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The Game

4.1 of 5 stars 4.10 · rating details · 1,398 ratings · 116 reviews

Widely acknowledged as the best hockey book ever written and lauded by "Sports Illustrated" as one of the Top 10 Sports Books of All Time, "The Game" is a reflective and thought-provoking look at a life in hockey. Intelligent and insightful, former Montreal Canadiens goalie and former President of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ken Dryden captures the essence of the sport and wh...more

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Published December 10th 2009 by John Wiley & Sons (first published October 1st 1983)

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Mar 25, 2012 Sarah rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: read-in-2012, non-fiction, canadian-content

Published in '83, this book assumes that I will have been part of the 70s, part of the 2 channel television world, part of the hockey world. That is a fine assumption at the time. However, as I picked this up as a book that nearly won Canada Reads, that's not good enough. That assumption lay thickly between me and the words of the book. So many passages are just words - names, descriptions, references I don't get.

I wanted to like this book. I wanted to learn to like hockey better. I liked Ken D...more

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May 13, 2009 Tim rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Ken Dryden's The Game has been hailed as the best hockey book ever written and included in Sports Illustrated's list of the top 100 best sports books of all time. While an interesting and insightful look at NHL hockey, its age may now hamper those accolades.[return][return]For those unfamiliar with him, Dryden played goalie for the Montreal Canadiens, a true hockey dynasty. During Dryden's eight seasons with the Canadiens in the 1970s, the team won the Stanley Cup six times. Dryden does not fit...more

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Jun 17, 2011 Dev rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Touted as the greatest hockey book ever written I jumped eagerly into its pages. Dryden is smart, and delivers many quiet insights on players, positions, and the nature of not just hockey, but what it means to play any sport. With that going for it, I was bored for most of the novel. Dryden's cerebral nature is manifest throughout and his contemplative style stifles much of the excitement one would get from reading a sport's novel. By the end, I was left wondering did Dryden's novel receive such...more

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Nov 19, 2008 Jeremy rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

One of the best sports books I've ever read. I'm not just saying that because I've always been a huge hockey fan. Dryden has an excellent writing style. Yep, a sports book written without a ghost writer! Just check out this quote about fighting in Hockey: "The NHL theory on violence goes something like this: Hockey is by its nature a violent game. Played in an area confined by boards and unbreakable glass, by players carrying sticks travelling at speeds approaching thirty miles per hour, collisi...more

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Jan 29, 2013 Cooper L. rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Game, by Ken Dryden, is acknowledged as the best hockey book ever written, and as one of the best sports books of all time. More than just a hockey book, it has become a classic, a provocative look at a life in hockey and at the game itself.

Ken Dryden, a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and the Canadian Sports Hall of Fame, is recognized as one of the greatest goalies ever to play the game. Beyond that, he is one of hockey’s most intelligent commentators. In The Game, Dryden captures the es...more

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Jul 25, 2011 David rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Liked this book more than I expected I would. It had 2.5 strikes against it in advance:

1. It's about hockey, and I am a huge sports fan in general but not particularly into hockey.
2. The author went to Cornell. Nothing against Cornell in particular, but I'm always suspicious when sports writing by Ivy League graduates is praised to high heaven -- raises the risk of George Will/Phil Jackson--style "the game is actually a metaphor for life/politics/community......." essays that get old fast.
2.5 No...more Liked this book more than I expected I would. It had 2.5 strikes against it in advance:

1. It's about hockey, and I am a huge sports fan in general but not particularly into hockey.
2. The author went to Cornell. Nothing against Cornell in particular, but I'm always suspicious when sports writing by Ivy League graduates is praised to high heaven -- raises the risk of George Will/Phil Jackson--style "the game is actually a metaphor for life/politics/community......." essays that get old fast.
2.5 Not the author's fault, as it came out in 1983 originally (version I read adds a 20-year follow-up chapter at the end), but the behind-the-scenes-of-a-pro-team diary form, mastered by Jim Bouton in Ball Four, is no longer especially novel or shocking. We know they talk about women, bust each other's chops, have lots of free time to kill........

Nevertheless, I decided to give it a try after reading Bill Simmons' argument [on grantland.com] that it's one of the best sports books ever. And it was well worth the time. His descriptions of pre-game anxiety, warmup routines, what it's like to be recognized by people you don't know, pressures of defending a title, changes in the style of hockey once the Soviets got good, effects on Canadian national pride of no longer being completely dominant internationally, the frenemy-like relationship with his team's backup goalie, retiring from the only thing you ever wanted to do at a young age, etc. etc. etc. are all terrific. Much more interesting to me than actual game recaps, of which there are not that many.

I especially enjoyed his discussion of how much he loved to play against other great teams like the Boston Bruins in the Orr/Esposito era, how top-notch opponents bring out the best in you.

He doesn't put it quite this way, but my children might recognize the spirit of this passage as coming from Proverbs 27:17 "As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another"

Good job, Ken Dryden. I hope your post-hockey days have gone well.(less)

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Nov 08, 2009 Adamw rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Game is a novel written by a former NHL goalie. This novel takes place in the last season of Ken Dryden's hall of fame career. The whole novel centers around him reflecting on his career and the people that are around him. This is a great perspective, and one that not many people get to see. I enjoyed this because, it gave us a look inside the author's thoughts. It allowed me to gain a more personal relationship with the author, just through reading his work.

Throughout this novel, Ken Dryden...more

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Jan 25, 2012 Sylvied rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: canada-reads-2012, canadiana

The comment on the cover of this book calls it "The best hockey book ever written". I expect it is probably right, although I have not read many other hockey books and may not qualify as a hockey fan to some minds.

To me, Dryden's memoir was about far more than hockey. With playing goal for the Habs as his backdrop, Dryden shares a snapshot of Canadian history and contemplates the identity issues faced by a pro-hockey player in a country where hockey was once described by Douglas Coupland as bein...more

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Mar 07, 2012 Ryan Flavelle rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Excellent book,
It has kind of a slow start as Dryden's is speaking from the perspective of an NHL player, and his idiom isn't particularly easy to access, but it has a very strong middle and conclusion.
I wasn't so sure about his analysis of Canadian/Soviet style hockey vs English/Hungarian soccer, although he draws some interesting parallels I think he may be overstating his case. I don't think that Canadian hockey is dying (as he pessimistically states), but is vibrant and competitive on the i...more

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Aug 07, 2012 Bookworm Smith rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: books-to-read-before-you-die, canadian-writers-rock, more-than-i-expected

You want to get more than a general feel for hockey? Want to dig into every aspect with a microscope, but, in an easy to read way? This is the book.
Dryden takes what you might think is just a hockey story to a completely new level. To the level of literature, in my opinion.

The writing is amazing...it really is.

Dryden writes from his point of view, the strange view of a goalie. The player who is on the ice the entire game, but, only directly involved in the play for a few minutes. His view is of...more You want to get more than a general feel for hockey? Want to dig into every aspect with a microscope, but, in an easy to read way? This is the book.
Dryden takes what you might think is just a hockey story to a completely new level. To the level of literature, in my opinion.

The writing is amazing...it really is.

Dryden writes from his point of view, the strange view of a goalie. The player who is on the ice the entire game, but, only directly involved in the play for a few minutes. His view is of a much larger scale. He sees the entire game. He has time to think about things. Things outside of hockey too.
The book starts with the day Ken meets with the general manager to confirm he is going to retire at the end of the season. He questions if this is the right move. He wants to move onto something else - being a lawyer. He questions if this is what he really wants. He questions if he is at his peak. How long will this last? He questions his team. The Canadians of the mid 70's, winning three Stanly Cups in a row. Are they becoming to complacent? He questions the toll hockey is taking on his family life and his health. That feeling of uncertainly is not only limited to Ken, he comments on the politics of the time. The uprising of separatism in Quebec and the big question - should Quebec separate from Canada. He even manages to question Canada's place in the world, tieing in hockey with the Cold War.
This wide ranging view, all connecting, is wonderful to read. Educational too. Really, it should have won this years Canada Reads.
On that note, What made me pick up this book was Alan Thicke, you know from Growing Pains? Ya, he's Canadian eh? Well he was championing this book on Canada Reads 2012 and made it sound like a book all Canadians should read. I will back up Alan's arguments. This book gives us an inside look at 'our' national game from someone at the highest level while also providing a broader perspective on Canadian society at the time. There are many pages devoted to play by play hockey moments, but, for the most part Dryden talks about his teammates. The quirks and personalities of the other players are endless. From these descriptions he goes off on small tangents talking about a vast variety of topics; cities, family life, drinking, humour...again, seemingly endless, yet fascinating how easy it was to relate to these 'stars' and their celebrity life. There were also more serious forays into his criticisms of hockey that still seem to be going on thirty years later - the role of fighting, how hockey has been corrupted by big business, and the touchy subject of how Canada is losing it's domination of the sport internationally. On a personal note, I found his discussion on how children were being raised at the time still very very relevant.
He starts off describing Guy Lafleur's creative genius on the ice. How he spent hours just fiddling around with the puck, just like when he was a kid. This let him invent and master new moves to deke out defenseman and score. It brought something new and exciting to the game. But, Dryden comments, nowadays kids are so scheduled with activities such as piano lessons, hockey practice, soccer games, etc. that they do not have the hours of free time to just play outside, to not kick a ball at a tree five hundred ways in an afternoon. That was in the early 80's. I hear the same comments to this very day!
Another theme throughout the book that really came close to home was his work / family life balance. Which would not have been called that back then. He talks about being a ghostly figure in his house from October to June (Hockey season). He is either gone on the road, coming home late from games or travelling home from the road, or sleeping late to get ready for the nights game. He realizes he does not have any genuine interaction with his kids for months at a time. The summers are different, but, for the most part he just accepts it and tries not to feel too guilty.
His brief tangent into his childhood strikes me as being so Canadian, at least little boy Canadian. His backyard had a paved section to it, bordered by fence and gardens...making the ideal 'rink'. It was a little lopsided and on a bit of a hill, but, that didn't stop him and the neighborhood kids from spending every available spare minute playing road hockey with an old tennis ball. His life was school in the day, road hockey at night (and all day Saturday and Sunday). I'm sure there was a bit of hockey card trading thrown in there, but, he didn't mention it.
(less)

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Jul 29, 2011 Jeff rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I've read this book three times over the years, and although it is often said by many, it truly is one of the best if not THE best hockey book ever written. What makes this book special is the absence of a ghost writer. Dryden wrote this himself. I enjoyed the layout of the book, with a personal diary of the 1978-79 season interrupted by Dryden's thoughts on certain players or situations. Having followed this team religiously as a teen, it was very interesting to get Dryden's behind the scenes p...more

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Dec 28, 2011 Leanne rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: canada-reads, 2011, kindle, memoir, canadian, non-fiction

I never would have read this if it hadn't been a Canada Reads 2012 selection. I am not a sports fan. I occasionally watch the NHL playoffs when there are Canadian teams in the running, but that's about it. I've never played hockey.

Of the five Canada Reads finalists, this is the one I had the least interest in. I decided to download the free Kindle sample, but didn't plan to buy it.

I was pleasantly surprised. It was quite readable, even for a non-sports fan. So, despite my original expectations,...more

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Jan 16, 2012 Redparrot added it · review of another edition

Looking forward to this book. Habs are my team - for ever and always. I lived in Mtl during the years of this book as well ... his team was "my" team.

Also - this is one of the five finalists for CBCs 2012 Canada Reads series.

Wheeee!!!!

FINAL REVIEW:

Outstanding book. It has been voted one of the top one hundred sports books of all times. One understands why. Dryden trained as a lawyer and is a remarkable writer. He is the super rare combination of a member of one of the outstanding teams of all t...more

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Apr 23, 2010 Derek rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: Anyone interested in hockey or learning more about what "the game" is really about

Recommended to Derek by: Barnes & Noble (and my dad)

I wish I could give this book 4.5 stars. It is an excellent, thoughtful, and provocative book about hockey and the sporting life writ large. It becomes something more than just a 'sports book'; quickly you realize this is more a treatise or philosophy on life through the eyes of a goalie mask. Dryden explores his innermost thoughts and feelings on the game, along with his fellow Canadiens' players and provides insight into things far beyond the general reckoning of hockey or sport. The only thin...more

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Nov 16, 2011 Norm Deguerre rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Game by Ken Dryden is an excellent sports book. He is a good orator, and although his writing style is at times simplistic, is highly intelligent for an athlete. His insights into the psyche, components, and the essence of team make the first 2/3 of the book excellent, easy reading. The way that Dryden recount the history of the game, how it came to be the way it is, and how shared heritage defines the way the modern games are played (and a great parallel drawn between Canadian hockey and En...more

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Oct 05, 2011 David Taitelbaum rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

The Game is easily my favorite sports book of all time. Dryden isn't your typical jock, he's probably the Canadian equivalent of Bill Bradley as he served in the Canadian Parliament following his exceptional career in athletics. In The Game he provides an inside view of the legendary Montreal Canadian dynasty during its 1979 season. One of the central figures is the Habs' mercurial head coach Scotty Bowman, who is the Phil Jackson of NHL coaches. Dryden writes excellent biographical vignettes on...more

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Jan 28, 2012 Vicki rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: re-read

"A time capsule buried at Maple Leaf Gardens in 1931 and revealed on Thursday (January 26, 2012) contains an NHL rule book, a municipal code, financial information on the team and a tiny carved ivory elephant of mysterious origin."(1)

Hockey in all its forms, in all its lore, never fails to captivate many Canadians. But do we listen carefully to those voices from the distant (1931 NHL rule book ...) and more recent past?

The Game by Ken Dryden, first published in 1983, offers enduring contribution...more

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May 08, 2012 Stacy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book has been in my bedside pile for a long time, so when it was #2 on Canada Reads,I thought it was time. I would never voluntarily read a hockey book, but, having watched Dryden play and following his career a bit, it figured my daughter's recommendation could be acted on. I couldn't follow all the hockey technicalities, but it is not just about that. It's about people and philosophy and money and skill and family and growing up and about Montreal and Toronto. Strangely enough, although i...more

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Apr 06, 2010 catechism rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: hockey nerds, sports fans

Shelves: canada, nonfiction, biography-and-memoir, sports

I don't read a lot of sports books, because I have this idea in my head (one I admit is probably incorrect) that they're mostly bullshit, just pieces of the publicity machine. But now that I am into hockey, I do the thing I always do, and start reading books about whatever my new thing is; I'd heard that this is one of the best ones. I can totally see why. I'm not really sure what to say about this book, except that's it about the past, present, and future of hockey; and Dryden is an interesting...more

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May 11, 2010 Jack Blackfelt rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Written just after this hall-of-fame goalie retired at 30 years old, future Canadian MP Ken Dryden describes the psychology of hockey in the 1970s. His observations are alarmingly personal and astute, and he is unafraid to wax socio-political about the young men he shares the entire expectations of a city and its an ethnic minority with - an ethnicity he doesn't belong to. His personality sketches are endearing and his views on the institution of the NHL unflinching. Not just a sports book - a r...more

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May 09, 2013 Jackson Kyser rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Good book. I do think I expected a little bit too much from Ken Dryden and the book itself when I picked it up, but that didn't affect my reading experience all that much. Frankly, I was disappointed with how Dryden slowly lost interest in playing the game (being a hockey player, I cannot even begin to comprehend losing the love for my game), and became more interested in his law studies. In the end though, if you love hockey, if you're a Habs/Ken Dryden fan, or just want a good sports read, The...more

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May 03, 2013 Bret Dougherty rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I'm more upset at myself for finding this book this late in my life...This an absolute gem of a read.

The fact that he pulled the book together from notes on napkins, paper clippings, and tear sheets is even more amazing. I'm hard-pressed to find a sports book that captures the true essence of being part of a team while encountering the ups and down of an athlete's career.

An athlete's career is intertwined with his teammates, fans, celebrity, salary, and the constant state of change within the...more I'm more upset at myself for finding this book this late in my life...This an absolute gem of a read.

The fact that he pulled the book together from notes on napkins, paper clippings, and tear sheets is even more amazing. I'm hard-pressed to find a sports book that captures the true essence of being part of a team while encountering the ups and down of an athlete's career.

An athlete's career is intertwined with his teammates, fans, celebrity, salary, and the constant state of change within the game they play. Dryden breathes the environment around him, and he fully understands how the game is bigger than him. He not only seamlessly allows you to feel the emotions that derive from his realizations that he is part of a machine that is about to be replaced, but also he opens the reader to the inner workings of why a championship team works with many dynamic parts.

'The Game' is a far deeper look into a long season within the NHL. Dryden depicts the vivid personalities on his team, and he pulls no punches with his analysis of what makes those same personalities tick. He has a vast understanding of what drives the inner workings his teammates while meeting the high pressured expectations from his team, coach, and front office.

This read captures the stark loneliness of a hockey goalie. However, the feelings of a loneliness that plagues a goalie allows him to observe and articulate the people and environment that surround him. Those observations guide him through his review of storied career that is slowly coming to an end. While reading the book, I didn't want him to end the story. Dryden points that the enemy working within you. Whether on the ice, his walks, or his locker room descriptions, his love for team and inquiries into how people connect drives his adventures. He easily explains that the lesson that the best players, much less the people in his life, are the ones who make everyone else better in the short time frame that a team has together. The team is a must when we have the dark realizations that we're all part of a rapidly changing game.

This book got me...Great read.(less)

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Dec 31, 2012 Tobinsfavorite rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

2 stars, 3 stars, 2 stars, 3 stars...
The publisher gets 1 star! The editor gets no stars! But that's OK, because there is no editor, which is why the publisher gets only one star.

One section had many, many e's printed as c's. There were scats on the bus. The case of a task was discussed. (Another section had a similar substitution, but I can't recall what it was.) Long dashes and hyphens were used interchangeably through the book, which is far, far more confusing than it sounds. Dryden has what...more

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Jul 09, 2012 Jeff Copetas rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This book is quite good. Why 3 stars? Well, let it be said here - minus one star for being a Montreal Canadien. Hah hah, just kidding. I don't know, it just felt like I had to feel bad for him or something. Here's a professional goaltender - and a damn good one - who is also smart enough to be an Ivy League lawyer and parts of this book are about his melancholy around being a champion professional athlete. Still, a very good read and well worth your time if you're a hockey fan.

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Jan 03, 2011 Zeb Snyder rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

This is the best sports book I have ever read. More than a typical jock-tells-anecdotes-for-cash collection, Dryden's memoir is as unusual a sports bio as Dryden was a professional athlete. Dryden is introspective and philosophical, asking questions about himself and the sport that few others would consider, let alone put to page. This is a must-read for every hockey fan, and a great example of how great sports writing can be great writing, full-stop.

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Jan 18, 2013 Brent Venton rated it 2 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Given all the hype that surrounds this book I found myself disappointed. Sure it is fascinating to read his fly-on-the-wall accounts of locker room goings-on but even in moments of levity I am enjoying them more than Dryden does. I don't think I have ever seen a man sadder to be a professional athelete. Most of the book is maudlin and depressing. Dryden thrives on competition but rarely seems to enjoy winning and is only clinically affected by losing. He is a smarty-pants, and he knows it. Clear...more

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Jan 25, 2012 Michelle Szarka rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I really loved this book. Read it as part of the CBC Canada Reads contest. I was surprised how much I liked it, despite being all about hockey! I'm a hockey fan, but not to the extent of most people, i enjoy it, but dont know too much, but enough. WOW did I learn a lot in this book. You learn so much about the game as an identity of Canada, and gave me a deeper respect for the French Canadian roots of hockey. Ken Dryden is a fabulous writer; I would suggest reading this- it is excellent! (but i...more

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Mar 11, 2011 Dan rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: sports

I absolutely agree with all of the reviews on this book. This is the best hockey book ever written, plain and simple. I got so into it. After reading his book, it made me look at Dryden in a completely different way. He’s a winner, a true aficionado of sports and politics. I really hope he becomes the Liberal leader in the future.

I’m somewhat disheartened, mostly because I know that the next hockey book I pick up will not match the brilliance that is found in this book

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May 14, 2013 Abi Myerscough rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I cannot express how much I enjoyed this book! I read this for a school event and was asked to champion it for a university wide competition, but this book became more than a part of a competition for me, it left me with profound life lessons I will not forget, as well as knowledge about the game I love in my home country! Dryden's book is beautifully written and will stick with me for a long time.

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Jan 29, 2008 Matt Glaviano rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: 2008

The Game is considered by many to be the greatest book about hockey ever written, and I can see why. Dryden’s thought is insightful, reflective, and intelligent; his prose clear, effectively detailed, and well structured. I found myself making a lot of thoughtful, audible noise while reading this book. It worked very well for, and taught me a lot about a game I already love and feel close to, though I have never played it (and, as such, sadly, will always feel it is outside me). I did find that...more

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