TropicalFruitGirl26 Posted February 28, 2015 Share Posted February 28, 2015 Mr. James was recently interviewed on NHL Network and I am intrigued by some of the things I heard during that interview.He has a book out, Black Ice as shown in the pic, and I will be placing an order for it soon via Amazon (they are currently out of stock...man, those books went fast!). Anyways, at first I was under the impression that he pioneered the way for colored players in the 60's or 70's in the NHL, but was a bit surprised to find out that he made his NHL debut in 1982 then went on to play for Toronto in '87.To me, that is still pretty recent history, given the magnitude of what he represented in the NHL. Since many here are long time hockey and NHL fans (many here certainly longer than my '94-'95 viewership), I was wondering if anyone can share anything about Val James....especially things that they may have seen live either on TV or at arenas, or heard through the news at the time that it was happening.Like I said, I plan on purchasing the book, but nothing beats first hand witnesses if one can hear from them. Or this thread can just be used to discuss Val James and/or his book in general.Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samifan Posted February 28, 2015 Share Posted February 28, 2015 TFG- I responded in another post about Val's book not sure if it was to you. Saw him play here several times in Rochester. The guy is still a cult hero here. Always got 4th liner/enforcer minutes but did score the goal that clinched the Caldef Cup for the Amerks. Guy was strong as an Ox and an absolute beast on the ice. Sabres would recall Jim whenever they were playing the Bruins or Flyers. Back in the old days the penalty boxes at the Amerks arena was not separated by anything other than a small wall. One night he got so pissed at his opponent he broke thru the small divider wall, pushed the off ice official and continued to be some dudes ass. Off the ice he was the most soft spoken, humble person you could ever meet. There was a local bar the team used to go to after every game and I would sneak in just to chat with him. We talked hockey for hours but he never shared any of his struggles. He also didn't know he was buying drinks for an under age kid, lol. His jersey was the first jersey I ever purchased, still have it even though it's about 3 sizes too small now but my son loves wearing it. Val just came back to Rochester for the first time since he retired. Fans waited in line for over an hour to meet him and pick up a photo/autograph and copy of his book if they chose. We caught up and he remember me which I thought was cool. I bought his book but have not started it yet, saving it for later this month while I am recovering from some surgery. I cannot say enough good things about Val James. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TropicalFruitGirl26 Posted February 28, 2015 Author Share Posted February 28, 2015 Good stuff @Samifan Sounds like the typical enforcer type stuff too.....maniac on the ice, outstanding personable person off the ice. Not that they are remotely the same, but I did get to meet guys like Enrico Ciccone and Andre Roy who were notorious on-ice goons for Tampa Bay amongst some other teams, and those guys really, if you didn't KNOW they were hockey enforcers, would think they were some of the coolest people and could possibly even be working with kids or some such....those guys were THAT personable. So I can believe a guy like Val James was as well.And the fact that he shouldered so much during his playing days simply because of the color of his skin...well, that makes it doubly impressive. Cool that you got to actually meet him.....even more awesome that he remembered you. I usually set aside about a half hour or so at least three times a week to read something or the other once the house goes quiet....right now, I have nothing on my reading queue....can't wait to get this book and start on that. Also, hope you have a good recovery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samifan Posted February 28, 2015 Share Posted February 28, 2015 Thanks TFG!Please let me know what you think after you have read the book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TropicalFruitGirl26 Posted March 4, 2015 Author Share Posted March 4, 2015 Well, @Samifan Finally placed the order for my Val James book yesterday... $20, hardcover edition via Amazon. Should have it by this time next week.Looking forward to getting started on that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blocker Posted March 8, 2015 Share Posted March 8, 2015 I cannot say enough good things about Val James. I'd never heard of him. Lots of good guys in hockey. . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TropicalFruitGirl26 Posted March 16, 2015 Author Share Posted March 16, 2015 @Samifan Book FINALLY got here....lol...I decided to order it from a smaller vendor (many times they are faster than Amazon itself), but in this case, they were not. Oh well, glad to finally have my book and now can set aside time for some interesting reading. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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