Every player in the NHL dreams of winning a championship and having the honor of their name engraved on hockey's most prestigious trophy. Here are the stories of those, legends and the lesser known, who achieved the ultimate goal in the sport.
Pelle Lindbergh was one of the rising stars of the NHL after winning the Vezina trophy (best goalie in the NHL) and leading the Philadelphia Flyers to the finals, both in 1985. At 26, he seemingly had his whole life ahead of him. On November 10th, 1985 Pelle crashed his Porsche in Somerdale, NJ and died the following day. Two others survived the accident. "The Swede of Philadelphia" is an in-depth and intense look at the "goalie, the man, the decision." Acclaimed director Charlie Minn(Lionsgate, ID channel and Amazon Prime video) interviews many of Pelle's teammates, team staff and journalists to shape every aspect of a hockey player that paved the way for future European and Swedish goalies to follow their dreams into the NHL.
A cartoon film about the whole heterogeneous mixture of Canada and Canadians, and the way the invisible adhesive called federalism makes it all cling together. That the dissenting voices are many is made amply evident, in English and French. But this animated message also shows that Canadians can laugh at themselves and work out their problems objectively.
A documentary about Kari Aro, the distinctive manager of Koho -hockey-stick factory, whose visions were to change the world. Story about the fairy-tale -like success, the destructive power of money and Aro's faith in goodness of people.
Soul On Ice: Past, Present, and Future is a film that presents and retells the unknown contributions of black athletes in ice hockey. For untold decades, hockey was seen as a homogeneous sport, exciting to watch but played by one kind of player. But people deserve to now know of the exploits of athletes who dared to stand out, and dared to make the sport their own. These Black athletes dared to give their sport soul.
Do you remember where you were on June 17, 1994? Thanks to a wide array of unrelated, coast-to-coast occurrences, this Friday has come to be known for its firsts, lasts, triumphs and tragedy. Arnold Palmer played his last round at a U.S. Open, in Oakmont, PA, the FIFA World Cup kicked off in Chicago, the New York Rangers celebrated on Broadway, Patrick Ewing desperately pursued a long evasive championship in Madison Garden and Donald Fehr stared down the baseball owners. And yet, all of that was a prelude to O.J. Simpson leading America on a slow speed chase in a white Ford Bronco around Los Angeles.
On August 9, 1988, the NHL was forever changed with the single stroke of a pen. The Edmonton Oilers, fresh off their fourth Stanley Cup victory in five years, signed a deal that sent Wayne Gretzky, a Canadian national treasure and the greatest hockey player ever to play the game, to the Los Angeles Kings in a multi-player, multi-million dollar deal. As bewildered Oiler fans struggled to make sense of the unthinkable, fans in Los Angeles were rushing to purchase season tickets at a rate so fast it overwhelmed the Kings box office. Overnight, a franchise largely overlooked in its 21-year existence was suddenly playing to sellout crowds and standing ovations, and a league often relegated to “little brother” status exploded from 21 teams to 30 in less than a decade.
It's Our Game documents one of the Canadian national hockey teams, showcasing how passionately their countrymen love the sport. The filmmakers follow the team as they travel to Finland to play in international competition.
A look at the Stanley Cup winning season of the New Jersey Devils of the National Hockey League.
A documentary highlighting the Soviet Union's legendary and enigmatic hockey training culture and world-dominating team through the eyes of the team's Captain Slava Fetisov, following his shift from hockey star and celebrated national hero to political enemy.
Details the intense rivalry between the Detroit Red Wings and the Colorado Avalanche in the 90’s
Shortly after the collapse of the Soviet Union, the Pittsburgh Penguins and the famed Red Army hockey team formed a joint venture that redefined what was possible in the new Russia. Eccentric marketing whiz, Steve Warshaw, is sent to Moscow and tasked to transform the team into the greatest show in Russia, attracting some of the biggest names in Hollywood and advertising along the way. He takes the viewer on a bizarre journey highlighting a pivotal moment in U.S.-Russian relations during a lawless era when oligarchs made their fortunes and multiple murders went unsolved.
Follows the Edmonton Oilers through the 1986-87 NHL Hockey season, as they battle towards their third Stanley Cup.
This incisive, urgent documentary examines the history of anti-Black racism in hockey, from the segregated leagues of the 19th century to today’s NHL, where Black athletes continue to struggle against bigotry.
Dominik Hašek, Olympic gold medalist and two-time Stanley Cup-winning goaltender, looks back on his life growing up in Pardubice, Czechoslovakia. His longest-tenured NHL team, the Buffalo Sabres, walk Hašek through his past to see how his love of hockey and the political and cultural influences of growing up in Pardubice molded him into one of the greatest goalies the sport has ever seen.
La Coupe Stanley à Montréal en 1993
The story of the five Russian hockey stars who helped the Detroit Red Wings win back-to-back Stanley Cup championships and created one of the most memorable chapters in Motor City sports history.
On a Friday evening in Lake Placid, New York, a plucky band of American collegians stunned the vaunted Soviet national team, 4-3 in the medal round of the 1980 Winter Olympic hockey competition. Americans couldn't help but believe in miracles that night, and when the members of Team USA won the gold medal two days later, they became a team for the ages. This film explores the "Miracle on Ice" through the Soviet lens. While focused on the game itself, the journey of the stunned Soviet team didn't begin -- or end -- in Lake Placid.
In perhaps the most emotional release of the year, Captain Canada aka Sidney Crosby lets us know that Four Nations are... what? Watch this 1hr long masterpiece, created by FierySharky (Twitter), in order to find out.
Five Rings Films presents the inspiring story of how Czech Republic won gold at the first Olympics to feature professionals from the NHL.