The Indianapolis Capitals/Cincinnati Wings were a professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

team that operated for one season in the

Central Professional Hockey League The Central Professional Hockey League was a minor professional ice hockey league that operated in the United States from 1963 to 1984. Named the Central Hockey League for the 1968–69 season and forward, it was owned and operated by the Natio ...

(CPHL). Originally named the

Indianapolis Capitals The Indianapolis Capitals were an American Hockey League professional ice hockey team based in Indianapolis, Indiana, from 1939 to 1952. The Capitals were a farm team for the Detroit Red Wings. Indianapolis won the Calder Cup in 1942 and 1950. T ...

, the team started the 1963-64 season playing out of the

Fairgrounds Coliseum The Indiana Farmers Coliseum (originally Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum and formerly Pepsi Coliseum and Fairgrounds Coliseum) is a 6,500-seat indoor multi-use arena, located on the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis. The Indiana Far ...

Indianapolis Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...

, but only 9 games into the season a gas explosion during an ice show destroyed the Indianapolis Coliseum. The Capitals' parent club, the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

, terminated their lease on the rink and moved the franchise to

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...

Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...

to become the Cincinnati Wings.
The Wings relocated to

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is the seat of Shelby County in the southwest part of the state; it is situated along the Mississippi River. With a population of 633,104 at the 2020 U.S. census, Memphis is the second-mos ...

for the 1964-65 season to become the

Memphis Wings The Memphis Wings were a professional ice hockey team in Memphis, Tennessee. They played from 1964–67 in the Central Professional Hockey League. As their name suggested, they were a farm team of the NHL's Detroit Red Wings. The Red Wings' farm t ...

. In 1963-64 the combined Indianapolis/Cincinnati team had a record of 12-53-7-31 and finished in 5th (last) place in the CPHL.

Indianapolis Capitols/Cincinnati Wings roster

Tony Leswick Anthony Joseph Leswick (March 17, 1923 – July 1, 2001) was a Canadian ice hockey forward who played mostly for the New York Rangers and Detroit Red Wings of the NHL. Nicknamed "Tough Tony" and "Mighty Mouse", he was known also as a little pest ...

(Head Coach) * Alex Faulkner * Barrie Ross *

Bert Marshall Albert Leroy "Moose" Marshall (born November 22, 1943) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League for the Detroit Red Wings, Oakland Seals/California Golden Seals, New York Rangers and New ...

* Bill Mitchell * Bob Champoux (goalie) * Bob Cox * Bob Wall *

Bryan Campbell Bryan Albert Campbell (born March 27, 1944) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played 260 games in the National Hockey League and 433 games in the World Hockey Association between 1967 and 1978. He played for the Los Ange ...

* Dennis Kassian * Dennis Rathwell * Don Chiz *

Doug Messier Douglas Herbert Messier (born September 5, 1936) is a Canadian former ice hockey player and coach. He played 487 games in the Western Hockey League, playing with the Seattle Totems, Edmonton Flyers, and Portland Buckaroos. He also played briefly ...

* Earl Heiskala *

Frank Hincks Frank or Franks may refer to: People * Frank (given name) * Frank (surname) * Franks (surname) * Franks, a medieval Germanic people * Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang Cu ...

Hank Bassen Henry "Hank, Red" Bassen (December 6, 1932 – May 29, 2009) was a Canadian ice hockey goaltender. He played in the National Hockey League for the Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins between 1954 and 1968. He was the fat ...

(goalie) *

Harrison Gray Harrison Leroy Gray (September 5, 1941 – August 19, 2022) was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League with the Detroit Red Wings during the 1963–64 season. The rest of his career, which lasted ...

(goalie) *

Howie Menard Howard Hubert Ménard (born April 28, 1942) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played 151 games in the National Hockey League. He played for the Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, Chicago Black Hawks and the Oakland Seals ...

Irv Spencer James Irvin Daniel Spencer (December 4, 1937 — October 22, 1999) was a Canadian ice hockey player who played 73 games in the World Hockey Association and 230 games in the National Hockey League between 1959 and 1974. Spencer played for the Phil ...

Jack Faulkner Jack Faulkner (April 4, 1926 – September 28, 2008) was an American football coach and administrator who most prominently served as head coach of the American Football League's Denver Broncos from 1962 to 1964. He also has been an integral par ...

Jack McIntyre John Archibald "Jack" McIntyre (September 8, 1930 in Brussels, Ontario – March 15, 1998) was a Canadian ice hockey player. He played in the National Hockey League between 1950 and 1960. Playing career McIntyre played 499 National Hockey League ...

* Jim Peters * Jim Watson * Joe Daley (goalie) *

Ken Laufman Kenneth Laufman (born January 30, 1932) is a Canadian ice hockey centre who competed in the 1956 Winter Olympics and 1960 Winter Olympics. Born in Hamilton, Ontario, Laufman was a member of the Kitchener-Waterloo Dutchmen who won the bro ...

* Max Mestinsek *

Nick Libett Lynn Nicholas Libett (born December 9, 1945) is a Canadian retired ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs t ...

Norm Beaudin Norman Joseph Andrew Beaudin (born November 28, 1941) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played 25 games in the National Hockey League and 335 in the World Hockey Association, most notably for the Winnipeg Jets. He also p ...

* Pete Shearer * Ray Ross * Richard "Chick" Balon * Roger Lafreniere * Ron Harris * Ron Leopold * Sid Finney * Stuart "Butch" Paul * Wayne Muloin

References

External links

Team profile at Hockeydb.comSCSR / Cincinnati Wings
Sports teams in Cincinnati Defunct ice hockey teams in Ohio Central Professional Hockey League teams 1963 establishments in Indiana 1964 disestablishments in Ohio Ice hockey clubs established in 1963 Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 1964 {{Ohio-sport-team-stub