A fascinating and immersive chronicle of hockey's original maskless
warriors
More than 400 stitches decorated Terry Sawchuk's face during his 16
years as a goaltender in the National Hockey League, the result of
high-speed collisions and slapshots that whizzed directly at his skull.
All in a day's work for an elite goalie of his era.
Before facemasks became standard equipment in the 1960s and '70s, men
like Sawchuk, Glenn Hall, and Jacques Plante--the first goalie to ever
wear a mask in the NHL--put their bodies on the line in the name of
hockey, enduring broken bones, damaged organs, and even psychological
turmoil.
In this thoroughly researched book, Rob Vanstone illuminates the stories
of these intrepid warriors while examining how the goaltender position
has changed throughout the decades. As masks evolved from
ghoulish-looking creations not out of place in horror films to today's
caged helmets with custom artwork, goalies' body positioning and tactics
were similarly transformed along with NHL regulations.
Told with charm and verve, this is an essential portrait of a uniquely
brutal and harrowing chapter in hockey history.
