There aren't too many books that are specifically about the New Jersey Devils.  Sure, there are books that mention the Devils; have sections about the Devils; and so forth.  Yet, there isn't any definitive written account of our favorite hockey team that all fans need to go out to the store or Amazon and purchase.  Sure, there's Brodeur: Beyond the Crease; but that's really all about Martin Brodeur more than the New Jersey Devils organization.  There are a few other tomes that are more or less summaries of some seasons and some books targeted for younger readers as opposed to definitive and detailed accounts.  Therefore, Tales from the New Jersey Devils Locker Room by Glenn "Chico" Resch and Mike Kerwick hits on a kind of a niche. 

I will be frank and say that this is not a definitive tell-all of the Devils' history.  After all, Glenn Resch, the color commentator for the Devils on MSG broadcasts for the last 15 years or so, is involved in this book.  I know you're not supposed to judge a book by its cover; however, the moment I saw that Chico had a hand in this book, I figured was not going to get The Game: Devils Edition or anything like that.   That's not a criticism of the book, mind you. It's just that if you're looking for a behind-the-scenes, no-thoughts-barred, take-no-prisoners book about the Devils, this isn't that book.

Fortunately, the cover immediately tells you what is this book supposed to do. The tagline reads "A Collection of the Greatest Devils Stories Ever Told."  Chico provides the stories, and Mike Kerwick of the Bergen Record recorded and edited them in an organized fashion. If any of that interests you, then you won't be disappointed because that's exactly what you'll get.

My review of Tales from the New Jersey Devils Locker Room continues on after the jump.   In the interest of full disclosure, I would like to thank the fine people at Skyhorse Publishing for making me aware of the book's release and sending me a review copy for free.   Of course, they have had no say in this review - they have not even seen this review prior to publishing it on this very site.

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