Diane Shaw, the author, was a dedicated hockey mom when her son, Justin, was growing up all the way through college. She had over 15 years of knowing the game and understanding it from a parent’s point of view. Her true joy was seeing it through a child’s eyes….namely, Justin’s. Diane wrote the book for several reasons. First, it was a good story with moral values that she wanted to share with other hockey coaches, parents and players. Secondly, Diane was an ESL instructor for 20 years where she met many people of all ages from many cultures. Many of them enjoyed the sport of hockey, especially those from Russia, Finland, and Czech Republic. Finally, Diane’s main reason for writing the book was for instructional purposes.  She found very few books on the sport, and she tutored young middle school boys who needed vocabulary development. Hence, the underlined words throughout the text.
Many young boys hate to read, and Diane wanted to give them a book they could experience themselves, while increasing their vocabulary level. She was able to incorporate ‘idioms’ in order to develop comprehension skills, as well. Currently, Diane lives in Howell, MI, and is looking forward to watching her two very young grandsons enjoy the game in the future.