Inside Maple Leaf Gardens: The rise and fall of the Toronto Maple Leafs

by William Houston

Book Overview

No Synopsis Available.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0075498863
• ISBN13: 9780075498865
• Release Date: January 1989
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill Ryerson
• Length: 294 Pages
• Weight: 0.70 lbs.

Customer Reviews

How an owner can run a team into the ground

The book isn't up to date (it stops somewhere in 1989) but gives a horrifying view into the obvious lack of love for the team and the building (Maple Leaf Gardens) and into the power of the former owner of the Leafs, who almost ruined one of hockey's greatest franchises. The book describes the great history of the Leafs and has beautiful pictures to illustrate it(Barilko's great flying goal). The major issue of the book is the fall of the Leafs, at the hand of their former owner, Ballard. The poor handling of promising players by incompetent managers, the personal vendettas with members of the press (Foster Hewitt and the destruction of his famous gondola) and other owners, the petty comments on everything and everybody in hockey, it's a miracle the team and the building survived Mr. Ballard and his illustrious friend, Yolanda, at all. Given the recent results of the Leafs and their departure from the Gardens, a new, revised version of this great book might be what the fans are waiting for.