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Hockey great Ken Hodge on island Sunday
Hodge, islanders will tell you, was right winger on the powerhouse "Esposito" line that thrilled fans and thwarted defenses. The Bruins were so explosive that in 1970-'71 Esposito, Orr, Bucyk and Hodge finished one through four in scoring for the season. Hodge returns to the island, and the ice, this Sunday at 1 p.m. when he and other Bruins alumni will skate to benefit several nonprofits at Nantucket Ice, courtesy of the Nantucket Police Charitable Association. We spoke with Hodge last Friday, and he was enthusiastic about coming back to Nantucket. "It's always fun," he said. "People respond well to the games. They've done a nice job (at Nantucket Ice); it's a lovely rink." Although Hodge is revered as a legend in New England, he didn't want to come to Boston when, in the summer of 1967, he, Esposito and Fred Stanfield were traded from Chicago to the Bruins for Gilles Marotte, Pit Martin and Jack Norris in one of the greatest trades in the history of professional sports. "Phil Esposito and myself were not happy coming to Boston," he noted. "Here we were on a first place club going to a last place club." It was soon apparent, however, that things were going to be different in Boston. The addition of the Blackhawks trio, along with a rookie named Sanderson, to the core group of Orr, Bucyk, Gerry Cheevers and Ted Green turned the Bruins into one of the best hockey teams of all time. "It was the catalyst that turned the franchise around," Hodge says now. "Then there were the other players brought on board; it was a who's who roster that everybody remembers." The sweetest memory for Hodge was the first Stanley Cup in 1970, when the Bruins swept the St. Louis Blues and hockey-mania swept the Hub. The celebrations held in later years at City Hall Plaza for the Celtics, Patriots and Red Sox were begun that year with the Bruins. "Those are the memories that last," Hodge recalls. "Bobby Orr flying through the air, winning the game in overtime." The Bruins reclaimed the Cup in 1972 - "the second one was special; we beat New York on their home ice" - but the disappointment of losing to Montreal in 1971 still lingers. "We just didn't peak at the right time," he said. "We wrapped the season up too early, and maybe should have paid a little more attention to our game. Four of us had over 100 points that year, and maybe we took things a little too lightly. But Ken Dryden played super. It took a while for the curse of Montreal to be lifted." Adding to the electric atmosphere was home ice, the tight and tiny Boston Garden. "I liked the old Garden," Hodge relates. "The crowd was a lot closer to the ice. The new Garden is not a sports building as much as it is an entertainment building. All the old buildings I played in were built for boxing - they went straight up and down. The fans in the second balcony were practically leaning over the ice. I was at a Bruins scrimmage the other day and all I could notice was the scoreboard." He still follows the Bruins and thinks this year's team isn't quite ready for a championship run. "I don't think they're there yet; they're a little weak on defense. The Bruins have an uphill battle right now. It'll be quite an interesting season with a new coach and coaching staff." For now, the Cup that Hodge and his teammates brought home in 1972 remains the Bruins' last. He says he is as proud of what he and his former Bruins are contributing today as he is of their prior accomplishments. He cited his former defenseman as an example. "What can you say about the greatest player ever to play the game? When he was playing, you would never know that Bobby Orr was hurt, and he was skating on one leg a lot of the time. I respect him so much today for his charitable work. He does things for causes that no one ever hears about." And he's glad that famous trade was made. "We all got along very well. It was just a great collection of guys. It was wonderful, and wild." I |
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