The 1972 Summit Series
1) The Series: What I Remember, What It Felt Like, What It Feels Like Now by Ken Dryden
Best Quote: “Our phones rang in the night. Our elevators bumped, paused, and came to a halt a few inches above or below our floors. And before we could get our room keys, we had to get past a grim, implacable, unimpressible floor lady who was the real reason Hitler never made it to Moscow.”
Summary: A look into the Summit Series by one of Team Canada’s goalies that provides a persoanl or intimate perspective. The book is a candid view where the author writes about what he can remember, and what it felt like competing in the series at the time. In that sense, it’s not a historical look based on research, but rather a personal narrative.
2) Sitting On Tretiak : The 1972 Summit Series Play by Play. Volume 1: The Canadian Games. (The Summit Series 1972) by Grant Pennell
Best Quote: “When asked about his aggressive play from the Soviet News Agency TASS, Cashman responded ominously, “I enjoy both giving and receiving pain”.”
Summary: A self-published deep dive that offers a master-class in watching and analyzing hockey. Pennell looks at every play and every shift to paint a picture for the reader to better understand how each game played out. Missed assignments, failing to close along with tape to tape passes and quality checks form the game in the author’s narrative. If you love hockey tactics and the Xs and Os of hockey, you will love this book.
The book is not a ode to Canadian Hockey, nor does it simply worship the Canadian team for it’s perseverance in the series. The author’s detailed narrative illuminates poor play and bad sportsmanship on the part of Canadian players to include when Frank Mahavolich pinned Soviet Goaltender Tretiak to the ice (hence the title “Sitting on Tretiak”). The book also provides details on the players of each squad, to include some of the more lesser known Soviet players.
Volume I only covers the first four games of the series in Canada. The book is the first in what is to be expected a two-part series of writings, with Volume II focused on the games in Moscow and the aftermath of the series. Pennell’s book found it’s way into the must read category not only of the series, but in understanding the game.
3) The Greatest Comeback: How Team Canada Fought Back, Took the Summit Series, and Reinvented Hockey by John U. Bacon
Best Quote:
Summary: Bacon’s book on the series separates itself from others through the cooperation and interviews of those who played in the game. Unvarnished opinions from the players provides back room details and anecdotes that one cannot find simply by watching the game. Indeed, there are tales of predisposed animosity between players of rival NHL teams. Moreover the book helps to shed a light on the overwhelming pressure the Canadian players had on their shoulders, especially after the game-1 debacle. The interviews highlight how Team Canada had to adapt their playing style to account for the Soviet system of hockey. Overall, this is probably the best book on the market for the Canadian athletes perspective of the 1972 Summit Series.
4) 1972: The Series That Changed Hockey Forever by Scott Morrison
Best Quote:
Summary: A unique look at the series from a broad perspective that goes beyond the 8-game series and looks at other events leading to the Canadian showdown against the Soviets. This broad perspective includes the conflict between the NHL and WHA which left Bobby Hull off the Canadian roster. The book includes long narratives from the players, where the author captures both Soviet and Canadian feelings and perspective on the series.
5) Cold War: The Amazing Canada-Soviet Hockey Series of 1972 by Roy MacSkimming
Best Quote:
Summary: MacSkimming, the author of another book on the life of Gordie Howe provides a terrific history of the 1972 Summit Series. More than covering the action on the ice, the author tells the tale of how the series came to be. The book is filled with personal anecdotes of the players and executives that brought the initial idea into reality. The book bounce back and forth between the eight games and background and other related events at the time. The author provides vivid details of how the players trained, lived, and travelled throughout the series,.