fascinating insight into the world of hockey in the 70's, and written in a way that's delightfully entertaining ( )

As the NHL tries to revive interest following a lock out and lacking a contract with a significant television network, this isn't the first time there was an effort to shake up the world of professional hockey. Taking cues from the American Football League and the American Basketball Association, the World Hockey Association was born. The Rebel League, by Ed Willes, makes a worthy but not always successful effort to document the history of the WHA.

Although in existence only from October 1972 through March 1979, the impact the WHA on professional hockey in North American is unquestionable. As a renegade league of sorts, the founders and owners knew the only chance of success was to have top-name players. As a result, they lured superstar Bobby Hull with a million dollar bonus at a time when most NHL stars were lucky to make six figures.

Large contracts and bonuses allowed the WHA to land other quality NHL players and top quality draft picks. The WHA's actions not only increased player salaries in the NHL, they cracked the reserve clause in the NHL. Whether that ultimately has been good or bad for hockey is a matter of opinion.

Yet the WHA also got Gordie Howe to come out of retirement and play -- and quite effectively -- with his sons. It delved heavily into European players, opening the door much wider for those players in the NHL. It also was the starting ground for many future NHL superstars, such as Wayne Gretzky and Mark Messier.

Still, the WHA remains perhaps more renowned for its characters. There was, for example, the night a referee was somewhat stumped on what penalty to call when two teammates on the Minnesota Fighting Saints got in a fight on the ice. Seems the rules don't specifically cover teammates fighting each other. Then there was goalie Gilles Gratton. A believer in reincarnation, among other things, Gratton begged off starting a game because of sore ribs he said were the result of a spear wound he suffered 300 years before. In another game, he simply left after two periods because he felt he'd faced enough shots.

Thanks to Hollywood, though, perhaps the most famous were the Carlson brothers of Minnesota. Not only did they serve as the inspiration for the bespectacled Hanson brothers of Slap Shot fame, two of the three actually played themselves in the movie.

The problem with The Rebel League is there is just too much ground and too many people to cover. Business and financial details compete with personalities and historical developments for both the writer's and the reader's attention. Willes also makes an effort to give each team equal time and its due but that is at time disruptive to the flow of the material. Still, it is a worthwhile excursion into a rebel league that would change the face of professional hockey.

Anyone who might question the impact of the WHA need only look at the 2006 Stanley Cup finals, the first after the rule changes bringing about the so-called "new NHL." The ultimate winners -- the Carolina Hurricanes -- actually began as the New England Whalers in the WHA. Their opponent? The only original WHA team that remains from the WHA's merger with the NHL 1979 -- the Edmonton Oilers.

Originally posted at http://prairieprogressive.com/2006/06/14/book-reviews-the-game-and-the-rebel-lea...