The Pursuit Of Hockeyness by Sam McCaig & The Hockey News

The Hockey News has two new hockey books hitting bookstore shelves everywhere this week.

The first is The Pursuit of Hockeyness: 99 Things Every Hockey Fan Needs to Do In Their Lifetime.

Buy The Book: Amazon.ca - Chapters - Amazon.com

Written by THN writer Sam McCaig, the 225 page trade-paperback compiles the ultimate bucket list for dedicated hockey fans.

There are the obvious, from going to a NHL game to touching the Stanley Cup to playing the game on a frozen pond. Then there are the obscure, such as burning a snowman (a Lake Superior State tradition) and surviving a Manitoba blizzard.

By my count, I've already done 35 of THN's bucket list. But I think I'll take the author's advice and create my own ultimate hockey checklist, and start out by picking out the top 10 items in the book that I have not done and I really want to do:

1. Hockey Night In Russia - One day I want to travel to Moscow and stand in the exact spot where Paul Henderson scored "the goal heard around the world."

2. Drive the WHL's Flat Five in Five - I'm a sucker for driving in Canada, and I have never really done Saskatchewan yet. What a great way to take in hockey's heartland.

3. Drive the Zamboni - Who doesn't want to do that?

4. Seek Out Hockey's Birthplace - Long Pond near Windsor, Nova Scotia - one day I will get to you!

5. Live Like An NHL Player - give me one pay check like they get, and I'll gladly do it.

6. Teddy Bear Toss - An absolute must do. I wish the NHL would do this. Pick just one calendar night when all the teams playing do it. Imagine the good publicity they would get out of it.

7. Build Your Own Hockey Shrine - I need to get my stuff out of boxes.

8. Visit The Hockey Hall of Fame - I've been there before, but I want to go back!

9. Meet Your Hockey Hero - I'd love to spend an hour talking with Trevor Linden or Wayne Gretzky.

10. Go On The Ultimate Hockey Road Trip - Money, Money, Money. Need more of it!

The book is a fun flip-through, with nice glossy presentation and color photography. The best part of the book is just the idea behind it - create a hockey bucket list and get out there and start doing it.