An illustrated celebration of hockey's most exciting decade.For hockey fans, the game was never better than during the 1980's, the decade with the highest scoring in the history of the NHL.The term firewagon hockey refers to the fast and furious type of play during that time. Firewagon Hockey celebrates the stars of that decade with lively text, detailed stats and dramatic photography.Organized by season, the book describes the dramatic highlights: who was in, who was out, and how the game changed. The top five players of each season are featured and profiled.Firewagon Hockey profiles the beginnings of many Hall of Fame careers including: Wayne Gretzky Mario Lemieux Steve Yzerman Mark Messier Grant Fuhr Paul Coffey Brett Hull.A special section covers the prime of Wayne Gretzky who tore through the record book with unmatched stats. Another section records the exploits of hockey's last dynasties, the New York Islanders and the Edmonton Oilers.This book is abundantly illustrated with photography from the Dennis Miles Collection, Sports Illustrated and the Bruce Bennett Studios.Firewagon Hockey is a nostalgia book for hockey fans wanting to relive the NHL's most glorious decade.

Introduction Goals, Dynasties, and Gretzky Hockey in the 1980s is best described as a mix of speed, youth, goals, goals, and more goals. As the new decade began, all National Hockey League teams had attack on their minds, and they worried about defense later, if at all. The style of play was reminiscent of the record-setting Montreal Canadiens of the fifties, who dominated the NHL during hockey's Golden Era. The Flying Frenchmen played an all-out offensive brand of "firewagon hockey," and in the eighties it was back in vogue. The action would come fast and furious, and if you went to the concession stand, you might miss more than one goal. The best players racked up plenty of points, especially in the first half of the decade, and if a team did not have a couple of 50-goal scorers, or at least a few players pushing toward that standard, they likely weren't in contention. A 40-goal season was not extraordinary, and a 20-goal scorer could be easily replaced. Scores like 7-5, 10-6, and 12-7 were not unusual, even in games involving the better teams. Anyone who needs proof that it was a wild and crazy era that brought a cascade of goals can pick up the NHL Guide and Record Book. The Edmonton Oilers, the most attack-oriented team in hockey history, scored a record 446 goals in 1983-84, an average of 5.6 per game. The next four teams on the all-time list are also Edmonton clubs from the eighties -- they topped 400 goals every year from 1981-82 to 1985-86. The Oilers were also involved in one of the highest-scoring games ever when they defeated the Chicago Blackhawks 12-9 on December 11, 1985. The combined 21 goals tied an NHL record established in 1920 by the Montreal Canadiens and the Toronto St. Patricks. Edmonton was also a part of two other 20-goal shootouts -- they beat Minnesota 12-8 on January 4, 1984, and lost 11-9 to the Toronto Maple Leafs on January 8, 1986. The Buffalo Sabres set an NHL record with nine goals in one period when they clobbered the Leafs 14-4 on March 19, 1981. The Calgary Flames went from November 12, 1981, to January 9, 1985, without being shutout -- they tallied at least one goal in 264 consecutive contests. The Pittsburgh Penguins set the mark for most power-play goals in one season when they scored 119 times with the extra man in 1988-89. Even with a man short there was no lack of offense. The Oilers set the top four marks for most short-handed goals in one season, starting with the 1985-86 season when they scored 36. Lists of teams with the most 50-, 40-, and 30-goal scorers in one season are all pockmarked with teams that played in the wildest scoring decade -- the eighties. The 1981-82 season saw the NHL's goals-per-game average go to eight, the highest mark in the modern era -- contrast that with the game in the late nineties and beyond, where the average was around five. Even less than superstar players like Warren Young, Walt Poddubny, Troy Murray, Sylvain Turgeon, Mike Bullard, Wayne Babych, Jacques Richard, Tony McKegney, Paul MacLean, Geoff Courtnall, and Ron Duguay all had 40 goals in at least one season, and some scored 50 or more. Speedy forwards who owned a wicked shot and would charge to the net were in great demand. Checking was a dirty word, and players like Montreal's Bob Gainey or Boston's Steve Kasper, known primarily for their defensive efforts, were few and far between. Quality goaltending may have been at its lowest point in NHL history during the early eighties, just as firewagon hockey was emerging. However, there was also a lack of quality defense-men, and some coaches didn't even bother putting together a checking line. Plenty of defensemen recorded 20 or more goals in a season during the eighties -- Paul Coffey, Paul Reinhart, Phil Housley, Denis Potvin, Ray Bourque, Reed Larson, Larry Murphy, and Al Maclnnis led the goal production from the blueline -- and these "defenders" were often ahead of many forwards on their teams' scoring