Many of the experiences of every hockey dreamer are the same -- games played on the backyard rink, Stanley Cup fantasies and hero-worship for the stars on the ice. Are those experiences any different for someone who makes it to the NHL? Living the Hockey Dream tells the stories of people from around the hockey world -- players and broadcasters, Hall of Famers, average folks and officials, even the Keeper of the Cup--showing that, in the end, the hockey experience is universal: * Eric Staal and his three brothers had perhaps the most famous backyard rink next to Gretzky's that and the work ethic their parents instilled in them as kids led the Staals to the NHL * The distance Jordin Tootoo crossed to become the first Inuk player in the NHL is more than space--it's a cultural gap that gives him a sense of appreciation of what he's gained but also reveals the value of where he comes from-- Phil Pritchard goes to bed about 160 nights a year with the Stanley Cup locked in a case right beside him, but as the Keeper of the Cup, that's a duty he gladly embraces * And more stories.

Brian Kennedy is Montreal-born and raised, and now teaches British and postcolonial literature as well as writing courses at Pasadena City College, California. He has PhD in contemporary British literature, and his previous publications include essays on Virginia Woolf, Henry James and Graham Greene, an edited book on California issues and books and academic articles on hockey and Canadian culture. He has held a research fellowship at Saint Mary’s University, Halifax; given presentations at the Bakhtin Centre at the University of Sheffield, England; and lectured on literature at colleges in Mumbai, India. His work has been translated into Russian, Spanish, Portuguese and Dutch.

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