Scotty: A Hockey Life Like No Other by Ken Dryden

Scotty: A Hockey Life Like No Other Reviews

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  JLG

  The first thing that struck me about this book is not only the subject matter, but its author, the legendary goaltender Ken Dryden. Only HE could write a book like this, not only because he's smart and well read etc. but because he also played under Scotty Bowman when the Habs won Stanley Cup after Stanley Cup during the Habs' glory years. I grew up both playing and watching hockey during his years as a coach and fondly remember each and everyone of his "top eight" teams / series of all time. I was so great to read this and reminisce those great hockey years. Beautifully written as only Ken Dryden could. Five stars all the way!
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  Western Maven

  Since the 1940s Scotty Bowman has watched & examined hockey. First as a scout, then as a coach, then as a manager & finally as an advisor he has seen them all come & go, the greats and the not so greats & has analyzed for us what made them successful or not. He has seen the original six of the post war era, the decline of hockey in the 1970s caused by over expansion & the WHA, the recovery of quality in the era of Gretzky & Lemieux, the boredom of the dead puck era of the late 1990s & early 2000s and now the speed & skill of the salary cap era. He has looked in depth at eight great teams & compared their strengths & weaknesses. Seeing them analyzed like this is like being reintroduced to old friends. He is not categoric in his opinions but often qualifies them with "it's had to say" that something is not the case. It's interesting that while Sam Pollock looked for players who could "light the light", Scotty Bowman seems to prefer players who could prevent other teams from "lighting the light". Ken Dryden is the perfect author to bring out the memories & insights of Scotty Bowman. This is a superlative book & cannot be recommended too highly.
• 
  DMonte

  It’s about time someone got to “pick the brains” of Scotty Bowman, one of the greatest coaches in sports history. I liked the book. It was a good recap of the major trends on hockey since the early 1950s. It reflected well what Scotty Bowman experienced in his life, his successes and (few) failures. It was a long journey and he was not an “over night” success story. Being a hockey fan for 50 years, I was able to relate to the insightful discussions of how hockey was played in the past versus the present. Also I was familiar with the various players, coaches and executives of past eras. I hope the youthful fan will appreciate those discussions and their relevancy. IMHO, the strength of the book was in its middle chapters, where individual players, teams and hockey trends were discussed. Some readers may find the early chapters on the history of or the life in Verdun somewhat lengthy or uninteresting. I liked the later chapters, where the “best” teams of their era matched up against each other. But I would have liked to have seen an even deeper dive on how those players/games could have potentially turned out. In my view, some of the discussions of those match ups seem to end abruptly. I would have liked to see the book include a player index at the back, to facilitate future reference. Lastly, while it was not the subject of the book but I think it was a failed opportunity, was to have Scotty Bowman list his first and second all star teams, or maybe his top 10 (or 25 or 50) greatest hockey players and why. I think his views matter and would be insightful. Perhaps that could be a subject for another book.
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  Brian Shaughnessy

  Great book. I have hockey playing grandchildren in my Toronto and in Waterloo and am thinking of getting two copies, one for each household. I suspect both fathers and one mother might take a peek too. I shied away from Ken Dryden's earlier books, thinking he might be too cerebral or professorial but not at all. It's a close look inside a great hockey mind gravitating to and surrounded by other great hockey minds. And Scotty knew so many of the greats over decades, from watching them as a kid in Montreal, or coaching for or against them at the various levels. What it takes to put together a championship team. The strengths and also the weaknesses of the greatest players. So many of the greatest players I knew were great because of the offensive numbers they put up but I had no idea how they did it. So many of them speed and an outstanding shot, which figures, but I just knew they were highly regarded or feared. Things like why the Doug Harvey power play of the Montreal Canadiens was so good they had to changes the rules, the greatness and weirdness of Jacques Plante. How Sam Pollock was so good at mastering the rules and then using them to the great advantage of his beloved Canadiens. It goes on and on. :)
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  Dino F

  I looked forward to reading this book the moment I heard it was being written! How couldn't a hockey fan? Ken Dryden as the author, and Scotty Bowman telling us how it was and is. The scope of which covering the NHL from the early 1950s to the present day NHLboth Bowman and Dryden provide great insight into the workings of so many great teams and first hand knowledge of the dynamics at work in the NHL during the eras where both were giants in the game. My highlights. The telling of Scotty's early years in Verdun and Dryden's narrative was one of my favourite parts of the book and inspired me to plan a trip to Montreal for a long overdue visit. I'm hoping the exploring of the present day neighbourhood provides additional insight. As well, the telling of the early begins of Scotty's career and the mentoring provided by Sam Pollock and Toe Blake is so awesome and impactful it left me kind of star struck. It's was mind blowing and awesome to know each legend influenced and helped create another legend in Bowman. Made all the significant because it's Dryden telling the story and he too becomes legendary under Coach Bowman and GM Pollock. Indeed, "A Hockey Life Like No Other" will not disappoint, all the greats and legends of the game Scotty has seen, and seen up close, Richard, Harvey, Plante, Howe, Lindsay, Sawchuck, Keon, Mahovlich, Kelly, Orr, Lafleur, Robinson, Gainey, Lemaire, Dryden, Gretzky, Messier, Coffey, Lemieux, Yzerman, Linstrom, Towes, Kane, Crosby, etc, and as the best coach of his time shares his bench coaching techniques and pre game strategies that makes this a book you can't put down because like the game itself, you can't wait to see what happens next and you know with certainty and no small amount of anticipation it's going to be good! I highly recommend this book not only because of the great stories and insights provided in the hockey sense but also because Dryden accomplishes conveying to the reader the getting to know Scotty Bowman as the person and man. Not often you get such a uniquely qualified perspective and it really is this dynamic that makes this book a must read or must have for hockey fans or those that like great real life stories and biographies of significant personalities in any industry, career, subject matter or walk of life. Regards, BDF