Faceoff at the Summit

When I was in grade five in 1972,and the whole school was allowed to watch the final game of the Canada-Russia series, I fell in love with Ken Dryden, who was the Canadian goalie (and is now federal minister of social development). Ken Dryden was so poised, so solitary, so romantic and so tall: all alone in front of the net, defending his country. Between attacks, he’d cross his arms on top of his stick, watching, preparing. (I cultivated this quintessential Dryden stance and still find myself, thirty years later, waiting, watching, preparing at red lights with my hands crossed just like his, on the steering wheel.) On my birthday I got a Montreal Canadiens jersey—in home colours: white with the blue and red Habs logo—with Dryden and 29 lettered on the back, and I wore that jersey for the rest of the year and then through grade six, grade seven and grade eight. And I read and reread Faceoff at the Summit (Little, Brown), the story of the Summit Series written by Dryden and Mark Malvoy. Dryden describes the Team Canada star Frank Mahovlich giving the team an inspirational talk before a big game: “‘Gentlemen,’ he intoned, ‘please watch your Czechs.’” I blame the Canada-Russia series for at least two love affairs: one with Ken Dryden, the other with puns.