Canadian Hockey Record Breakers: Legendary Feats by Canada's Greatest Players

Janet Money is a writer and policy analyst for the Canadian Cystic
Fibrosis Foundation in Toronto.

This book, aimed at young readers (perhaps 10 and up), tells brief
stories of hockey heroism, primarily from the National Hockey League,
with some men’s and women’s international highlights also included.

The lineup of heroes contains some unusual entries. Al Iafrate, for
example, is hardly one of the game’s all-time best defencemen and is
included only because in a competition staged outside an actual hockey
game, he registered the fastest slapshot caught on radar, at 170
kilometres per hour. Hardly worthy of inclusion in a group with Bobby
Orr, Ray Bourque, and Paul Coffey, since shot velocity is only one of
many components making up a great defence player; that said, a young
reader might find the stat impressive.

Similarly, a discussion of whether Ken McAuley, Sam LoPresti, or Ron
Tugnutt has faced the most shots on goal in a game (there’s
uncertainty, it seems) is mundane compared to Manon Rheaume’s
goaltending achievement on the following pages, when she broke the
gender barrier in the NHL.

Otherwise, the usual suspects are here, with brief accounts of their
background and exploits: Maurice (“Rocket”) Richard, Gordie Howe,
Wayne Gretzky, Terry Sawchuk, and Patrick Roy, among others. On the
international front, the 1972 Soviet–Canada series is highlighted, as
is Canada’s women’s team and, in particular, standout Hayley
Wickenheiser. For her, the information is one hockey season out of date;
the article focuses on her participation in men’s pro hockey in
Finland, a line of work she abandoned after just a couple of seasons.

Quibbles aside, Canadian Hockey Record Breakers is worthwhile for the
avid young hockey fan.