, Hardcover 160 pagesThe Authors: Jim Hynes, Gary Smith
Foreword: Gerry Cheevers
The Publisher: Wiley
Release Date: September, 2008
Pre-order: Amazon - Chapters
Book Description
The game of hockey changed forever when the legendary Jacques Plante donned a face mask on November 1, 1959, and kept it on for good. From those early, primitive leather masks, the goaltender’s mask has evolved into what it is today—a high-tech piece of protective equipment and a thing of beauty. Today’s goaltending stars owe a debt of thanks to the original mask makers. Saving Face is the story of those who developed, championed, and continuously improved the most unique and …+ read moreThe game of hockey changed forever when the legendary Jacques Plante donned a face mask on November 1, 1959, and kept it on for good. From those early, primitive leather masks, the goaltender’s mask has evolved into what it is today—a high-tech piece of protective equipment and a thing of beauty. Today’s goaltending stars owe a debt of thanks to the original mask makers. Saving Face is the story of those who developed, championed, and continuously improved the most unique and intriguing piece of equipment in all of sports. These original creators, some of them goalies themselves, experimented with crude materials like plastic and fiberglass in basement workshops, making ace molds of plaster to ensure the masks fit. Sometimes they even created works of art.
The goalie mask has become the most recognizable piece of sporting equipment in the world. In the realm of sports, where uniforms are intended to make everyone on a team look the same, the goalie mask is highly personalized and truly unique. Today, every NHL goalie is identifiable by his mask and the original artwork on it. Iconic and emblematic of not just the individual player, but also the team and the game, the goalie mask holds appeal for every hockey fan.
Saving Face explores the fascinating history, art, and craft of the goalie mask, how it was made in the past and how it is constructed today. Archival photographs from Jacques Plante to Gerry Cheevers, Ken Dryden, and Tony Esposito, illustrate the evolution of the mask from rudimentary leather masks and pretzel masks to the early classic masks, and the high-tech marvels of today. This book includes a wealth of fascinating information, featuring sidebars throughout on famous masks, famous goalies, mask construction, and mask artists and mask makers.
Goalie masks are above all a visual delight, and Saving Face illustrates the text richly with over 150 archival black-and-whites as well as colour photographs, of some of the most unique and beautiful masks in the world of hockey today. Saving Face highlights the work of some of the world’s most famous mask artists and mask makers in action shots and stunning stills and features commissioned photographs from the Hockey Hall of Fame’s unparalleled collection of masks.
Goalies are notoriously quirky characters. This book explores the mystique of their world, their thinking, and their personal tastes and touches. Each chapter looks at the greatest masks of that era, the goalies behind them…and the mask makers behind them.
About The AuthorsJim Hynes is a freelance writer and editor. Gary Smith has crafted masks for CBC's Canada-Russia '72 and for the movie Miracle.
Joe's Note
When Wiley sent me their Fall 2008 trade catalog my first impression was "Wow! These guys put out a lot of books."
I did not even find the sports section in my first flip through. My girlfriend did. The first thing she said was "They stole my hockey book idea!"
For the past year or so she's been bugging me to write another book of my own, and she wanted me to do a beautiful picture book of the artwork of goalie masks. It was a brilliant idea, I told her, but I did not have the connections or time to tackle the project.
It truly is a brilliant idea, and Wiley and the authors are going to hit a home run with this book. If the photography inside is anywhere near as good as the cover images then there is a good chance this book will be the top hockey book of 2008!
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