The NHL is, indisputably, weird. One moment, you''re in awe of the speed, skill and intensity that define the sport, shaking your head as a player makes an impossible play, or shatters a longstanding record, or sobs into his first Stanley Cup. The next, everyone''s wearing earmuffs, Mr. Rogers has shown up, and guys in yellow raincoats are officiating playoff games while everyone tries to figure out where the league president went. That''s just life in the NHL, a league that often can''t seem to get out of its own way. No matter how long you''ve been a hockey fan, you know that sinking feeling that maybe, just maybe, some of the people in charge here don''t actually know what they re doing. And at some point, you''ve probably wondered: Has it always been this way? The short answer is yes. As for the longer answer, well, that''s this book. In this fun, irreverent and fact-filled history, Sean McIndoe relates the flip side to the National Hockey League''s storied past. His obsessively