The Night They Stole the Stanley Cup. (Screech Owls). Roy MacGregor. Toronto, ON: Tundra Books, 1995/2013. 155 pp., pbk., $9.99. ISBN 978-1-77049-416-5. Grades 4-7 / Ages 9-12. Review by Tanya Boudreau. *** /4

excerpt:

"You gotta come and see this!"

Travis had rarely seen Nish so excited. And certainly never so early in the morning. Travis had just finished showering and was getting dressed to go down for breakfast. It has been a quiet night; the team was tired from the excitement of the first game, if not the actual playing of the game, and everyone had gone to bed early.

Nish, of course, had tried to turn on the late night sex movies, but all the television screen would say was: "ADULT MOVIES HAVE BEEN BLOCKED BY REQUEST. PLEASE CALL THE FRONT DESK FOR ACCESS." He had tried his old trick of pulling off the cable wires and re-wiring the remote box, but again it hadn't worked. Finally he had called the front desk and in a low voice pretended he was Muck giving the hotel permission for the kids to watch sex movies. That hadn't worked either.

Now here he was, flushed and on fire about something.

"You gotta come see, Trav!"

Originally published in 1995, The Night They Stole the Stanley Cup, the second book in the "Screech Owl" series, has been re-released with a new attractive cover featuring the team logo. Travis Lindsay, the Screech Owls team captain, should be excited because they are in Toronto competing in the Little Stanley Cup tournament. They are playing teams from Ontario, Quebec, New York and Michigan. There's been some rebuilding with the team this season, but Travis feels the Screech Owls will benefit with Jenny Staples and Jeremy Weathers on the team. Travis is made to feel like a failure though when he discovers some of his teammates and best friends are stealing merchandise from the hotel gift shop and street vendors. When he confronts them, they laugh and ridicule him. Travis tries to be a part of the team, both on and off the ice (He joins them in a race down the CN Tower stairs), but he knows he has to "right a wrong" to make himself and his coach feel proud again. He gets his chance when he overhears two men plotting to steal the real Stanley Cup from the Hockey Hall of Fame. He recruits Nish and Andy (after they returned their stolen goods) to capture the thieves. The action inside the Hockey Hall of Fame is just as suspenseful as the action that takes place on the ice during the tournament. The author, a former hockey journalist and player, includes expressive dialogue and adjectives when describing the characters' behavior in these scenes. I was a little disappointed when three members on the team got caught and punished for shoplifting after doing it once, while another boy, who stole more often, got away with it. Hockey fans, both male and female, will likely enjoy this series about mixed gender hockey teams.

Recommended.

Tanya Boudreau is a librarian at the Cold Lake Public Library in Cold Lake, AB.

To comment on this title or this review, send mail to cm@umanitoba.ca.

Copyright © the Manitoba Library Association. Reproduction for personal use is permitted only if this copyright notice is maintained. Any other reproduction is prohibited without permission.

Published by The Manitoba Library Association ISSN 1201-9364

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