard Penguins fans. The pictures do a great job in bringing Molinari's descriptions to life, and the number of exceptional photos of players like Andy Bathgate, Syl Apps, Jean Pronovost, Mario Lemieux, Jaromir Jagr, Sidney Crosby, and Evgeni Malkin makes me realize how blessed the Penguins have been when it comes to having exceptional talent wear the skating penguin on their chests.

Overall, The Pittsburgh Penguins: An Illustrated Timeline is a very easy read thanks to Dave Molinari's writing style. There's nothing overly wordy in his descriptions, and the short write-ups allow one to flip pages quickly while absorbing all of the information and visual morsels that the book has to offer on its 162 pages. Because of Molinari's easy-to-read descriptions, the vivid imagery used throughout the book, and the number of historical moments chosen by Molinari that brought the Pittsburgh Penguins to where they are today, it's an easy decision to bestow The Pittsburgh Penguins: An Illustrated Timeline with the Teebz's Book Club Seal of Approval!

The Pittsburgh Penguins: An Illustrated Timeline was released on August 15, 2025, so you can find it on bookstore shelves and, possibly, library shelves right now. While it might seem premature to mention this on Halloween, this book would be a perfect Christmas gift for your hockey fan and is a must-read for any Penguins fan! The material contained within the covers is easy-to-read and highly knowledgeable, and the one-page historical moments make it easy to work one's way through the book. As such, The Pittsburgh Penguins: An Illustrated Timeline by Dave Molinari is recommended for all hockey fans, and I highly recommend adding it to your bookshelf!

Until next time, keep your sticks on the ice!