LCS Hockey - Crashing the Net

Gold-Medal Winning Story
by Michael Dell, Editor-in-Chief

The fine people from HarperCollins Publishing wrote to me the other day regarding a new book about the U.S. Women's Ice Hockey Team. The book, entitled "Crashing the Net", is written by Mary Turco and chronicles the club's remarkable journey to Olympic Gold in Nagano.

Book Cover

Always wanting to do my patriotic duty, I agreed to run an excerpt from the book and help spread the good word. It's the least I could do for my country and those inspirational women that did us all proud. Plus, you know, I figured it wouldn't hurt to suck up to a publishing company. I mean, I am trying to write a book. And really, would it bust HarperCollins' ass to give it a read? Seriously, would it kill 'em to help a brother out? We'll just have to wait and see.

In the meantime, check out these reviews and comments about "Crashing the Net":

"These heroes embodied the Olympic Spirit more than any athletes I've ever seen. In this age of spoiled and pampered athletes, this book is a warm reminder of what sports and teamwork are truly all about."
-- Jim Nantz, CBS Sports

"The story of a world-class team with a pioneering spirit, a team that challenged the conventions of a sport dominated by men, a team that represents our hope for the future."
-- Billie Jean King

"It's about women. It's about hockey. It's about women playing hockey. Those are pretty much all my favorite things in life that don't come in a bottle."
-- Michael Dell, LCS Hockey Editor-in-Chief

"This book brought back a lot of memories for me--Mary Turco successfully captures all the aspects of playing and training for an Olympic team. A great read for young athletes."
-- Mike Eruzione, Captain, 1980 U.S. Men's Olympic Ice Hockey Team

"An exciting literary account of what went on during a significant time with a special group of athletes."
-- Ben Smith, Coach, 1998 U.S. Women's Olympic Ice Hockey Team

"My teammates and I are excited that our story will be told and that this great moment for women will be recorded. Now future women athletes will know what happened, not so much on a game-by-game basis, but in the personal lives of the women on our team."
-- Cammi Granato, Captain

"The 1998 U.S. Women's Olympic Ice Hockey Team is the best team I've ever played on. We have dedicated our lives to being pioneers and ambassadors for our sport. Never again will you read about a team like this one."
-- Karyn Bye, Assistant Captain

If you'd like to read more about "Crashing the Net", visit this here page at the HarperCollins website.

Now, without further delay, an excerpt from "Crashing the Net" by Mary Turco.

The Darlings of Nagano
"Red-White-and-Beautiful"
Nagano, Japan - February 17, 1998

Karyn Bye grabbed Cammi Granato's arm and pointed down the runway to the open gate leading to the rink where their game had ended ten minutes earlier. Beyond the gate, Nagano's Big Hat Arena sparkled with the flashes of what seemed to be thousands of cameras. Cammi's dark eyes reflected the sparkling lights as Karyn asked, "Are you ready for this?"

Cammi smiled broadly and responded, "Are you kidding, K.L.? I've dreamed of this ceremony a thousand times and, honest to God, I don't think I can wait another second for it to begin." As she spoke, Amie Hilles, the team's leader, signaled to her and Karyn that the medal ceremony was about to start and that they should lead their teammates back onto the ice. Karyn and Cammi turned to the women standing behind them in the hallway and passed the happy word. Then, taking a very deep breath, Karyn Lynn Bye and Catherine Michelle Granato led eighteen excited teammates down the runway, through the gate, and into the sparkle.

The locker room Karyn and Cammi emerged from had been absolute pandemonium just five minutes earlier. After the victory, Olympic officials had interrupted the players while they were rejoicing on the ice and asked them to return to their locker room so they could arrange for the medal ceremony to take place. The excited players pranced down the hallway to their locker room hugging everyone in their path including the members of the U.S. men's hockey team, who were waiting to congratulate them. Pat LaFontaine, Mike Richter, and Ron Wilson gave high-fives and handshakes, while Bryan Berard gave Sara DeCosta a hug. Two years earlier Bryan and Sara had played against each other in high school in Rhode Island. Now both were Olympians and one had won a gold medal.

Moments later, when they were safely behind the locker-room walls and free from the scrutiny of the media, the American women went wild. Some hugged teammates and kissed their favorite staff person. Others hooted and hollered while stripping off their shoulder pads and throwing them in the equipment bags. They jumped around on their skate blades shaking hands, slapping backs, and spilling champagne. The mayhem quieted down slightly while they toasted their remarkable accomplishment.

When the toast was over, many players grabbed cameras and started taking pictures. Others pulled out cell phones hidden in their duffel bags and called loved ones in the United States. A few, like Karyn, retired to their stalls to try to regain their composure.

After the euphoria of beating Team Canada, Karyn needed a breather. Although she was the most high-spirited woman on the team, she felt exhausted. The game had been draining both physically and emotionally.

Since the start of the day, Karyn had concentrated on placing herself physically and emotionally "in the moment," which, as the team's sports psychology consultant, Peter Haberl, had taught her, meant being totally present in time and in space, totally focused on reaching her goal. Haberl believed that being in the moment meant practicing "focused fun." He told her that, in order to play her best, she had to think of herself as a child immersed in an activity, completely oblivious to everything around her. Peter said, "Stop evaluating yourself and just skate. Very few people have the chance to be an Olympian. Play well and enjoy it."

Karyn remembered that Haberl had told her about the great Olympic swimmer Sumner Summers, who, after winning a gold medal, said that she had just wanted her race to be over; it was too much pressure and too little fun. Haberl and Coach Ben Smith wanted the players to avoid this mind-set, for they believed that athletes perform at their highest level when they are having fun.

And Karyn loved to have fun. She had started playing hockey at age seven when her dad, Chuck, suggested that, as a practical joke, she substitute for her sick older brother Chris at a youth hockey practice. Karyn and her father succeeded in fooling the coaches and players into thinking Karyn was Chris for a very short time, but the impact of that experience was lasting. Karyn loved practicing the game and wanted to play. A naturally "wired" child bursting with energy, Karyn became a regular player. At every game she skated hard, led cheers from the bench, pulled pranks (like her dad), and teased her coaches. When she was nine years old she watched the 1980 U.S. men's team win a gold medal in Lake Placid and decided Bill Baker was her hero. I can do that, she thought. She adopted Baker's number, 6. When she turned ten her aunt gave her a plaque that read GIRLS CAN DO ANYTHING. Karyn made the motto her creed and a strong work ethic her method. At twelve she decided that she too would be an Olympian. She wrote a letter to the U.S. Olympic Committee petitioning for a women's ice hockey team. When the committee sent back a form letter thanking her for her interest in field hockey, she was irritated but undaunted. In her juvenile mind she believed that someday it would happen.

Inspired by an Olympic dream and fortified with french toast from her mom, Dotty, Karyn grew fast and strong playing hockey with her brother and nineteen other boys during four years of high school. To minimize negative reactions from opponents, she adopted the nickname "K.L." Most of the guys she played with and against respected her ability. Those who didn't had to deal with her protective teammates. Karyn also excelled at tennis and softball in high school, but the more she played hockey, the more it became her favorite.

When the time came to go to college, Karyn picked the University of New Hampshire, a powerhouse in women's ice hockey. She scored one hundred goals in eighty-seven games at UNH, became an Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference All-Star, and earned a place on five U.S. national teams. By 1997, Karyn was considered one of the finest players in the world. She set her sites on making the Olympic team and happily started acting as the national team's archivist. On a daily basis she typed journal entries into her computer and saved precious team memorabilia. The truth was that Karyn had extraordinary energy, and all of it was positive.