Jim Genac, who is writing a book on Canadian and Russian hockey, says that Percival “He was a prophet. And at home, he was a crackpot who didn’t know what he was talking about.”
That is, until 1972.
After Canada’s disastrous start to the Summit series, Team Canada captain Phil Esposito urged booing fans to “face the facts”. saying that the Soviets were a “good team.”
In other words, Percival was right. And the approach to hockey that the Soviets had read about in Percival’s book had now returned to better help Canadians.
Which brings us to Percival’s role in what may be the most dramatic moment in Canadian sports history: Paul Henderson’s goal in the last minute of the final match.
If you remember, it is THE goal.
Trailing in the series, Team Canada traveled to Moscow for the final four games. When they lost the first of those games, the situation was desperate. They would have to win the last three to take the series. Henderson remembers telling his wife, “If we don’t win the last three games, we’ll be known as the biggest losers in Canadian hockey history.”
Canadian hockey fans will never forget what Henderson did next. First, he scored the game-winner in Game 6. Then, in a goal that is still amazing to watch, he beat four defenders to score the game-winner in Game 7.
By now, Canadians were glued to the series. In schools across the country, lessons were suspended and televisions were installed in classrooms to watch the eighth and final match.
It all came down to the final minutes. The score was tied 5-5. If this game ended in a draw, the Russians would claim victory on the basis of a greater number of goals scored. But with 34 seconds remaining, Paul Henderson scored the most celebrated goal in Canadian hockey history.
