My First 40 Years of Hockey Memories

Well what a weekend. Canada clinches the Gold in Vancouver, and on my 40th birthday to boot!

After watching Sidney Crosby’s overtime goal, I started thinking back on the forty years of hockey that I have witnessed or been around for, in one way or another.

Orr’s overtime winner in 1970 and Henderson’s goal in ‘72 were a bit beyond my memory when they happened, but have since been embedded.

The Habs Dynasty of the ‘70s, the Islanders and Oilers if the ‘80s, the Habs wins in ‘86 and ‘93 (10 overtime wins!). Sakic passing the Cup to Bourque in 2001, the Rangers breaking their Cup drought in 1995 and the goal that wasn’t for Calgary in 2004.

The Canada Cups ‘76,’81, ‘84, ‘87, ‘91 and later becoming the World Cup of Hockey.

The NHL/Soviet Super Series – Challenge Cup matchups, World Junior Tournaments.

The Gretzky trade, the Roy Trade, the closing of the Forum, the death of the Rocket…

Canadian Olympic triumphs 2002 and now 2010, mixed with disappointments (1998, 2006) and an oh-so-close in 1992. Not forgetting the USA “Miracle on Ice” in 1980.

Then there’s the players of the past forty years…Orr, Dryden, Tretiak, the Espositos, LaFleur, Bossy, Gretzky, Bourque, Messier, Naslund, Yzerman, Roy, Neely, LaFontaine, the Hulls, Howe, Beliveau, Lemieux. Dozens of Hall of Famers who were starting of finishing their careers.

Me with Henri Richard  02/27/2010. Pocket Rocket doesn’t look a day over 18 1/2!!

Learning and reading of the greats of generations past, and those of the present. Not to mention meeting several of them in person!

Then there was the internet, which brought the whole hockey world together. We email, we tweet, we blog, we write, we comment on every aspect of the game.

I was going to detail this post in a more refined fashion, but then realized it might take days to write it..

Instead I leave a photo montage of notable images in hockey from the last 40 years for you to enjoy…I can’t wait to see what the next 40 bring!

Hockey Hall of Fame Part Three: International Flair

Canada, Russia, Finland, Sweden are all commonly known power houses in the hockey world.

Thailand?, Australia? South Africa? or Spain? Probably not so much.

Nonetheless, all teams recognized by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) have their recognition in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

The Hockey Hall of Fame’s World of Hockey exhibit acknowledges all 63 current members (Men’s Ranking and Women’s Rankings) of the IIHF with an individual cards along the display cabinets with each country’s history and national champions.

The primary focus in the exhibit is on the Olympics and World Championships, but all the major historical international tournaments, the World Cup of Hockey and the Canada Cup, as well as other significant worldwide hockey events are included.

The Challenge Cup, Canada Cup, World Cup, and Rendez-vous ‘87 trophies

A display of Olympic Hockey jerseys,including one from the inaugural 1920 games

 

A Belleville McFarlands Jersey, from the winning 1959 World Championships, (left) and PK Subban’s jersey and pucks from the 2009 WJC.

A rather significant part of the exhibit is the IIHF Honour Roll, which marks the contributions of players and builders in international hockey.

You can see the Honour Roll in the video I took on my visit below.

Canada and Russia are still the dominant two countries in International Hockey. A multitude of memorabilia and photos highlight these two nations.

A large mural showing the 1972 Canada/Russia Summit

Russian hockey memorabilia at the HHOF(clockwise from top left); a Russian Hockey poster, Kharlamov’s helmet, Anatoli Tasarov’s book and the flag presented to Vladisalv Tretiak when he was awarded the Order of Lenin.

A collection of international awards (Jr., Men’s and Women’s) won by Canadian teams in recent years.

An assortment of International Hockey cards in the Upper Deck Collectors section

As I said, several other countries (common and uncommon) are represented. Most impressive is the array of hockey jerseys worn all over the world.

Jersey from the 1936 Gold Medal team from Great Britain. Note: All but two players were of Canadian descent, just thought I’d mention it :)

My complete collection of photos that I took on my trip can be seen here.

Something else that is unique is how they used the corners of the displays to showcase small photos from games played in different parts of the world. Truly a nice touch.

For those looking to learn more on International Hockey, the Hockey Hall of Fame is a great place to start. If you are in Toronto, I strongly suggest taking time to visit.

I have also included links to the first two parts of my trip below:

Part One: A must visit for Montreal Canadiens Fans

Part Two: Awards and History in Every Corner