This Rocket Gave Hockey Fans a Big Lift

Like so many kids who grew up in Montreal, my friends and I would take the streetcar from the English section to the old Forum early Saturday morning to buy last-minute tickets for Saturday night’s game (at 25 cents each) and return at 7:30 p.m. to see “Rocket” Richard, Toe Blake, Elmer Lach and all those teammates. What a thrill for 12-year-olds!

My family had a summer place in St. Eustache, about 20 miles out of town, with tennis, boating, etc. One day the tennis pro asked Peter Laws and myself if we’d like to play doubles with two visiting sports stars. They were Maurice Richard, whom I drew as my partner, and Ken Mosdell, who played with Peter. Well into the set my first serve bonked “Rocket” on the back of his head. I expected to be broken in two and dumped in the trash bin, considering his ferocious temperament on the ice. Instead he just turned and smiled, saying “Play on.”

Of course an 11-year old’s serve probably couldn’t even faze a 22-year-old star hockey player’s head . . . certainly not the Rocket’s.

LORNE O’BRIEN

Palos Verdes Estates