My First 40 Years of Hockey Memories

Well what a weekend. Canada clinches the Gold in Vancouver, and on my 40th birthday to boot!

After watching Sidney Crosby’s overtime goal, I started thinking back on the forty years of hockey that I have witnessed or been around for, in one way or another.

Orr’s overtime winner in 1970 and Henderson’s goal in ‘72 were a bit beyond my memory when they happened, but have since been embedded.

The Habs Dynasty of the ‘70s, the Islanders and Oilers if the ‘80s, the Habs wins in ‘86 and ‘93 (10 overtime wins!). Sakic passing the Cup to Bourque in 2001, the Rangers breaking their Cup drought in 1995 and the goal that wasn’t for Calgary in 2004.

The Canada Cups ‘76,’81, ‘84, ‘87, ‘91 and later becoming the World Cup of Hockey.

The NHL/Soviet Super Series – Challenge Cup matchups, World Junior Tournaments.

The Gretzky trade, the Roy Trade, the closing of the Forum, the death of the Rocket…

Canadian Olympic triumphs 2002 and now 2010, mixed with disappointments (1998, 2006) and an oh-so-close in 1992. Not forgetting the USA “Miracle on Ice” in 1980.

Then there’s the players of the past forty years…Orr, Dryden, Tretiak, the Espositos, LaFleur, Bossy, Gretzky, Bourque, Messier, Naslund, Yzerman, Roy, Neely, LaFontaine, the Hulls, Howe, Beliveau, Lemieux. Dozens of Hall of Famers who were starting of finishing their careers.

Me with Henri Richard  02/27/2010. Pocket Rocket doesn’t look a day over 18 1/2!!

Learning and reading of the greats of generations past, and those of the present. Not to mention meeting several of them in person!

Then there was the internet, which brought the whole hockey world together. We email, we tweet, we blog, we write, we comment on every aspect of the game.

I was going to detail this post in a more refined fashion, but then realized it might take days to write it..

Instead I leave a photo montage of notable images in hockey from the last 40 years for you to enjoy…I can’t wait to see what the next 40 bring!