The Enforcer.

Dave Jenkinson is a professor in the Faculty of Education at the University of Manitoba and the author of the “Portraits” section of Emergency Librarian.

In this sequel to Deflection, 13-year-old goalie Jake Henry and most of his fellow players from last year’s Pee Wee team have graduated to a Bantam level house league team, the Roofers. Readers need not have previously encountered Deflection to enjoy the present novel, but those who have will better understand Jake’s prior history with his three grandfathers, two of whom play significant roles in The Enforcer.

Three weeks into an unbeaten hockey season, the Roofers’ coach must resign, and Jake’s 64-year-old step-paternal grandfather P.J. volunteers to coach temporarily and then is confirmed in the role by the league. Jake quickly finds himself caught between his teammates and his grandfather when many of the team rebel against what they perceive to be Grandpa P.J.’s antiquated coaching methods. As the team goes into a losing spin, some of the better players quit, including Jamie Reisberry, the burly defenceman who served as the Roofers’ enforcer. With the team apparently unlikely to qualify for a winter tournament, Jake also faces an off-ice problem involving his maternal grandfather, Gord, who has been teaching Jake old-time fiddling. Jake wants to abandon fiddle playing, an activity his age peers consider uncool, and become the drummer in a rock band, although he currently lacks a set of drums. As expected, Jake manages to achieve a generally positive resolution to both situations. Swan’s writing is particularly effective in his on-ice action scenes. Recommended.