DREAMER: MY LIFE ON THE EDGE is the memoir of current NHL player Nazem Kadri of the Calgary Flames.

I’m always a bit iffy on picking up books written by an athlete who is still actively playing their sport, however Nazem had played for my favorite team, the Toronto Maple Leafs, during a time where there had been a fair bit of controversy surrounding behind-the-scenes antics. He was also there during the dying days of the Phaneuf and Kessel era and the formative years of what would become the current “Core Four” era. It was also a quick read, so I thought, what have I got to lose?

Unfortunately, many of the juicier parts of the book quickly became headline news in the rabid Toronto sports market weeks before the memoir had even hit store shelves. Kadri was there during what ultimately led to the beginning of the end of Mike Babcock’s time behind the Leafs’ bench with Babcock’s mishandling of star player Mitch Marner’s formative years. Marner turned out OK of course, but Babcock’s reputation suffered and a chance at redemption years later in Columbus failed miserably.

Kadri touches on how hard he had to work to gain acceptance and be given a shot at the NHL level. Not only did he face resistance on the ice, but also from the Leafs’ front office with management consistently questioning everything from his play, his work ethic, as well as his maturity. It’s frustrating to read now given how much he’s excelled outside of Toronto (he won a Stanley Cup in 2022), but those qualities are not always easy to see when every action and every word spoken in a market like Toronto is placed under a microscope.

One of the more unfortunate aspects of the book deals with the racism he faced during his career, most notably during a playoff series against the St. Louis Blues in 2022. During the series, he had been approached by the police and presented with a folder filled with some of the most vulgar and hateful online comments you could imagine. Police protection was placed outside his home in Colorado and officers stood guard by his hotel room while he was on the road. I’d like to think that perhaps someday actions like this will be a thing of the past, but we’ve been in a state of social regression that feels like it’s only going to get worse.

I’m not sure how often I’ll recommend this book to be honest. Player memoirs are never really my go-to when it comes to recommending a book about hockey, but if you’re a Leafs fan, it gives a lot of insight into just how much the franchise turned itself around and how much the developmental system has changed to make it easier for rookies to excel in the NHL.