Maven's Memories -- The Unexpected Islanders Video Benefactor

Glenn "Chico" Resch, the Islanders 1980 Cup-winner and fan favorite, could not believe his ears.

The Maven told him that there was a chap down South in Boca Raton, Florida who was giving away extraordinarily valuable videos of the 1970's Islanders.

"Do you mean, 'giving away' as in free?" Resch asked me, "or is this another of your jokes?"

I really couldn't blame Chico for his skepticism because when I first heard of Len Gould, I reasonably presumed that he was slightly out of his mind.

After all, what sane person would go out of his way -- and I do mean OUT OF HIS WAY -- to give away what memorabilia experts say is millions of dollars’ worth of valuable footage of the most unexpected interviews, features, and rare game tape.

"I do it because it gives me a certain degree of satisfaction knowing that I'm helping these players find historic material that’s meaningful to them and their families. It makes memories come to life," Gould, 55, explained. "I've been doing this for the past 26 years and have no intention of stopping. It's too much fun."

Exhibit A would be legendary Islander Bob Nystrom. Connected with Ny, Gould discovered that Bob lacked some essential items which Len could provide. (Gould, by the way, is super polite and only rarely mentions our heroes by their first names.)

"I met Mister Nystrom a few times at a Starbucks and was surprised he didn't even have a copy of his Cup-winning OT goal," Gould recalled. "I fixed that and since made sure that he now has hundreds of hours of games and assorted clips.

"When that was complete, I also helped him digitize a bunch of photos from all sorts of old media formats.”

Said Bobby Ny to Len, “Len, first of all it was a real pleasure meeting you and needless to say I'm very appreciative of the fantastic gifts you gave me. I only looked at a few fights and I have to say that it is incredible to look back and see videos that I didn’t think existed.”

Nystrom then sent Len along to Mister (Bryan) Trottier.

Once Trots realized that Len was a form of memorabilia Santa Claus, he gave Gould a long list of very specific games and moments. Admittedly this was a difficult challenge but, typically, it was attacked with relish.

Gould: "I managed to locate about 90% of his ask and assembled it for him on a portable drive. I even found footage of his rookie year when he was minus a moustache and came up with footage of him playing the guitar. Perhaps the best was that these digital memories spanned his entire career."

In case this still sounds perfectly un-real, I asked -- just for the heck of it -- how much Gould charges.

"It's all free," he reiterated. "I have never asked for a penny. The pleasure is in seeing the reactions and hearing from these heroes. Some get very emotional and, for me, it's enough of a reward to give these as a gift."

One of Len's recipients is former Islanders Hall of Fame broadcaster Jiggs McDonald who stumbled on some 16mm film footage during a storage locker clean-out.

"Before coming to Long Island, Jiggs did Atlanta Flames telecasts," Gould remembered. "One of his projects was a 16mm reel called, 'Fire And Ice.' which is currently out for transfer as well. I’m proud to do this for him as well."

This is a long career for Len as a memorabilia benefactor and -- very generously -- he credits Canadian research legend Paul Pastkou with being a mentor. Gould also is assisted and encouraged by his lovely wife Laurleigh.

"I've helped more than a hundred former players and their families now," Gould allowed, "and it's always been a pleasure to speak with them, ask questions and just ‘talk hockey.’ Some of my very favorite coffees have been shared with Mr. Nystrom and Mr. Trottier, while Mr. Resch surprised me with a boatload of his signed memorabilia.

"Like virtually all the players, Chico has been great. He just found a 16 mm reel of a vintage Canadiens vs Rangers game which I'm working on now. Overall, I've transferred over 200 game tapes and features for him."

I'm hereby suggesting to Len that the next time he sends a bunch of valuable videos to Resch, he deadpanned, asks for a few bucks.

He emphatically shakes his head, no-no-no.

"As always no one has paid a dollar for any of this. Not one."

The Maven's reaction:

GO FIGURE!