A Wild Stab For It: This is Game Eight from Russia

by Dave Bidini, Brian Pickell (Photographer)

On the 40th anniversary of the 1972 Summit Series, a personal and poetic journey into the heart of hockey in Canada As summer turned to fall in 1972, Canada was redefining itself and its place in the world. Politically, a spirited election campaign asked probing questions about the nation’s past, present, and future — the nationalist pride of recent centennial celebrations contrasted with the stressed relationship between English and French Canada post-FLQ crisis. In a very different arena, similar issues were raised by the trials and triumphs of the players of Canada’s game. On the 40th anniversary of what is arguably the single most important sporting event in Canadian history, Dave Bidini travels back through time to September 28, 1972. By asking Canadians of all stripes — athletes, artists, politicians, and pundits — to share their memories, whether they were there in Moscow’s Luzhniki Ice Palace or watching a TV rolled into a classroom, Bidini explores how the legendary Canada–Russia Summit Series changed hockey history and helped shape a nation’s identity. Doing what John McPhee’s Levels of the Game did for tennis and American culture, Bidini asks: did something about being Canadian influence the outcome of the series, or did the outcome of the series change what it means to be Canadian?

Genres: Hockey, Sports, Nonfiction

112 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2012

About the author

DAVE BIDINI is the author of nine books. His play, "The Five Hole Stories," was performed by One Yellow Rabbit and toured Canada in winter, 2009, and his two "hockumentaries," The Hockey Nomad and The Hockey Nomad Goes To Russia were Gemini-nominated films, and The Hockey Nomad won for Best Documentary.

Bidini is the recipient of numerous National Magazine Awards, and is a weekly columnist in The National Post. In 1994, his former band, Rheostatics, won a Genie Award for the song 'Claire' (from the film Whale Music), and two of their albums were included in the Top 20 Canadian Albums of All Time. His first hockey book, Tropic of Hockey, was named one of the Top 100 Canadian Books of All Time by McCllland and Stewart, and his baseball odyssey, Baseballissimo, is currently being made into a feature film.

He is a board member of Street Soccer Canada, and has attended two Homeless World Cups, traveling with Team Canada to Melbourne and Milan.

David Bidini lives in Toronto with his wife, guitarist Janet Morassutti, and their two children.

Reviews

[Chuck Slack · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was seven years old when the 1972 Canada vs Russian series took place. I remember watching the game in the school gym. Having my gym teacher ask me if we ran the "12 minute run" by my house if Bud, my dad, would tell us the score. My dad went out and bought our first colour tv to watch this series. To say this hockey series changed the game, the way we looked at the soviets, and Canada's patriotism doesn't quite say it strong enough.

This book is a very light read but does capture some of the spirit of Game 8. I thoroughly enjoyed it!

[Andreas · Rating 4 out of 5]

If you are Canadian and a hockey fan (regardless of whether you were born during that era or not) - You know the history of the Summit Series. Arguably Canada's most iconic/important sporting event/moment.

Dave Bidini takes a (not wild) stab in this book at a Canadian heritage moment.

What you won't get is a detailed look at the series - how it came about, game by game analysis (there are references to other games in the series sprinkled in), stats etc... but Dave does a wonderful job of capturing the feel of the series from the memories of various individuals in the lead up to that final game and THAT goal.

This is a short read - you can polish it off in a day but you'll put down the book with the feeling like you were right there as part of the moment.

[Joe Seliske · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good collection of snippets of game eight of the Canada-Russia Summit Series of 1972. Bidini presents these in his fun Bidiniesque style which makes it a fun read.

On September 28, 1972 I was in the University of Toronto's Ramsay Wright Biology building attending my weekly lab for the first-year Bio 120 course. The labs were perfectly set up as every one had multiple television monitors mounted on the ceiling. They piped the game through to all of the monitors (as all good Canadian professors should). I cheered Paul Henderson's winning goal with my Pharmacy 7T6 classmates Jim Wemyss and Jean McColl.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

All of my Canadian friends, and many of the American ones who are into hockey, are familiar with the 1972 hockey series between Canada and Russia. However, many / most are so young that they only know it from history books and oral tradition.

I highly recommend Dave Bidini's “A Wild Stab For It” to these fans. It is a short book that still manages to combine the hockey highlights of the 8 game series with the impact on Canadian society, as well as how some apparently peripheral or minor events may have had a big effect on the players and the series. A few well-selected photographs are also interspersed throughout the text.

Much of the book is told through Bidini's eyes, BUT he also has the sense to obtain other input – participants and observers alike – to tell a truly Canadian story, one which Macleans magazine listed as one of the Top 20 Canadian stories of the 20th century. It isn't an all-encompassing history; that's not its intent nor given its size would it even be possible. It is, however, an ideal summary in a nutshell of a surprisingly influential moment in the history of our neighbours to the north.


RATING: 5 stars.

[bamlinden · Rating 3 out of 5]

I decided to spend a couple hours at the library tonight and came across this book. Only being a little over 100 pages, I decided it would be the perfect "sit and read" title for the evening.

I have enjoyed Dave Bidini's writing in the past (most notably "Keon And Me") and was excited to relive this iconic moment in Canadian sports history through the writing style of Bidini.

While I was entertained by a number of the short stories and unique details that built through that final game of the Summit Series, I was a little disappointed that the tone and pace was unlike his other works.

Having not even been born when the match occurred, I felt a little bit of separation for some of the very detailed and intimate stories told. While I do know a good amount about the eight-game series, this book left me wanting more....and not in a good way.

Overall, this was an entertaining read. Quick, it can be flipped through in an evening. But ultimately lacks the real emotion and energy some of his other works posses.

Still......it's Dave Bidini. Gotta read it.