1972 Summit Series: A September to Remember

Introduction

1972 Summit Series.com is ecstatic about the inclusion of Bruce Kish's 4 part series entitled The 1972 Summit Series. It is a simply fascinating recollection of the series. You will not find a better write up about the Summit Series online.

Mr. Kish's lengthy article is sponsored by his company Decisive-Action Sports. Bruce and his wife created this company and dedicated it to producing quality tabletop sports replay games and to promoting sports history. The games on this site enable players to recreate classic match-ups or to create dream matches between all-time greats.

Author's Note: "Where were you in 1972?" To Canadians precisely 25 years later as of this writing (editor's note: this piece originally was published in 1997), this question conjures up memories of an event that left its stamp on the national psyche. The "event," of course, is the famed 27-day Summit Series in September 1972 between Team Canada and the Soviets. With the Cold War as a dramatic backdrop, Canadians viewed the unfolding struggle not as a number of "friendly matches," as the games were officially billed, but as a war to defend their cultural identity.

Hockey historians often date the beginning of the professional hockey’s "Modern Era" to 1967-68. This was the year the NHL doubled from six to 12 teams, the year the two-goalie system was formally embraced, and the year that jets replaced trains as the preferred way to travel for road games.

I contend, however, that modern professional hockey's watershed, or defining year, was 1972 because the Summit Series introduced to North Americans to new hockey philosophies that will be discussed later on.

After beginning research for this topic, I realized that the story was too detailed to cover in one article, the following is the first of four instalments. Anything shorter would not have done justice to this subject.

To give credit where it is due, my resources for this series include...

"Cold War" by Roy Macskimming
"Hockey!" by Stan Fischler
"The NHL's 75th Anniversary Commemorative Book"
"It Happened in Hockey" by Brian MacFarlane
"Hockey Hall of Fame Legends"
The Toronto Sun

Of these, Macskimming's book is perhaps "the" definitive account and I highly recommend his work both for its content and pleasant reading style.

1972 Summit Series
A 4 Part Series by Bruce Kish
Brought to you buy Decisive-Action Sports

Introduction

Part 1 - The Gauntlet Is Dropped

Part 2 - The Clash Of The Titans
         - Game 1 - Ambushed
         - Game 2 - Riposte
         - Game 3 - Stalemate
         - Game 4 - The Pendulum Swings
         - Fortunes of War

Part 3 - Fifty Against The World
         - Game 5 - Nadir
         - Game 6 - The Road Back
         - Game 7 - Holding On

Part 4 - Showdown
         - Game 8 Period One - Attack and Counter-Attack
         - Game 8 Period Two - On The Ropes
         - Game 8 Period Three - Countdown

Epilogue

	The 1972 Summit Series A 4 Part Series by Bruce Kish Brought to you buy Decisive-Action Sports Introduction 1972 Summit Series.com is ecstatic about the inclusion of Bruce Kish's 4 part series entitled The 1972 Summit Series. It is a simply fascinating recollection of the series. You will not find a better write up about the Summit Series online. Mr. Kish's lengthy article is sponsored by his company Decisive-Action Sports. Bruce and his wife created this company and dedicated it to producing quality tabletop sports replay games and to promoting sports history. The games on this site enable players to recreate classic match-ups or to create dream matches between all-time greats. Author's Note: "Where were you in 1972?" To Canadians precisely 25 years later as of this writing (editor's note: this piece originally was published in 1997), this question conjures up memories of an event that left its stamp on the national psyche. The "event," of course, is the famed 27-day Summit Series in September 1972 between Team Canada and the Soviets. With the Cold War as a dramatic backdrop, Canadians viewed the unfolding struggle not as a number of "friendly matches," as the games were officially billed, but as a war to defend their cultural identity. Hockey historians often date the beginning of the professional hockey’s "Modern Era" to 1967-68. This was the year the NHL doubled from six to 12 teams, the year the two-goalie system was formally embraced, and the year that jets replaced trains as the preferred way to travel for road games. I contend, however, that modern professional hockey's watershed, or defining year, was 1972 because the Summit Series introduced to North Americans to new hockey philosophies that will be discussed later on. After beginning research for this topic, I realized that the story was too detailed to cover in one article, the following is the first of four instalments. Anything shorter would not have done justice to this subject. To give credit where it is due, my resources for this series include... "Cold War" by Roy Macskimming "Hockey!" by Stan Fischler "The NHL's 75th Anniversary Commemorative Book" "It Happened in Hockey" by Brian MacFarlane "Hockey Hall of Fame Legends" The Toronto Sun Of these, Macskimming's book is perhaps "the" definitive account and I highly recommend his work both for its content and pleasant reading style. 1972 Summit Series A 4 Part Series by Bruce Kish Brought to you buy Decisive-Action Sports Introduction Part 1 - The Gauntlet Is Dropped Part 2 - The Clash Of The Titans - Game 1 - Ambushed - Game 2 - Riposte - Game 3 - Stalemate - Game 4 - The Pendulum Swings - Fortunes of War Part 3 - Fifty Against The World - Game 5 - Nadir - Game 6 - The Road Back - Game 7 - Holding On Part 4 - Showdown - Game 8 Period One - Attack and Counter-Attack - Game 8 Period Two - On The Ropes - Game 8 Period Three - Countdown Epilogue