Hockey's Royal Family

Who is hockey's royal family? There are many great hockey players to consider. Hockey families that need consideration include: Gordie Howe and his sons Mark Howe and Marty Howe; Montreal Canadiens' legends Maurice "Rocket" Richard and his brother Henri Richard; Chicago Black Hawks stars Bobby Hull and his brother Dennis, and Bobby's son Brett Hull; Frank Mahovlich and his brother Peter Mahovlich also warrant consideration. Modern era families such as Eric Staal and his brothers Marc, Jordan and Jared must receive some consideration. There are many others including the Patricks, the Sutters who could all be added to the list of contenders for the title of hockey's royal family. When one takes the time to consider the number of families who have sent more than one member to the NHL, the impact of these brothers, or fathers and sons, has been significant upon the history of this great game. But there is one family whose contributions to the great game of ice hockey stands above even this list of great hockey families. However, there can only be one Royal Family of Hockey, the Conachers. First of all, Lionel, Charlie and Roy are the only three brothers to be inducted as Honoured Members in the Hockey Hall of Fame. The list of scoring titles, all-star game appearances, Stanley Cup and league championships, not to mention other unique hockey achievements are well-documented in this hockey history book. Toronto Maple Leaf fans will be interested to know that Charlie Conacher scored game-winning goals in the first Stanley Cup Championship won by the Maple Leafs and his nephew Brian Conacher scored game-winning goals in the last Stanley Cup to be won by a Toronto hockey team. All three brothers were multi-sport stars who are honoured members of several sports halls of fame. Lionel Conacher's multi-sport achievements were recognized in 1950 when was named Canada's Athlete of the First Half Century. The Conachers were not just goal scorers, Lionel and his nephew Murray Henderson were defensemen; Roy and his nephew Pete were smooth-skating forwards who finessed their way to the net; Charlie was a power forward who led the league in scoring primarily because of his booming shot; and Brian was primarily a defensive-minded forward with a knack for scoring key goals. As the pages of this book illustrate, the exploits of Lionel, Charlie, Roy and Bert as well as their sons Pete and Brian and their nephew Murray Henderson, there never has been a family who dominated the history of this great game like the Conachers! Paul White is a long time hockey historian and sports biographer. His books and articles have included stories about many of the great hockey players of the past and present. He has written stories about Willie O'Ree the first African American to play in the NHL, Rocket Richard, Henri Richard, Alex Delvecchio, Sid Abel, Teeder Kennedy, Syl Apps, Max Bentley, Jean Beliveau, Milt Schmidt, Harry Lumley, Paul Henderson the scoring star of the 1972 Canada-Russia Super Series and many other hockey legends. Although he is a noted hockey historian Paul White has also written about hockey players who are still currently skating in the NHL including Pittsburgh Penguins super star Sidney Crosby, Brad Richards, Boston Bruins super pest, Brad Marchand and many more. Paul's hockey book, Shooting for the Moon: the Bill Beagan Story which detailed the career of Bill Beagan who not only was an on-ice official in the NHL, but served as the commissioner of four different hockey leagues. White was honored when Bobby Orr, perhaps the greatest hockey player of all time contributed the foreword to this book!