Legendary NHL Coaches
Stars of Hockey's Golden Age
AUTHOR: Glen Wilkins
FORMAT: 5.5 x 8.5 pb / 128 pages
ISBN-10: 1554391016
ISBN-13: 9781554391011
Lester Patrick, Art Ross, Dick Irvin, Clarence Day, Hector Blake, George Imlach, Scotty Bowman - they are the legends of the bench, the warriors off the ice, the innovators of Canada's great game. Through passion and patience these coaches were motivators and mentors, and they are legends because they hoisted their players to the highs of hockey success.
Prologue
George 'Punch' Imlach's Toronto Maple Leafs fashioned an ending to their playoff run Robert Ripley wouldn't believe.
Less than a minute from an improbable victory against a favoured Montreal team, there they were holding the Canadiens off with a selection of superannuated veterans who would find their way to immortality - Stanley, Horton, Pulford, Kelly, and Armstrong. Behind them in the goal crease, the doomed hero, Terry Sawchuk, had withstood the best efforts the Hab snipers could muster.
The Canadien cage was empty, and the Leafs were leading 2-1. Like the proud, battle-scarred veteran he fancied himself to be, Imlach went into this final minute with the foot soldiers who had gotten him to victory in the past despite the young blood on his bench. He sent 41 year old defenceman, Allan Stanley - not the best face-off man in the world - up against Jean Beliveau.
Forward Bob Pulford had tangled with Imlach a number of times. However, when he recalled the story, he saw symbolism in his coach's selection of George Armstrong, Tim Horton, Red Kelly, Allan Stanley, and himself. All who watched knew it would be a swan song for those five men and the end of their dynasty.
Stanley swiped at the dropped puck and barreled into Beliveau as Kelly slipped it to a striding Pulford. He passed to captain Armstrong, who sent the puck into the open Montreal net for the insurance marker. The seconds ticked down on the new digital clock at the old Gardens, which was about to go Stanley Cup nuts for the last time. Montreal may have had the World's Fair, but the Toronto Maple Leafs had won a centennial year Stanley Cup. Punch had gone with his gut and come up a winner for the last time.
About the Author
Glenn Wilkins was born and raised in Toronto and has fond memories of George Armstrong scoring the insurance goal to give the Leafs their last Stanley Cup in 1967. He holds a degree in history at the University of Toronto, and it was in the history field that professors took notice of his writing skills. Now a reporter with the Barrie Advance, his writing till now has been mostly limited to articles on a variety of subjects, most notably financial services and political subjects. This book marks a return to writing about sports.
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