NHL legend Grant "Coco" Fuhr is the star of a new movie

By Darren Paltrowitz

Modified Aug 31, 2018 14:00 GMT

Featuring Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Martin Brodeur, Brett Hull, Chris Pronger and many more of the NHL’s royalty, Making Coco: The Grant Fuhr Story is a forthcoming documentary about legendary NHL goalie Grant "Coco" Fuhr. Announced as the closing Gala film at the Calgary International Film Festival, Making Coco is the product of a collaboration between Upstream Flix, filmmaker Don Metz, award-winning producer Adam Scorgie (Ice Guardians, The Culture High, Inmate #1: The Rise Of Danny Trejo), Oilers Entertainment Group VP Don Metz, and co-producer Shane Fennessey.

Barely 19 years old, Grant "Coco" Fuhr became starting goalie for the most exciting team in NHL history, the Edmonton Oilers. In his mid-30’s, he played 76 consecutive and 79 total games in an 82-game season, which set 2 league records. He would follow that ironman performance by playing 73 NHL games the following season on a completely rebuilt knee. Furthermore, Fuhr set a number of firsts for black hockey players in the NHL, including being the first to win a Stanley Cup and the first inducted into the Hockey Hall Of Fame.

In the words of Wayne Gretzky -- who many view as the greatest NHL player of all time -- Fuhr himself is "the best goaltender in the history of the NHL.” His acrobatic style and cat-like reflexes helped bring the Oiler to 5 Stanley Cup championships and 2 Canada Cup victories. But what many people may not recall about Fuhr was how much adversity he faced during his playing days, including a minor league demotion, contract negotiation issues, and a suspension related to substance use.

A late 2018 release for Making Coco: The Grant Fuhr Story has been announced by Upstream Flix. To stay up to date on the film, please visit www.upstreamflix.com.