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| The Bog in November. Photos by Rob Currie |
CHRISTMAS IN MUSKOKA - WRITTEN IN GRAVENHURST - A BIOGRAPHY OF A BRACEBRIDGE BORN NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE ALLSTAR
THE STORY BEGAN FOR ME AS A YOUNGSTER LOVING HOCKEY; THE BIOGRAPHY WAS LAUNCHED DURING THE CHRISTMAS SEASON OF 1993
I CAN REMEMBER WORKING AT MY DESK, DOWN IN THE FAMILY ROOM, HERE AT BIRCH HOLLOW, SOMETIMES UNTIL TWO OR SO IN THE MORNING, FOR WEEKS ON END, TRYING TO GET DOWN A ROUGH, "STARTING" MANUSCRIPT, IN PREPARATION FOR A QUESTION I WANTED TO ASK ONE OF MY HOCKEY HEROES. SUZANNE WOULD FIND ME SLUMPED OVER MY DESK ON OCCASION, AS IF I HAD DIED ON THE JOB. FORTUNATELY, I WAS JUST HAVING A LITTLE NAP. "WHY ARE YOU PUSHING YOURSELF LIKE THIS," SHE'D ASK, WORRYING THAT I WAS DOING TOO MUCH WORK ON SPECULATION. I HAD NO IDEA THAT I WAS EVER GOING TO EARN A DOLLAR FROM ALL THE HOURS I WAS PUTTING IN, BUT I REALLY WAS ENJOYING THE RESEARCH, TOO MUCH TO STOP.
IN THE EARLY SPRING, I PLANNED TO ASK ROGER CROZIER, IF HE WOULD ALLOW ME TO WORK ON A PRELIMINARY BIOGRAPHY OF HIS PROFESSIONAL HOCKEY CAREER, WHICH I FOUND TO BE QUITE ENTHRALLING. THE FIRST BIOGRAPHY WRITTEN ON ROGER, WAS ACTUALLY PUBLISHED WHEN HE WAS STILL PLAYING FOR THE DETROIT RED WINGS, ENTITLED "DAREDEVIL GOALIE," FROM THE LATE 1960'S, AND IT WAS A BIG HIT AMONG US LOCAL LADS, PLAYING MINOR HOCKEY IN THE SAME ARENA THAT GAVE ROGER HIS START. IT WAS A NEAT BOOK FOR THE TIME, AND PERFECT FOR THE JUVENILE READERS IT WAS INTENDED; BUT I WANTED THIS LOCALLY INSPIRED, POST HOCKEY CAREER BIOGRAPHY, TO RANK UP WITH OTHER SPORTS BIOGRAPHIES. IT WAS, AT THE TIME, ONE OF THE MOST PRECARIOUSLY DANGEROUS PROJECTS I'D EVER CONSIDERED, BECAUSE ROGER HAD, FOLLOWING HIS HOCKEY CAREER, BECOME A CORPORATE EXECUTIVE, WITH A MAJOR AMERICAN BANK, KNOWN AS "MBNA." ROGER, BORN IN BRACEBRIDGE, WAS LIVING IN PENNSYLVANIA, BUT HAD A SUMMER COTTAGE IN MUSKOKA, AND WAS AT AROUND THIS TIME, WORKING ON A PLAN FOR A CHARITABLE FOUNDATION FOR YOUTH, TO BE SET UP IN THIS PART OF ONTARIO. I DID KNOW THIS, AND IT MAY HAVE SPARKED MY INITIAL INTEREST, IN PUTTING TOGETHER A BIOGRAPHY, EVEN IF IT WAS ONLY PUBLISHED IN A MAGAZINE, AND NOT A BOOK PROPER.
AFTER GETTING A ROUGH MANUSCRIPT TOGETHER, AND FEELING COMFORTABLE I COULD AMASS A PRETTY COMPELLING STORY, AT LEAST FOR THE BRACEBRIDGE AND MUSKOKA AUDIENCE, AS DID "DAREDEVIL GOALIE," I CONTACTED ROGER BY LETTER, TO ASK PERMISSION TO, AT THE VERY LEAST, CARRY ON WITH MY RESEARCH AND ROUGH MANUSCRIPT DEVELOPMENT. HE GOT BACK TO ME QUICKLY, AND APPROVED OF THE IDEA. I THINK THIS WAS THE BIGGEST BOOST A STARVING WRITER, LIKE ME, COULD HAVE RECEIVED AT THE TIME; BUT IT REALLY WASN'T A PROJECT I IMAGINED WOULD MAKE A LOT OF MONEY. THIS WAS A PRESTIGIOUS OPPORTUNITY, AND FOR THE NEXT SEVEN MONTHS, I WORKED LIKE A FIEND GETTING AN ACCEPTABLE DRAFT COMPOSED. I FOUND A WEALTH OF NEWSPAPER AND MAGAZINE COVERAGE ABOUT ROGER'S EARLY YEARS, AND SOME OF IT, HE HAD NEVER READ PREVIOUSLY. HE WAS A LITTLE TOO BUSY NETMINDING TO WORRY ABOUT THE PRESS COVERAGE.
THINGS CHANGE. THERE WERE A LOT OF PARALLEL ACTIVITIES GOING ON AT THE SAME TIME, INCLUDING MY FRUSTRATING NEGOTIATIONS TO ACQUIRE EXHIBIT SPACE AT THE BRACEBRIDGE ARENA, FOR A PROPER ROGER CROZIER DISPLAY. AT THE TIME I BEGAN THIS, THERE WAS ONLY ONE PHOTOGRAPH OF ROGER CROZIER, AND IT WAS IN STORAGE AND HAD SUFFERED WATER DAMAGE. EVEN THEN, IT TOOK STAFF SEVERAL DAYS TO EVEN FIND IT AMONGST OTHER STORED-AWAY RELICS FROM THE FORMER ARENA LOBBY, THAT HAD BEEN TORN DOWN IN THE 1970'S, DUE TO STRUCTURAL DEFICIENCIES. I HAD QUITE A BIT OF OPPOSITION TO THIS REQUEST, FROM CURIOUS INDIVIDUALS, FOR REASONS UNKNOWN, BUT NOT FROM TOWN COUNCIL ITSELF, THAT SUPPORTED THE PLAN; IF I WAS PREPARED TO HELP MANAGE THE EXHIBITION OF MEMORABILIA. I DID THIS, AND ARRANGED FOR A BRACEBRIDGE ARTIST, MARY THRANE, TO CREATE A "PLAYING-IMAGE" PORTRAIT OF ROGER, DURING THE PERIOD HE DIDN'T WEAR A MASK, THAT WOULD EVENTUALLY FILL PART OF THE DISPLAY CABINET. WELL, IT'S A LONG, LONG STORY AFTER THIS, BUT MARY DID A FANTASTIC PORTRAIT, AND ROGER'S FOUNDATION, AFTER HIS DEATH IN JANUARY 1996, CONSTRUCTED A MASSIVE BANK OF DISPLAY CASES IN THE ARENA LOBBY, AND I GOT TO BE CURATOR.
THE BOOK PROJECT NEVER CAME TO FRUITION. ON MY PART, IT DID. I WORKED WITH THE PUBLISHER OF THE HERALD-GAZETTE, IN THE SUMMER OF 1994, TO PUBLISH A MULTI-PAGE FEATURE MAGAZINE, TO HIGHLIGHT THE CAREER OF ROGER CROZIER, WITH MARY THRANE'S ART WORK ON THE FRONT PAGE. IT WASN'T A BOOK, BUT IT WAS WELL RECEIVED BY THE LOCAL AUDIENCE, AS A COLLECTOR'S EDITION, MANY WHO REMEMBERED ROGER FROM HIS YOUNGER DAYS, PLAYING ROAD HOCKEY UP ON NORTH JAMES STREET; AND AS A TEENAGER, PLAYING ON SENIOR TEAMS BECAUSE HE WAS SO PROFICIENT AS A GOALIE. IN THE FALL OF THE SAME YEAR, MBNA PICKED UP THE ENTIRE FEATURE CONTENT, THAT HAD BEEN RELEASED VIA THE HERALD-GAZETTE, PUBLISHING IT IN THEIR WIDELY DISTRIBUTED NEWSLETTER. IT WAS SENT TO EVERY MBNA BRANCH IN THE UNITED STATES. IT WAS, YOU SEE, A TRIBUTE TO AN MBNA EXECUTIVE AS WELL AS BEING A HOCKEY BIOGRAPHY. AS A RESULT, I WAS FLOWN TO ROGER'S MBNA OFFICES IN DELAWARE, TO ATTEND A SPECIAL EVENT IN HIS HONOR, AT LONGWOOD GARDENS, AS HE WAS BEING HONORED BY THE BOY SCOUTS OF AMERICA FOR HIS CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE ORGANIZATION.
IN THE FALL OF 1995, I WAS EMPLOYED TO ASSIST WITH A MUCH LARGER, AND MORE THOROUGH BIOGRAPHY, THAT WAS BEING DEVELOPED BY THE BANK, WORKING WITH TWO OTHER AMERICAN SPORTS WRITERS, AND A RESEARCH ASSISTANT BY THE NAME OF CHARLIE WILSON. I WASN'T UPSET BY THE FACT, MORE SEASONED SPORTS WRITERS WERE EMPLOYED TO "AUTHOR" THE BOOK. I WAS JUST HAPPY TO PROVIDE WHAT EVER RESEARCH MATERIAL I COULD SCROUNGE-UP, FROM THE BRACEBRIDGE AREA, TO INFILL THE TEXT. AFTER ROGER PASSED AWAY, THE PROJECT CARRIED ON FOR A WHILE LONGER, BUT THEN CEASED, BUT I WAS GIVEN NO EXPLANATION WHY THIS HAD HAPPENED. IT WAS AROUND THE PERIOD ROGER HAD BEEN NOMINATED AS AN INDUCTEE TO THE HOCKEY HALL OF FAME. HE WASN'T VOTED-IN, BUT I HAVE LONG HOPED THAT ONE DAY, HE WOULD BE NOMINATED AGAIN, POSSIBLY WITH A DIFFERENT OUTCOME. I WAS STILL CONTENT HOWEVER, THAT THE PROJECT I HAD WORKED ON, LOCALLY, HAD BEEN RELEASED TO THE PUBLIC, AT THE VERY BRINK, OF ROGER LAUNCHING THE CROZIER FOUNDATION FOR CHILDREN, WHICH I WORKED WITH AS MEDIA DIRECTOR, IN MUSKOKA, FOR A DOZEN YEARS. I WAS ALSO CURATOR FOR THE BRACEBRIDGE SPORTS HALL OF FAME, AS A CROZIER FOUNDATION REPRESENTATIVE FOR THE SAME PERIOD. WHAT A GREAT ASSOCIATION IT WAS. WHAT I'VE NEVER WRITTEN ABOUT BEFORE, CAME LATE IN THE SUMMER OF 1995, WHEN I ACTUALLY INFORMED ROGER I DIDN'T WISH TO CARRY ON WITH THE JUST-LAUNCHED FOUNDATION FOR PERSONAL REASONS.
INITIALLY I WAS QUITE UNIMPRESSED WITH THE CORPORATE INFLUENCES, AND PROTOCOLS BEING IMPOSED ON ME, AS A VOLUNTEER WITHOUT PORTFOLIO. I LIKED WORKING WITH ROGER BUT THE FACT THAT IT WAS BEING RUN LARGELY BY VOLUNTEERS, WHO ALSO WORKED WITH ROGER IN THE UNITED STATES, MADE ME FEEL LIKE AN OUTSIDER WITH LITTLE IN COMMON WITH EVERYONE ELSE. ROGER GOT MY NOTE OF THANKS, "BUT NO THANKS," AND SPENT CONSIDERABLE TIME ON THE PHONE THE NEXT DAY, TRYING TO CONVINCE ME THAT I HAD A LONG TERM RELATIONSHIP WITH THE NEW FOUNDATION, IF I WANTED IT; BUT IMPOSED ON ME, THAT THE MUSKOKA BRANCH WOULDN'T HAVE MUCH OF A FUTURE, IF I BACKED OUT OF THE AGREEMENT. I HAD NO IDEA ROGER HAD SUFFERED A RELAPSE OF PROSTRATE CANCER AT THIS TIME, AND I HAVE ALWAYS FELT HORRIBLE, THAT I CAUSED HIM CHAGRIN AT ABOUT THE WORSE POSSIBLE TIME. I AGREED TO STAY ON, AND HE OFFERED TO BEGIN NEGOTIATIONS WITH THE TOWN OF BRACEBRIDGE, TO BUILD SHOWCASES IN THE ARENA LOBBY, SOME TIME IN THE NEAR FUTURE. THIS CAME AFTER HIS DEATH UNFORTUNATELY BUT THE SHOWCASES WERE FABULOUS. I ALSO HAD THE CHANCE TO AWARD MANY THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS, TO HELP YOUNGSTERS IN NEED OF FINANCIAL ASSISTANCE, TO FINANCE HOCKEY AND FIGURE SKATING REGISTRATION FEES, THROUGH THE MUSKOKA CHILDREN'S AID. I CAN'T TELL YOU HOW PROUD I WAS, WHEN IT WAS MY JOB TO HAND OVER CHEQUES FROM THE FOUNDATION, TO HELP FINANCE YOUTH RECREATION. I AM SO GLAD THAT ROGER BOTHERED TO CALL ME BACK THAT SUMMER DAY, TO ENCOURAGE ME TO STAY ONBOARD. NO REGRETS. I HOPE HE DIDN'T HAVE ANY.
WHEN THE CROZIER FOUNDATION CEASED OPERATION IN MUSKOKA, I HAVE TO ADMIT, I WAS DEVASTATED BY THE NEWS. WHEN I HAD TO INFORM THE TOWN OF BRACEBRIDGE, THAT THIS HAD OCCURRED, I KNEW MY DAYS WERE NUMBERED AS THE HALL OF FAME'S CURATOR. I MADE IT EASY FOR THEM, BY SUGGESTING THEY MIGHT WISH TO FIND A SUITABLE REPLACEMENT, AS I HAD BEEN CURATOR FOR A DOZEN YEARS TO THAT POINT, AND WAS SATISFIED I HAD LIVED UP TO MY ORIGINAL PROMISE TO ROGER. I KNEW THAT THERE WAS SOMEONE ELSE INTERESTED IN TAKING OVER THE SHOWCASES, WHO HAD BEEN IN THE BACKGROUND, FOR SOME TIME, AND RATHER THAN ENGAGE IN A POINTLESS POWER STRUGGLE FOR CONTROL, I REMOVED MYSELF ENTIRELY. EVEN A YEAR AFTER THE FOUNDATION'S DEMISE, I REMAINED WITHOUT A SUPPORTING ORGANIZATION, WORKING ON MY OWN DIME; MAINTAINING THE SHOWCASES THE BEST WE COULD, WITH THE RESOURCES AVAILABLE. OUR WHOLE FAMILY HELPED OUT. WE HAD ALL ENJOYED WORKING WITH THE CROZIER FOUNDATION, AND HELPING TO RUN THE SUMMER SKATE AND HOCKEY CAMP WE FINANCED FOR LOCAL YOUTH; AND IT WAS ALWAYS A PLEASURE REPRESENTING THE NAME OF A HOCKEY HERO, WHO TO MANY OF HIS FANS, WAS A LEGEND IN HIS OWN TIME. I ALWAYS LOVED ANY OPPORTUNITY TO LET THE SKATE CAMP KIDS HOLD SOME OF ROGER'S HOCKEY ARTIFACTS THAT WE HAD ON DISPLAY, INCLUDING HIS HOCKEY STICK DATING BACK TO THE 1965-66 SEASON, WHEN HE WON THE CONN SMYTHE TROPHY. YOU COULD EVEN FEEL THE SHAPING OF THE HANDLE, WORN DOWN BY HIS HAND OVER MANY GAMES THAT YEAR. NOT LIKE TODAY, WHEN STICKS ARE CHANGED OVER-FREQUENTLY.
PUBLISHED BELOW, IS A SHORT SECTION FROM THE EDITORIAL COPY THAT APPEARED IN THE HERALD-GAZETTE SUPPLEMENT, THAT YEAR, AND REPUBLISHED IN THE MBNA NEWSLETTER. AND I WROTE THE WHOLE BIOGRAPHY WORKING AT OUR GRAVENHURST HOUSE, AND YES, ACROSS FROM THAT SPLENDID URBAN OASIS, "THE BOG." IT'S TRUE. LOOKING OUT OVER THIS BEAUTIFUL LANDSCAPE, EVEN HELPED ME WRITE A SPORTS BIOGRAPHY.
THE TITLE OF THE OPENING EDITORIAL, WAS "SPORTSWRITERS PAINT A COLORFUL PICTURE OF A FAN'S DELIGHT; A SPRAWLING, TWISTING, HOCKEY OCTOPUS."
"Ever since Sid Abel made his trade pass for Roger Crozier, the experts have been waiting for the Detroit coach to roll box-cars, in the National Hockey League goaltending gamble,' wrote sports columnist Pat Curran, in the Montreal Saturday Gazette on February 5, 1966. 'But the 23 year old ex-newsboy has turned out to be such a natural, opposing teams are starting to think the Red Wings's dice are loaded.' Curran writes in summary, 'When Abel made a deal with Chicago in June 1963, Howie Young for Crozier, the exchange was considered a headache for a bellyache. And when Sid passed off Terry Sawchuk, to keep the untried goalie, Abel appeared to be soft in the noggin.' The columnist suggested, 'Now it appears that the Detroit boss got the biggest bargain since Peter Stuyvesant bought Manhattan from the Indians. Crozier has not only been dependable in the Wings'cage, but time and again has come up with game stealing performances last season and again this schedule.' The 'bellyache,' Curran refers to, was painfully recurring bouts of pancreatitis. Pat Curran wrote, 'Crozier, fourth eldest of a family of 14, is one of the few right handed goalies in pro hockey, and many of his moves are considered unorthodox. But he's exciting to watch, as he bounces up and down, moves in and out like a cat to cut off the angels of opponents' shots. His reflexes are superb and he's cool as they come under fire.'
In a cartoon drawing of Crozier, accompanying Curran's column in the Saturday Gazette, the caption reads 'In that two goalie system, Detroit's backup man is Hank Bassen, but the way Roger is going, Hank will end up with more splinters than a do-it-yourself carpenter.' Crozier, amongst a host of other curious nicknames, earned the title 'Radar Roger,' from the widely circulated Gazette, which claimed that his netminding had a 'lot to do with that Red Wings jinx over our Habitants.' And in fact, only three weeks before the article, Crozier had blanked Montreal 3-0. 'A big reason for the Detroit Red Wings lofty perch in the NHL has been the goaling of Roger Crozier,' claimed the Montreal publication. The NHL was taking note of the young goaltender's passion for winning. There was concern about his small build and flopping style, but the reality was still the same; the kid was stopping the puck and his team was winning consistently.
Crozier did, however have his share of critics. For example, one of the stinging reviews came from one of hockey's best known and most celebrated goaltenders, Jacques Plante, who according to Sports Illustrated, writer Rex Lardner, who was quoted as saying Roger, 'would never make it as a goalie in the big time.' King Clancy of the Toronto Maple Leafs was another of Crozier's critics, joining a growing number of editorialists who continued to believe Sid Abel had made an enormous mistake, when he sacrificed Sawchuk for the rookie from Bracebridge. But Abel was comfortable with the move, stating confidently 'Crozier has the fastest hands of any goalie I've ever seen.'
The Sports Illustrated writer, noted 'A superstitious youngster, who hates to fly in planes and always starts dressing on the left side to ward off any evil spirits that might be lurking. Crozier recently delighted his teammates after practice in the Montreal Forum, by leaping on sturdy Gordie Howe's neck, and riding him around the arena like a jockey.' Charles Halpin, a staff writer with the Official National Hockey Annual '67, highlighted Roger's first game in the NHL, which was painfully memorable for the rookie goalkeep. 'He will never forget his NHL debut in Toronto's Maple Leaf Gardens, in November 1963,' wrote Halpin. 'Roger was spectacular on his first night. The Wings were leading 1-0, when halfway through the game, big Frank Mahovolich unloaded one of this treacherous slapshots. The puck struck Crozier in the face. Fortunately for Roger it was flat when it hit him. He suffered a broken cheekbone but in spite of the injury, finished the game.' Halpin reported, 'Shortly after his recovery, he came back to the Detroit net wearing a mask. He helped the Wings down Chicago 5-4 in his first game but tossed the face protector aside before the first period was over.' The well known sports columnist added, 'Few goaltenders have descended on the National Hockey League in the past ten years with the impact of acrobatic Roger Crozier. This sprawling, weaving, twisting hockey octopus is a fan's delight, when he steps on the ice. NHL netminders don't perform the moves that the 24 year old goes through in the course of a hockey game, and still retain their composure.' The author suggests, 'But Crozier does this and more. This has prompted hockey observers to rate him as the greatest, most colorful goaling attraction to hit the hockey big top, since the invigorating Jacques Plante, came on the NHL scene in the early 1950's with his repertoire of tricks.'
Revered sports columnist, Dick Beddoes, stated bluntly in the November 13, 1964, edition of the Toronto Globe and Mail, that the 'most talked-about player in the National Hockey League today, is a splinter of bone and shred of gristle who resembles a dissipated jockey.' Beddoes reported that 'Roger Crozier of the Detroit Red Wings, is living proof of one half of the dictum, that hockey is a game for little boys and gentlemen. John William Bower proves the other half.' Beddoes added in his assessment of Crozier, in the following critique: 'Toronto beat Detroit 3-1 the other night and afterward, George (Punch) Imlach exhibited rare magnanimty toward a rival. The noble curator of the Leafs shoved a black hat back on his glossy brow and said the Detroit defeat was no fault of Crozier's. 'You've got to give the kid a few marks. He's allowed what? Less than two goals a game? Less than two is phenomenal. If he was any better, he shouldn't be in this world.' Beddoes concluded, 'Roger Crozier's size and style are academic issues so long as he keeps the puck out. For the moment, the Detroit question mark is more of an exclamation point.'
In March 1966, the Hockey Pictorial, which had previously referred to Crozier as the 'nimble ballet master of the Red Wings net,' published the following editorial, which paints a pretty clear picture of his rise to fame amongst many of the NHL's finest players. 'Roger Crozier of the Detroit Red Wings thrives on work - and he's had plenty of it since he came on the scene with a bang with a bang in the 1964-65 season. Stepping into the hot skate tracks of longtime Detroit favorite, Terry Sawchuk, he had to prove himself in a hurry. And he did, capturing the Calder Trophy as the NHL's outstanding rookie, and coming with a hair's breadth of winning the Vezina Trophy. He just lost out on the last weekend to Toronto's pair of Sawchuk and Bower. Again this year, he's putting up a game fight for the Vezina, and keeping Detroit right in the thick of things in the process. But at the time of writing he trailed the Canadiens's duo of Gump Worsley and Charlie Hodge in the Vezina race. If this keeps up, he may ask Sid Abel for an alternate.' 'Through 69.5 games of the 1964-65 campaign, Roger had a fine 2.42 goals against average, losing the Vezina Trophy to Chicago's Glenn Hall because of four goals allowed by standby Carl Wetzel, wrote sports scribe Pat Curran in a February 1966 issue of the Montreal Gazette. 'However, he was voted first time all-star while helping Detroit to the league championship. He chalked up six shoutouts, two more than Glenn Hall. Again this season, Crozier has become the key to the Red Wings's climb into first place. He's leading in the Vezina Trophy race and his seven shut-outs are just one short of the total earned by all other NHL goalies - Glenn Hall, 4, Johnny Bower, 2. Charlie Hodge and Bernie Parent.' Curran also reported that in one memorable game against Montreal, 'The Habs peppered Roger with 31 shots and his performance was so spectacular that one of the Canadiens' merely shook his head in disbelief after the game. 'If we had 100 shots, we wouldn't have beat Crozier tonight.'
In a critique of Crozier, written by columnist Red Burnett, the Bracebridge goalie received an uplifting review. 'Roger is an exciting young man to watch in action. He moves out as the attacker drives in, and then retreats, cutting down the angles. He usually makes a last-second lurch with the speed of a striking rattler to block or glove the puck. Some say he has the fastest catching hand in the business. Unlike most goalies, Roger uses the right hand and it becomes a blur when he reaches for a shot. He has been poison to the Leafs, who have dropped four of six starts to the Wings. Roger has shut them out twice and given up only one goal in three wins on his home Olympia ice.' One particular quote was written by Rex Lardner, columnist for Sports Illustrated (1964), who in my opinion, summarized the excitement Crozier brought to hockey during the pre-expansion era of the NHL.
'Last week, the Montreals beat him to another four and tied up the league lead temporarily, but even in defeat, edgy Roger put on such a magnificent display of swan dives, lunges, lurches, kicks, and one-handed catches in stopping some 25 other Canadien shots, that rival coach, Toe Blake, went out of his way to offer congratulations. No one, said Toe, could have stopped the four goals that went in, and that made Roger feel better, for the moment anyway.'
MVP OF THE PLAYOFFS - THE 1966 SHOWDOWN AGAINST MONTREAL - WHAT A HIGH VIEWING TIME IN BRACEBRIDGE, ONTARIO
Probably one of the highest electronic media listener and viewership days in Bracebridge, Ontario, came during the sixth game of the 1966 Stanley Cup playoffs, between Detroit and Montreal. Everyone in the Bracebridge area, hockey fan or not, wanted to know how Roger Crozier would hold up against the powerful Montreal Canadiens. After all, it wasn't every day that a local lad was asked to outsmart veteran sharp-shooters like Jean Beliveau and Henri Richard. After a truly amazing season, Crozier performed brilliantly in the finals against Montreal, leading Detroit fans to believe 1966 would be the year of the cup. Detroit shocked the Canadiens by winning the first two games of the best of seven finals. But Montreal overcame the Detroit lead and scored three consecutive victories. Crozier had suffered a painful leg injury but asked to be kept in the line-up. It was Brian McFarlane who summed up the sixth game best, in his popular 1972 book entitled, 'The Story of the Stanley Cup.' "The Canadiens completed their dramatic comeback with a 3-2 overtime thriller," McFarlane wrote, and 'Henri Richard played the role of reluctant hero. It was Richard who was credited with the unusual goal at 2:20 of the first overtime period, a goal which gave the Habs their second successive Stanley Cup. Dave Balon passed the puck from the corner in front of the Detroit net. He hit Richard on the knee, and the puck bounced in behind Crozier. Richard denied that he had swept the puck into the net with his hand. Richard added, 'A fluke goal, maybe, illegal no.' Balon added, 'A goal doesn't have to be pretty. It just has to go in.' Crozier's stellar performance earned him tremendous respect. The NHL Board of Governors vote him the winner of the coveted Conn Smythe Trophy as the outstanding player of Stanley Cup playoffs. When criticism arose from some of the Canadiens about the choice, Detroit Coach Sid Abel reportedly stated to the press, 'How in the world could they take it away from him? He stopped the Black Hawsk in the semi-finals and he stood the Canadiens on their ears in their own rink. He stopped Bobby Hull on breakaways and he stopped Jean Beliveau. You can't do more than Roger did for us.'
Roger was presented with a gold Mustang convertible and $1,000 for his amazing playoff performance. He was given a parade through the streets of Bracebridge in his honor. Roger was nothing short of a hero, and his fans embraced the opportunity to meet the man who had so capably guarded the nets and brought them into the very heart and soul of the game of hockey.
Sons Robert and Andrew and I were playing a two-on-one game of shinny, on our sideyard ice rink, the night I got a call from Roger's brother Greg, to tell Suzanne that Roger had passed away, at his home, after a courageous last battle, this time against cancer. We all stood on our skates, thinking about the past couple of years that we had worked with Roger here in Muskoka, even joining him in a summer season parade on the main street of Bracebridge, in celebration of an anniversary for Santa's Village. Andrew and Robert, in charge of candy give-aways, walked beside the vintage car, Roger was riding in, owned and driven by Bracebridge's hockey historian, Guy Waite. I had been able to convince organizers to allow Roger to join the parade, and I have to tell you, it was my proudest moment as a regional historian. Citizens all along the parade route, were waving and calling out to Roger, who remembered many of the folks from his younger days growing up in Bracebridge. It reminded me of the Paul Rimstead column, he wrote after the Roger Crozier Day festivities, in the late spring of 1966, when Roger was recognized by his home town for winning the Conn Smythe Trophy, and of course, the gold Mustang, that made it into the parade. I know I've presented the Rimstead column about this special occasion, a few months ago, but it really needs to companion today's blog. I have pulled it from the archives for those who might not have read it previously.
PAUL RIMSTEAD WROTE ABOUT DETROIT RED WING GOALIE, ROGER CROZIER
FUTURE N.H.L. ALLSTAR, AND NEWSPAPER COLUMNIST, SKIPPING SCHOOL TO PLAY POOL
I know a lot about the history of Bracebridge. What's been written, and what hasn't been! Seeing as I've devoted a good chunk of my professional life, to researching and writing about local history, it's good then, that I know my stuff. What a waste if I didn't! I would certainly have let down a lot of fine mentors, who trusted, and truly believed, that I'd do something exciting in my life. Sooner or later! Well, something interesting at least! That, I have done. This history thing, isn't as boring as you think. It can actually get pretty exciting and controversial, if you play your cards right. My fault, according to my critics, is that I can be irreverent and risque, and invite too many paddlers into the canoe. I've never capsized, and I've never regretted looking at history with a critical eye, and asking intrusive questions, about its acceptance as fact. I don't believe everything I hear or read, and honestly, sometimes I don't even believe myself. That's why Suzanne is my right hand, and challenges everything I write. A so-called factual stress test.
Maybe you know a lot about Bracebridge history as well. But you know, the early years in this town, have been so well documented, and repeated, so many times, in the contemporary sense, that they've become a tad over-exposed, and same-old, same-old. So I decided, for these "Sketches," to follow what I began, first in the 1990's, via the Muskoka Advance. I wanted to write about the period in Bracebridge, from 1966 onward, because it's what I knew from "actuality," meaning I lived the life. I was there when big news happened, and in many cases, I had either caused it, or at least, nearly been run over by it! Most regional historians, these days, are more interested in the very early years of town life, and feel that contemporary history will only be ripe enough to pick, a hundred years from now. Yet the past fifty years has seen a tremendous amount of change in the town, and much of it has had a profound impact on its character, from the days when it didn't have a single traffic light, and horse drawn carts were the biggest transports of goods and services.
The changes I experienced from 1966, through the late 1980's, were startling, to someone, like me, who happened to like the no traffic-light era, and the small town way of life. Our family moved to this small town, to escape the urban jungle, and here then, was the jungle finding us again. And in only a few short years. There was sprawl occurring in the hinterland. So as far as history goes, a lot of it occurred in this period of re-development, of what most of us recognized as the old home town. Some of it was a bit hard to take, especially if you were one who, say in late November, early December, who would race down to the Ball's Flats pasture, when the first full freeze-up, made a country mile of interconnected ice-skating pads. When it became a plaza area, the only contentment I had, was that I had been able to enjoy its last days of open ground. There were many of these dramatic urbanizing changes, and whether former town officials will agree or not, opinions of the citizenry were mixed. The politicians at town hall figured it was time to welcome development for our well being. There were property owners who finally got some big pay-outs, for holding onto land, some of it having belonged to their families, going back to the 1800's. There were locals however, who felt the town was selling out. Changing from what it had always been, into something they didn't recognize, for a handfull of magic beans. Promises that, by being open and accommodating to development, good things would happen to local economics. More money would destine us to be a happier population. Ours would be a sort of hinterland urban utopia on a budget. The more development we accepted, the more utopian it would become. I heard a lot of these claims as a reporter, covering councils across Muskoka during the 1980's.
While there will be accounts of this period, written in the future, that brush over these concerns and objections, to the outward expansion of the urban boundary, to facilitate strip malls, once again, it's because the protests were in private conversation, more so than printed onto placards, and marched in front of town hall. The naysayers were kept well to the back, and there were no photographers to capture their protests for above-the-fold news images. I don't remember even one person, or part time environmentalist, chaining themselves to a tree or pasture post, to halt the loggers and earth movers. It doesn't mean there weren't protestors. Very few made it to the front pages, so when we look back, it may be mistakenly assumed, all was quiet on the development front. But it was very much a split community, when it came to approving development, and the promises being made, that it would all create jobs. As if, accepting these plazas, and strip malls, would eliminate unemployment then, and in the future. The promises were pretty much standard, offered by developers, pushing forward their agenda. There were unemployed during construction and after, and even today, the same situation exists, awaiting the very next promise of prosperity. But it was a very history-making time, and the town was changed forever. It actually didn't take long before the town was looking like a city-in-waiting, just as it still is today.
So these columns will look at some of the lesser known, yet significant realities, of local history, that I dare say have been forgotten, in the pre-occupation for the older events of the chronology. It involves two fine local lads, and their accomplishments in writing and sports.
Joe Defabrizio used to run one of the most popular businesses, on the main street of Bracebridge. "Joe's Billiards," located in the basement of what was once, the store-front A&P grocery store, was one of the best and preferred places for teenagers to get away, from the rigors of the school day. It stretched in operation over generations, and I remember talking to Joe, a huge booster of local athletics, especially hockey and soccer, about two of his most famous customers; Roger Crozier and Paul Rimstead. I think one of the two still owed Joe money for food consumed, but he seemed happiest to relay the story of two great young men, who by the way, never forgot him. Of course, both Rimstead and Crozier have since passed away, but Joe is still reminiscing, about all the young folks who found a respite and recreation in his famous hall.
When I was writing a small feature publication, back in the summer of 1994, for The Herald-Gazette, to acknowledge the plan by Roger Crozier, to establish the Crozier Foundation for Children, I came upon a column written by Rimstead, originally for the Toronto Globe & Mail, that profiles his pool-playing buddy, of the Detroit Red Wings. The introduction to the article, reads as follows:
"Well known author of the book, 'Cocktails and Jockstraps,' Toronto Star columnist, sports critic, story spinner, and all round good guy, the late Paul Rimstead, was a great source of inspiration during this research project, on N.H.L. goaltender Roger Crozier. The overview and personal recollections he wrote about his friend Roger Crozier, circa 1964-66, were remarkably insightful, and especially characteristic of the young Detroit goalie. And the columns, slightly irreverent, were just as characteristic of the style, that would later earn Rimstead a huge readership, that cherished his sense of humor, and his down to earth mannerisms, eccentricities and occasional but well planted editorial barbs. Since Rimstead has a family connection with Bracebridge, and he had been a student at Bracebridge High School at the same time as Crozier, plus having been co-editor of the "Beatrice Bugle," with his sister Diane, (hamlet north of Bracebridge), there was no way of bypassing his editorial assertions, as they pertained to an athlete who he believed had been shortchanged of respect; both by the media and hockey fans. Here are some of the editorial comments written by Rimstead."
In the July 9th, 1966 edition of "The Globe Magazine," the publication featured a front page photograph of the 'Roger Crozier Day,' parade, with a story written by Rimstead. The event, which I attended at Jubilee Park (as well as having watched the parade), followed Crozier's outstanding Stanley Cup playoff series, against Montreal, and his being named the recipient of the Conn Smythe Trophy, as the most outstanding player of the final series. Crozier was on the losing team, but still won the newly established playoff award, given the year before, to Montreal's Jean Beliveau. Roger became the first netminder to win the award. I remember watching the final game, in our new home in Bracebridge, having just arrived in town, in February of that year. There was no way I was going to miss the big celebration, even though I didn't know my way around town yet, or where exactly Jubilee Park was located. I just followed everybody else.
Rimstead wrote, "Roger Crozier, the NHL playoff's star, grew up in Bracebridge, so they held a day and parade for him. There was a parade with bands and VIPs, along with folks who knew him when! Every kid should have a chance to grow up in a small Canadian town. When you come from a place like Bracebridge, Ontario, population 2,500, when everybody is home, you're really somebody. When a local boy leaves home and makes it big, the way Roger Crozier did, they all know it. And if he turns out bad, well, they all know that, too. "The city kid is a face in the crowd. He has his pals in the neighborhood and his school chums and perhaps a group of relatives, but he hasn't got a whole town. He never gets to know a place like the Fairgrounds, in Bracebridge, down there in the flat they call 'The Hollow.' Roger Crozier, if you don't know it, is the little guy who plays goal with the Detroit Red Wings, in the National Hockey League. He was standing in the Fairgrounds (Jubilee Park), a few weeks ago, and you wonder if it brought back memories for him.
"Danny Poland got together with Chub Downey, another former Bear (hockey club in Bracebridge), who owns the Bracebridge Dairy, and Porky Mann, once a good softball player, and now the area representative for Parkdale Wines. They arranged the day for Roger, figuring the little guy deserved one, especially after his comeback last season. Crozier had won the Calder Trophy, as the NHL's best rookie, in his first season and narrowly missed winning the Vezina Trophy, as the top goaltender. Danny Poland and Mann decided to go all out and invite as many celebrities as they could think of. This was what was causing the delay at the Fairgrounds. The kids in Bracebridge don't get to meet many NHL stars, and they surrounded the special guests, autograph books at the ready.
"There was Doug Barkley, the outstanding Detroit defenseman, whose career was ended when he lost the sight of one eye; teammate Bryan Watson, the 'pepper-pot' kid from nearby Bancroft, in Haliburton, Ron Ingram, Roger's close friend, and business partner, who plays for the Baltimore Clippers. Ingram spends his summers working at Roger's hockey school at the Bracebridge Arena. There also were the hockey heroes from the area, including Bobby Orr, Canada's greatest junior player, from Parry Sound, fifty miles north; and Wayne Rutledge, a goaltender from Gravenhurst, nine miles to the south. Rutledge played in Minneapolis last season and was voted the most valuable player in the Central Professional League."
Rimstead wrote that, later in the afternoon, at an awards event for Bracebridge Minor Hockey, "Roger stood up, thanked everyone in his quiet, self-effacing manner, then announced that his family was donating a trophy to minor hockey, the next season, in the memory of 'Shorty' (Roger's father), who had died only weeks before the parade. 'Dammit,' you said to yourself. 'Dammit all to hell!' Shorty should have been here. He would have been the proudest little guy in the world."
I came, in more recent times, to have quite a bit to do with some of those in attendance at this special "Roger Crozier Day," event. First of all, two summers later, I was awarded a week's instruction at the Red Wing Hockey School, courtesy of both Roger and Ron Ingram. I wasn't the only one to get the free week, but there's no way my family could have afforded this, if I had been required to pay even half the registration fee. I was a big fan of Wayne Rutledge, in his years as a Muskoka region auctioneer, and I did have the opportunity to discuss the years he played opposite to Roger, in Junior hockey, and then his years spent with the Los Angeles Kings of the NHL, as starting goalie with Terry Sawchuck, as back-up netminder, and then in Houston, of the WHA, where he played on three championship teams with Gordie, Marty and Mark Howe. Then with Roger, I became the curator of the Bracebridge Sports Hall of Fame, that the foundation had financed, at the arena, and I became public relations director of the Crozier Foundation in Muskoka.
The highlight, for me, was when I was able to convince Roger, who was working as Facility's Manager, at MBNA (an American Bank), in Delaware, to participate in a special "Christmas in July Parade," recognizing an anniversary of Santa's Village. Roger, many years earlier, had actually been the engineer of the miniature train at the Village, and I have owned post cards, showing him at the throttle of the popular train. He agreed to ride in the parade, and Guy Waite kindly offered to drive him in his vintage car, a convertable; the four Curries, volunteered to walk along the route, handing out candy to the thousands of youngsters lining the parade route. It was a pretty awesome afternoon, with some interesting rewards. The best part, is that we pulled it off, and Roger had a blast.
The large crowd, with a pretty good representation from the home town, that had gathered along the parade route, had no idea Roger was going to make an appearance. There was no advance publicity. There would have been quite a few young citizens who wouldn't have known his name, unless it was from the wad of old NHL hockey cards, they'd been collecting. I suppose, as the one who recruited him to join this parade, like the one in the summer of 1966, I could only hope, outside of a rain-free afternoon, he would be heartily acknowledged by those who remembered him, from back then; or who recognized him from those old hockey cards, many of us used to collect; or pegged onto the forks of our bikes, to rattle in the spokes like an engine. But I can admit, after all these years, I was scared that he wouldn't get much in the way of applause or waves, but as we rounded the corner by Kentucky Fried Chicken, onto Manitoba Street, and approaching where the Crozier family house once stood, people began waving and applauding for the NHL veteran, just as they had, during the parade of 1966. By time we got to Memorial Park, he was receiving loud cheers, with people pointing and waving, and trying to get his attention. Roger had a grin on his face, that warmed my heart, let me tell you. I couldn't believe how many people were yelling out his name, and following after the car. The parade, this time, wasn't in his honor, specifically, but boy oh boy, was I happy to find out, that the town had remembered him after a lot of years absent. Suzanne and I got misty-eyed, and so did Roger, because it was an overwhelming response, and many times Guy stopped the car, so Roger could talk with old friends, he hadn't spoken to in decades; team-mates he used to play with and against, in his minor hockey days back in the 1950's. I had worried unnecessarily that the townsfolk had forgotten him. It was, without question, one of my most memorable moments in Bracebridge. The only thing that would have made it better, is if one of those spectators, sitting with top hat and tails, had been the legendary Paul Rimstead. Would I have loved to get a photo of Rimmer and Crozier at the doorway of the former billiard parlor, "Joes" where they used to retreat, after skipping class.
We didn't suspect it at the time, but Roger would have a relapse of the prostrate cancer, he had suffered from several years earlier. He would enjoy this parade, spend hours meeting with old friends, and soon make the official announcement, for the establishment of the Crozier Foundation; and host a fundraising gala, a "New Years in August" event, at the Bracebridge Centennial Centre, that made several hundred thousand dollars for the fledgling charity. Roger passed away in January of 1996. I will never forget that incredible parade in the summer of 1995, or the first one, way back in July 1966. I was at both these news events.
You will be hard pressed, in Bracebridge today, to find any reference to Paul Rimstead, who became one of the best read newspaper columnist in Canada. And outside of the permanent collection, at the Bracebridge arena, you will find little else to acknowledge Roger Crozier, or for that matter, former Toronto Maple Leaf all star, Irvin "Ace" Bailey. A few years back, when the town council was looking for names to adorn subdivision streets, I suggested names found in the works of the Washington Irving book, "Bracebridge Hall," because of the fact, the town was named after its title. No go! I wasn't surprised. But I can't understand why the names Rimstead, Crozier and Bailey have not been used, in their honor, and ours. Maybe that will be my project in the future. I've done it before, and I've still got a few good years left to agitate.
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