If J.R.R. Tolkien played hockey: left wing, rated 77

J.R.R. Tolkien as a hockey player: scouting report

J.R.R. Tolkien would play left wing, and he would bring more toughness than anyone expects from an Oxford professor. As a schoolboy at King Edward's School in Birmingham he was a keen rugby player, and a forward who learned the game in a scrum is not afraid of the corners. Physical play is the best thing on his card. He would win battles along the boards, hold position in front of the net and make defensemen earn every inch.

His defense is nearly as strong, and it fits the man who built Middle earth. Tolkien spent years constructing whole languages, histories and maps before The Hobbit appeared in 1937 and The Lord of the Rings followed, and that kind of patient, structured thinking is what a winger needs in his own zone. He knows where every player should be, he covers the point without being told and he never leaves a gap. Like the wizard who held the bridge in his own story, he guards his lane. His passing is the best of his remaining skills, so he moves the puck with purpose once he has it.

Skating is the clear weak spot. He is not built for end to end rushes, so put him on a checking line that starts in the offensive zone. Defenseman is a good second spot and center a usable third. He was a central member of the Inklings, the Oxford circle that included C.S. Lewis, and he would fit on a close knit line the same way. Pair him with a fast center and a shooting right winger, and let him do the hard work.

Plays like A rugged two way winger who holds his ground at the bridge

Put J.R.R. Tolkien in your lineup

8 rolls, a starting six and a bench, 82 games. Can you go 82-0? Free, no account.