Guardians The Secret Life of Goalies Author:Gary Mason, Barbara Gunn "How would you like it if you were sitting in your office and you made one little mistake?" asks goaltender Jacques Plante of the National Hockey League's Montreal Canadians. — "Suddenly, a big red light went on and 18,000 people jumped up and started screaming at you, calling you a bum and an imbecile, and throwing garbage at ... more »you. That's what it's like when you play goal in the NHL."
The pressure. The rituals. The blood thirsty fans. Face it, to be a goalie in one of the world's most demanding and bone-crushing sports requires preparation, power, and stamina. Along with a historical look at the position, Guardians: The Secret Life of Goalies takes the reader behind-the-scenes to reveal the nature of hickey's most mysterious players, both on and off the ice. In Guardians, fans will enter the "secret society" to discover the philosophies, rituals, strategies, equipment, and physical requirements that set these gladiators of the ice apart from hockey's other players. From the unrivaled perspective of the net, goalies must know all and see all-which opponents to watch, each movement of the puck, and every offensive move of their teammates. Guardians reveals the goalie's unique view of the rest of the game, in chapters profiling fifteen of today's hottest players and 10 goalies "to watch."With exhilarating detail and spectacular, full-color action photos, Guardians: The Secret Life of Goalies is a comprehensive and in-depth chronicle of hockey's most compelling position.« less