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1975–76 WHA Season
The 1975–76 WHA season was the fourth season of the World Hockey Association. After the Baltimore Blades and Chicago Cougars folded, the league stayed at 14 teams by adding the Cincinnati Stingers and Denver Spurs. In addition, the Vancouver Blazers franchise moved to Calgary and became the Cowboys. Midway through the season, the Spurs moved to Ottawa and became the Civics, though the team folded shortly thereafter when the sale of the franchise fell through. The Minnesota Fighting Saints became the second team to fold mid-season when the franchise was not financially successful, despite having a winning record at the time. Theoretically, fourteen teams would play 80 games each, but only twelve teams finished the season, with cancelled games involving the Civics or Saints being rescheduled on the fly, and four of five Canadian Division teams played 81 games, as a result. Regular season Final standings +team started season in Western Division when playing in Denver; transferre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
World Hockey Association
The World Hockey Association (french: Association mondiale de hockey) was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (NHL) since the collapse of the Western Hockey League in 1926. Although the WHA was not the first league since that time to attempt to challenge the NHL's supremacy, it was by far the most successful in the modern era. The WHA tried to capitalize on the lack of hockey teams in a number of major American cities and mid-level Canadian cities, and also hoped to attract the best players by paying more than NHL owners would. The WHA successfully challenged the NHL's reserve clause, which had bound players to their NHL teams even without a valid contract, allowing players in both leagues greater freedom of movement. Sixty-seven players jumped from the NHL to the WHA in the first year, led by star forward Bobby Hull, whose ten-year, $2.75 million contr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Cleveland Crusaders
The Cleveland Crusaders were a professional ice hockey team from Cleveland. They played in the World Hockey Association from 1972 to 1976. Their home ice was the Cleveland Arena from 1972 to 1974, and the Richfield Coliseum from 1974 to 1976. The team was owned by Nick Mileti, who had been the founder of the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, and also owned Major League Baseball's Cleveland Indians. He had also owned the nine-time American Hockey League champion Cleveland Barons, but moved them to Jacksonville, Florida to make room for the Crusaders. The first coach for the Crusaders was Bill Needham, a mainstay of the Barons. Needham coached the Crusaders to winning records in the first two seasons, but failed to advance past the second playoff round. In the 1974–75 season, John Hanna took over as coach, to be replaced mid-season by Jack Vivian. Cleveland finished second in the east division despite a losing record, but fell in the first round of the playoffs. Johnny Wilson led ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Serge Bernier
Serge Joseph Bernier (born April 29, 1947) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey Winger (ice hockey), right winger who played seven seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Philadelphia Flyers, Los Angeles Kings and Quebec Nordiques and six seasons in the World Hockey Association (WHA) for Quebec, where he scored a majority of his 308 combined goals (NHL and WHA), between 1968 and 1981. His 230 goals in the WHA were third-most for the Nordiques during their time in the league behind Real Cloutier and Marc Tardif. He was the first draft pick in Philadelphia Flyers history. He was traded along with Bill Lesuk and Jim Johnson (ice hockey, born 1942), Jim Johnson from the 1971–72 Philadelphia Flyers season, Flyers to the 1971–72 Los Angeles Kings season, Kings for Ross Lonsberry, Bill Flett, Jean Potvin and Eddie Joyal on January 28, 1972. In 2010, Bernier was part of the initial group of players elected to the World Hockey Association Hall of Fame. Car ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Réjean Houle
Réjean Houle (born October 25, 1949) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played the majority of his career with the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL), also serving in a controversial stint as general manager for the Canadiens. Playing career Drafted as the first pick overall in the 1969 NHL Amateur Draft by the Montreal Canadiens, Houle played for the Habs from 1970 to 1973 and from 1976 to 1983. He won five Stanley Cup championships with the Canadiens. In between his NHL stints, he played for the Quebec Nordiques of the World Hockey Association (WHA). Management career After retiring as a player, Houle became an executive with Molson, one of Canada's leading breweries and the then-owner of the Montreal Canadiens organization. A disastrous start to the 1995–96 season resulted in then-general manager Serge Savard's termination, and the team saw Houle, with his business background and history with the team, as the most viable repla ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Anders Hedberg
Anders Hedberg (born 25 February 1951) is a Swedish former professional ice hockey player who was one of the first European-born players to make an impact in North America. Along with countryman Ulf Nilsson, Hedberg signed a contract to play for the Winnipeg Jets in the World Hockey Association (WHA) in 1974, after having represented both Modo Hockey and Djurgårdens IF in his native Sweden. Hedberg subsequently played during seven seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Rangers. He was twice voted best junior in Sweden and as such the only one (1969 and 1970) and is a graduate from the Stockholm School of Physical Education (GIH). Playing career Hedberg was an instant sensation in the WHA, recording 100 points in 65 games in his first season, and playing alongside established superstar Bobby Hull. He scored at least 50 goals and 100 points in his other three WHA seasons, peaking with 70 goals and 61 assists in 1976-77 despite only playing 68 games that year. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chris Bordeleau
Christian Gerrard "Chris" Bordeleau (born September 23, 1947) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward. He played in the National Hockey League between 1969 and 1972, and the World Hockey Association between 1972 and 1979. Playing career Bordeleau started his National Hockey League career with the Montreal Canadiens in 1969. He also played for the Chicago Black Hawks and St. Louis Blues. He left the NHL after the 1972 season and would also play in the World Hockey Association for the Winnipeg Jets and Quebec Nordiques. He won the Stanley Cup in 1969 with the Montreal Canadiens. Christian's brothers Jean-Pierre and Paulin Bordeleau were also professional hockey players. Honours In 1977, Christian was a member of the World Hockey Association's Avco Cup Champions the Quebec Nordiques. In 2012, he was inducted into the World Hockey Association Hall of Fame The World Hockey Association Hall of Fame is an independent organization dedicated to honoring the World Hockey A ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Robbie Ftorek
Robert Brian Ftorek (born January 2, 1952) is an American professional ice hockey coach and former player. He was enshrined as member of the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 1991. Playing career Ftorek played in the 1962, 1963 and 1964 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournaments with his Boston youth team. He later played on the 1972 United States Olympic Hockey team that surprisingly won the silver medal at the 1972 Winter Olympics. He also played for Team USA at the 1972 "Pool B" Ice Hockey World Championship where he was selected to the tournament all-star team. Originally drafted by the New England Whalers of the World Hockey Association (WHA) in 1972, Ftorek instead signed with the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL). However, the Red Wings regarded him as too small to make it as a professional and he only appeared in a handful of NHL games. Having spent most of his time in the minors with the Virginia Wings of the American Hockey League (AHL), Fto ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ulf Nilsson (ice Hockey)
Ulf Gösta Nilsson (born 11 May 1950) is a Swedish former professional ice hockey player who played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) for the Winnipeg Jets and in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Rangers. Career in North America Part of the first major wave of Europeans to star in North American hockey, he was a major star in the World Hockey Association from 1974 to 1978. He scored at least 114 points in each of his four seasons in the upstart league, finishing third or fourth among overall scorers every time. He led the WHA with 85 assists in 1976–77, and tied Marc Tardif for the lead the next season with 89. Along with countryman Anders Hedberg and established superstar Bobby Hull, he played a starring role as the Jets won Avco Cup titles in 1976 and 1978. In the 1976 playoffs, he scored 26 points in just 13 games and was named WHA Playoff MVP. In the summer of 1978, Nilsson and Hedberg signed with the National Hockey League's New York Rangers for $ ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Réal Cloutier
Réal Cloutier (born July 30, 1956) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Cloutier spent five prolific seasons as a winger in the World Hockey Association (WHA) with the Quebec Nordiques. After the WHA folded, he played an additional five seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL), still at a point-a-game scoring pace, with the Quebec Nordiques and the Buffalo Sabres. Playing career As a youth, Cloutier played in four consecutive Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournaments from 1966 to 1969, with a minor ice hockey team from Orsainville, Quebec City. Touted as one of the most promising prospects in the history of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, Cloutier played junior hockey for the Quebec Remparts, leading his team to back to back Memorial Cup finals in 1973 and 1974. His final season with the Remparts saw him score 216 points to lead the team in scoring. In 1974, the National Hockey League (NHL) made a brief exception to allow teenagers to play, but ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Bobby Hull
Robert Marvin Hull OC (born January 3, 1939) is a Canadian former ice hockey player who is regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. His blonde hair, skating speed, end-to-end rushes, and ability to shoot the puck at very high velocity all earned him the name "The Golden Jet". His talents were such that one or two opposing players were often assigned just to shadow him. In his 23 years in the National Hockey League (NHL) and World Hockey Association (WHA), Hull played for the Chicago Black Hawks, Winnipeg Jets, and Hartford Whalers. He won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player twice and the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL's leading point scorer three times, while helping the Black Hawks win the Stanley Cup in 1961. He also led the WHA's Winnipeg Jets to Avco Cup championships in 1976 and 1978. He led the NHL in goals seven times, the second most of any player in history, and led the WHA in goals one additional time while being the WHA's most valuable ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Minnesota Fighting Saints
The Minnesota Fighting Saints was the name of two professional ice hockey teams based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, that played in the World Hockey Association. The first team was one of the WHA's original twelve franchises, playing from 1972 to 1976. The second team was relocated from Cleveland, Ohio, and played for part of the 1976–77 season. Neither edition of the franchise completed its final season of play. Original team Founded in November 1971, the first Fighting Saints team played four seasons beginning in 1972–73 under the ownership of nine local businessmen. (St. Paul attorney Wayne Belisle purchased the team late in the 1973–74 season. Belisle was the front man for a group of owners that included Jock Irvine.) The Saints' first game, a 4–3 loss to the Winnipeg Jets, was played October 13, 1972, at the St. Paul Auditorium. The team moved to the new St. Paul Civic Center, which opened in January 1973. The first game in the new arena was on January 1, 1973, a 4–4 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
San Diego Mariners
The San Diego Mariners were an ice hockey team based in San Diego that played in the World Hockey Association from 1974 to 1977 at the San Diego Sports Arena. Previous to being in San Diego, the team was known as the New York Raiders, New York Golden Blades, and Jersey Knights. After folding in 1977, San Diego Mariners' name was adopted by an unrelated franchise in the low-level, minor professional Pacific Hockey League (PHL). Notable alumni Star players for the Mariners included defenseman Harry Howell, center Andre Lacroix, and goaltender Ernie Wakely. The Mariners were coached by Howell (as player-coach) during their first season and Ron Ingram the succeeding two seasons, qualifying for the WHA playoffs each year. Demise During the Mariners' final WHA season, the team was owned by San Diego Padres and McDonald's owner Ray Kroc. The team never drew well, and when they only managed to attract 5,000 fans per game, Kroc sold the team to a group who planned to move it to Mel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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