The Day Hockey Was More Important Than School

Being a big hockey fan, particularly of the Montreal Canadiens, I remember hearing about this surprise 8-game exhibition series between NHL all-stars and the USSR national team that dominated World Championships. I was travelling somewhere in Holland Township with Dad, who met with some fellow about wood. I am guessing about March 1972. Being pretty shy, I sat in the car and listened on CBC radio, to these so-called sports experts talking about this 8-game international hockey series between Canada’s best players and the Soviet national team. All the commentators called for an 8-game sweep by the Canadians, which seemed a bit unfair to the Canadian club.

I have vivid memories of both Game One in Montreal on Saturday, September 2nd, 1972, Labour Day Weekend and the historic 8th game on Sept. 27, 1972. The night of game one, I was watching on an old floor model B&W TV that took 20 minutes before the picture warmed up. I listened to all the pre-game pleasantries, then watched with nervousness as the game started. Phil Esposito scored the opening goal in the series less than a minute into play, then a few minutes later, Paul Henderson snapped a quick blast inside the post on goalie Tretiak’s long side. I remember about then, Mom called me, as we were about to go to the Owen Sound Drive-in to end our summer watching a couple of movies. I remember having a hard time concentrating in the car and pleading with my folks to allow me to listen to the game on radio.

I distinctly remember Dad stopping at a gas station just north of Chatsworth and the attendant was making smug comments as he pumped our gas. He kept saying in a thick slavic accent, “The Canadians don’t stand a chance against the Russians. European hockey players are the best in the world.” My Dad just politely said “Yeah, Right”. But I wanted so bad to punch the guy in the mouth. I felt like he had no right to live here and not support our hockey team, however I kept my mouth shut and we got through the event.

We went to the drive-in and for the life of me, I can’t remember what show we watched, but I do remember at intermission time, I snuck on the radio again and listened to a bit more of the game, but by now the score had worsened to 6-3 Soviets. I remember being so sick to my stomach and not enjoying the drive-in at all. The game wound up USSR 8, Canada 3, final score. The weekend ended and that week, I started as a grade 9 high school student at Grey Highlands Secondary School (GHSS), Flesherton.

Game #2 in Toronto, was won by Canada 4-1, then the Winnipeg game was a 4-4 tie. Soviets took Game #4 in Vancouver 5-3, then came a 2-2 exhibition tie and maybe one other game with Sweden. I remember the Moscow games were broadcast live through the day on CTV, CBC, or both and there were TVs set up through the school screening the games. I caught as much of the broadcasts as my class schedule allowed. Canada led Game #5 in Moscow until late in the third, when the USSR scored to edge us 5-4. It looked like it was all over, except that Canada bounced back to win Games Six & Seven, 3-2 and 4-3.

The day had come for Game Eight. Again, I had planned to slip away for a few stolen moments to watch as much of the game as I could. I plotted to skip my art class just after lunch period, but all we in our class were aware of how infuriated our art teacher, Alan Close was about us blowing off school, particularly art class, over “a stupid hockey game.” In the end, I decided to attend class and see if I could catch a bit of the game between art period and final school period. About then, Alan entered the class, face red with rage. He had apparently just come from a heated discussion with GHSS Principal Murray Juffs and Vice-Principal, Bob Griffin about the Grey County school board possibly shutting down classes for the day, so students and staff could view Game Eight.

I can remember this as clear as day. The P.A. opened up with a loud bit of feedback, the voice of a puffing and panting Murray Juffs came on. “Well, I don’t understand this one, because never in all my years in education has something like this ever happened, but the Grey County School Board has declared that all classes be postponed for the afternoon and all students be encouraged to go to one of the several monitors in the school to watch the 8th Game of the Canada-Russia Hockey Series”.

The next thing I remember well, too. Alan Close, already red in the face, exclaiming “Gawdamm It,” spiking a full duotang lesson folder to the floor, while the entire class screamed, “HURRAAAH!” I was in some state of delirium, as I looked for a TV set, finding my friend Gerard Haley already sitting in a chair in the school library and watching the game on one of the old black and white monitors the school had. I sat as close to him as I could, later finding myself cheering the Canadians on beside him. It was a great game, full of drama and ups and downs. Many times, it looked like Canada was sunk, when they’d pot a goal and get right back into the game again.

End of the second period (my original planned time to join the game from art class), Canada trailed 5-3. It didn’t look good, but we knew Canada had faced losing the series from the end of Game #6, so there still seemed a vague hope. Midway through the 3rd period, Canada’s Yvan Cournoyer scored the tying goal. I exclaimed to my friends, Gerard Haley and others around me, out loud, that they were going to win the series. I can’t articulate how I knew, but I felt it.

Shortly after this happened, a fracas developed along the boards with almost all the Canadian team reaching hockey sticks over the boards. Apparently, Soviet Police decided to take Allan Eagleson, pretty close to a big local celebrity, out of the rink. His parents lived on a farm in Glenelg Township, not far from Durham and his wife was born in the Collingwood area. We were told by announcers Foster Hewitt and Brian Conacher, that Canadian centre Peter Mahovlich saw it going on and vaulted the boards, whacking a policeman near the head with his stick. 20-plus teammates joined him and to everyone’s shock and surprise, the armed police let up and released Eagleson to the players. One must look at the context of this. A few days earlier, the Munich Olympics were tarnished by 11 athletes being killed by terrorists. Politics and sport weren’t as separate as most of us had thought them to be. The Soviets were trying to stretch the rules to their favor right to the end of the series. Would we witness them dispatch all decor and protocol, ending this series by gunning down our best hockey players on live TV?

With relief, we watched the Canadian club return to their bench. As for my brash prediction, the game started back up and the Canadians never seemed to get many chances. Then, with a minute to go, they seemed to get reinvigorated and with 34 seconds to play, Paul Henderson scored the winning goal. I was like every other Canadian. On Cloud 9 for the next week! I was even happy when Serge Savard potted a goal against Czechoslovakia on September 30, 1972 to end their overseas adventure with a 3-3 tie.

Leave a Comment

Scroll to Top