Deceptions and Doublecross: How the Nhl Conquered Hockey

Rating:
Summary: "Deception and Doublecross" an appropriate title!
Review: The authors contend that the consolidation of pro hockey teams in Eastern Canada to form the National Hockey League was often a heavy handed, nasty affair. Nieforth and Holzman make a convincing case to restore the honour of Toronto's EJ Livingstone, who Frank Calder and the Ottawa and Montreal interests despised and wanted expelled from their company at all costs. "Deception and Doublecross" seemed to be the order of the day to reach this end. Holzman and Nieforth illustrate how the arm's length relationship that is incumbent on today's media was quite different in pro hockey's formative years where newspapers editors and columnists often held controlling interests in pro teams and arenas.

I also found the book quite rewarding in that it provided some insight into the character of many players and the forces that conspired to have them play on a particular team.

What is particularly impressive about the book is that the authors have clearly spent a lot of time carefully searching primary sources to arrive at their conclusions. All are footnoted and properly catalogued to allow interested parties to do further research.

I recommend this book for any hockey fan interested in the history of the game.

Irv Osterer
Ottawa, ON