Son's bio of late Hab McNeil a labour of love

posted by Dave Stubbs at 6h29 EST on May 23


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Canadiens goaler Gerry McNeil makes a save during a 1950s game at the Detroit Olympia, the rebound to be cleared by Émile (Butch) Bouchard. For decades, this photo was folded in half and stored in a wood barrel in McNeil's basement. The crease can still be seen down the middle of the image.
James (Scotty) Kilpatrick, courtesy David McNeil

Dalhousie University associate English professor David McNeil has learned about more than his late father, Gerry McNeil, in writing an as-yet unpublished biography of the Stanley Cup-winning goaltender.

McNeil, 53, has learned about hockey of another time, about how it was represented in the media. And he's learned about himself.

A look at McNeil's work, truly a labour of love.

And here you'll find a detailed outline of the manuscript and photos in it. A couple other photos appear below: 



Images from top, courtesy of David McNeil:

• Gerry McNeil is sprawled to make a save in Detroit as Red Wings' Vic Stasiuk crashes his crease. Canadiens from left: Maurice Richard, Doug Harvey and Butch Bouchard.
James (Scotty) Kilpatrick, Detroit News

• McNeil saves on the Black Hawks' Jack McIntyre at Chicago Stadium.

• David McNeil in front of Serge Lemoyne's painting Dryden in Halifax last year. McNeil is wearing his late father's vintage jersey.
Danny Abriel, Dalhousie University

• David McNeil, age 2, with his father at home in Rochester, N.Y., in December 1957.
Rochester Times-Union

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Submitted by nightmare_49 on Sun, 05/24/2009 - 10:52.
... More tidbits in Jim Matheson more hockey world ..... (an excerpt) ..... The Avalanche may buy out the $3 million left on Darcy Tucker’s contract and will likely move centre T.J. Hensick if they are keen on taking pivot Matt Duchene with the third-overall pick in June. .......... and the rest of the story ..... http://www.edmontonjournal.com/Sports/More+Hockey+World/1605139/story.ht... ............................................ As Economy Stumbles, The Zamboni Glides On .. by John Branch/NY Times ..... (an excerpt) ..... And, in this day, it may be comforting to know that Frank J. Zamboni & Company, still family owned and operated, is not asking for a government bailout. .......... and the rest of the awesome story ..... http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/23/sports/hockey/23zamboni.html?_r=3&ref=...

Dintrox's picture
Submitted by Dintrox on Sun, 05/24/2009 - 12:52.
RE: zamboni american made but how about Olympia by Resurfice Corp. Canadian family owned and operated. The official supplier of ice machines for the Vancouver 2010 Olympics. Be proud buy Canadian!!! http://www.resurfice.com/ http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/01/automobiles/01ICE.html

Kristopher7's picture
Submitted by Kristopher7 on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 22:56.
Gerry McNeil, what a champ!

Dintrox's picture
Submitted by Dintrox on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 21:03.
Congratulations to Red Fisher on winning the National Newspaper award for Sports writing.

Submitted by vic on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 19:23.
I remember Gerry playing,short compared to goalies today b ut a great player

aemarchand11's picture
Submitted by aemarchand11 on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 13:40.
http://www.rds.ca/canadien/chroniques/275219.html Habs trying to sign Yemelin for next season! __________________________________________________________________ Please Beware: Maple Leaf products may contain traces of Lysteria.

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 15:00.
Good! They're going to need as many options as possible open for the D corps come training camp.

Chuck's picture
Submitted by Chuck on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 12:43.
It sounds like it'll be a wonderful read, and another great look at the team's historical past.

Robert L's picture
Submitted by Robert L on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 11:38.
I wish everyone could have seen Dave McNeil's presentation at SIHR last Saturday. The passion inherant in his presentation was something to behold, and judging by the contents of his manuscript, this is one book that begs for publication. It's a bloody shame no company wants to release his work, because from what I can tell, this book looks like it gets inside a goaltender's phyche like few others before it have. Just a peek at the accompanying DVD contents makes me thirsty for it. This book HAS to come out! All those who read through the manuscript and feel the same way about it should add their names here in the comments in order to help support Dave McNeil and promote the notion the book should be on shelves and in our hands. Say Aye!

http://www.habseyesontheprize.com/


J.T.'s picture
Submitted by J.T. on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 11:23.
What a beautiful tribute to his dad! I think every goalie who played in the NHL without a mask should be in the Hall of Fame, just because it took all-star guts to play the position at all. http://habsloyalist.blogspot.com

Ian G Cobb's picture
Submitted by Ian G Cobb on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 10:48.
I would like to make a comment about the big head hit in last nights game. Now don't get me wrong I love the body checking and hitting in the game. But when a player hits another in the head with his stick it is a penalty and maybe much more. But when a player hits to the head with his shoulder weapon (because today's armour on the shoulders is a weapon) it is called a legal hit. This is pure nonsense. The respect is gone from the game today. Take a good look at the players heads in the Gerry MacNeil pictures above, players always had a sense of respect for the opposition in those days. Yes there were serious injuries then but the equipment the players wore was not the armour of today. This was a blatant desire to seriously injure and it is a part of our game that needs to be addressed if not by the league then by ledgistration. Players are going to die if something is not done. Ian

habsguy's picture
Submitted by habsguy on Sun, 05/24/2009 - 10:19.
I agree 100% with you Ian....Sure it may be within the rules of hockey, but like you said, where is the respect for each other. Just because a player is looking for the puck or admiring his pass shouldn't make him fare game for a career ending hit to the head, along with life long headaches that go along with a concussion. Why one player would want to hit a fellow player in the head so hard it could basically destroy his quality of life is beyond me. We are all aware of the career ending knee on knee specialists, but I bet Scott Stevens ended more careers with these so called "clean" hits. It really struck me when I read "This was a blatant desire to seriously injure"....so true !!!!!!!!!!

Robert L's picture
Submitted by Robert L on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 11:30.
Sorry my friend, but I found nothing wrong with the hit. In replays, Havlat clearly saw Kronwall lining him up but chose to focus his attention on the puck lost in his skates. Surely Havlat knows of Kronwall rep for dishing out hits and methinks that he should have handled the play in consequence. While you are right about the armour players wear from head to toe, players are also protected by their equipement. It remains up to each player to further protect themselves with intelligent gestures near the boards and in open ice. The oldest hockey lesson taught is to keep your head up, something Havlat surely is guilty of not doing here. As we all cringe at such hits, it is too often the injury that penalizes the punisher instead of the action. Hockey is both a beautiful and physical game, and sometimes there are over reactions to hits - as in the Stevens on Lindros slam a few years back. It was judged that Havlat did not have puck possesion when hit by Kronwall, yet it was in his feet at the time. Was Kronwall supposed to thrust at Havlat and then relent, allowing him to recover the disc and break by him? Players must be protected by the rules as well, but it must not be forgotten that the physical nature of the game must also be protected. I'm certain my opinion is not everyone's, but we all like our hockey tough and hard.

http://www.habseyesontheprize.com/


TommyB's picture
Submitted by TommyB on Sun, 05/24/2009 - 19:35.
Robert, I agree with your take on this hit. In my opinion, it was exactly what we teach in hockey....finish your check! It may be arguable as to whether or not Havlat had "possession" of the puck, but clearly the puck was there in his skates. He could have just had possesion of the puck, or was just about to have possesion of the puck. Kronwall lined him up, and finished the check. Simple. This decision was not made at the milli-second prior to the hit, it was made by an opposition player reading the play a second or two prior to the hit. Hockey has come a long way, but hockey has yet to come up with a way to reverse a legal movement that can become a non-legal movement in a split second. Put the bleeding heart crap to rest, this game is supposed to be a physical game played at a very high rate of speed. Havlat had his head down, and got clocked....I thought it was a thing of beauty. Stuff happens.

Robert L's picture
Submitted by Robert L on Sun, 05/24/2009 - 19:58.
You elaborated excellently on how I saw the hit. I do have much respect for Ian's stance on the hit, in that the league and it's rules must do all it can to protect a player's head, but in some instances there is little to be done once a play is engaged. I thought Kronwall kept it clean. Now if only we can teach Latendresse to find Kessel this way...

http://www.habseyesontheprize.com/


OldGrover's picture
Submitted by OldGrover on Sun, 05/24/2009 - 21:43.
I agree with this. One thing they SHOULD do, though, is go back to the leather (or modern equivalents - foam, whatever) for the elbow pads and shoulder pads. None of this hard plastic stuff.

Ian G Cobb's picture
Submitted by Ian G Cobb on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 11:44.
Not good enough Robert, a body check like Gainey's was fantastic. But not the head under any circumstance.

Robert L's picture
Submitted by Robert L on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 11:56.
The injured player is responsible for where his head is placed. It's like Kostopoulos on Van Ryn, a player has to protect himself somewhat.

http://www.habseyesontheprize.com/


Ian G Cobb's picture
Submitted by Ian G Cobb on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 10:05.
My first hero goal tender when I was a kid. The Chicago players I am not sure of but Tommy Johnson is the Habs defenceman in the picture. Those were the days!!

Diana's picture
Submitted by Diana on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 10:02.
This is fantastic!! I took Prof. McNeil's English Lit course this past year about Hockey and loved hearing the stories about his dad and sitting in his office talking about how the season was unfolding. I can't wait until his book is out!

24 Cups's picture
Submitted by 24 Cups on Sat, 05/23/2009 - 09:04.
Wow, the photo of father and son is absolutely priceless! What a great post to wake-up to on a Saturday morning.