Scotty: A Hockey Life Like No Other

Ken Dryden wrote the best hockey book, The Game. He also wrote this book and it was equally well written. The topic was slightly less interesting to me than The Game, which is why I say Scotty is the second-best book ever written.Ken Dryden is not like your usual sports book authors who have most of the book written by a ghostwriter. Ken Dryden is intelligent and extremely articulate. He is a very good writer.Ken Dryden knows hockey. He might be one of the all-time best 10 best NHL goalies, having backstopped the Montreal Canadians to six Stanely Cup wins between 1971 and 1979. He debuted with Montreal just before the 1971 playoffs and won the Conn Smythe Trophy (MVP). He also helped Canada with the 1972 Canada - Russia series.Ken Dryden is not a typical athlete. He sat out the 73-74 season because Montreal did not offer him the contract he wanted. Montreal went out in the first round of the playoffs that year. Ken Dryden used the year to complete his articles as a Lawyer.He retired in 1979, still at his prime to practice law and write book seven books. He was a Canadian Member of Parliament for 7 years.

Dryden brings his intellect, insight, experience, humility and candor to pay homage to the greatest NHL coach of all time. He does this vista with a historical narrative of the league through the tract and context of Bowman's life, perspective and openminded wisdom.

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 NHL...both 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 more 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

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 more 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.

A very thorough and insightful second person memoir. Very enjoyable.