The Maine Nordiques 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 within the

North American Hockey League The North American Hockey League (NAHL) is one of the top junior hockey leagues in the United States and is in its 48th season of operation in 2022–23. It is the only Tier II junior league sanctioned by USA Hockey, and acts as an alternati ...

from 1973 to 1977. They were based at the Central Maine Youth Center in

Lewiston, Maine Lewiston (; ; officially the City of Lewiston, Maine) is List of cities in Maine, the second largest city in Maine and the most central city in Androscoggin County, Maine, Androscoggin County. The city lies halfway between Augusta, Maine, August ...

. The Nordiques served as a farm club for the

Quebec Nordiques The Quebec Nordiques (french: Nordiques de Québec, pronounced in Quebec French, in Canadian English; translated "Quebec City Northmen" or "Northerners") were a professional ice hockey team based in Quebec City. The Nordiques played in the W ...

of the

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) ...

History

The team played for four seasons at Central Maine Youth Center, which had a seating capacity of just 2,800 fans. The Nordiques were the Quebec Nordiques' top farm club, and were the only professional sports franchise in the state of Maine during the mid-1970s. The club's all-time leading scorer was Paul Larose, who achieved 179 goals and 248 assists for the team between 1973 and 1977. Larose and Alan Globensky were the only two players to appear in all four seasons. Future

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

players included goaltender

Richard Brodeur Richard "King Richard", "Kermit" Brodeur (born September 15, 1952), is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. Brodeur was born in Longueuil, Quebec and grew up in Montreal, Quebec. Playing career Brodeur was selected in the 1972 ...

and defenseman

Paul Baxter Paul Gordon Baxter (born October 28, 1955) is a Canadian former ice hockey defenceman who played in the World Hockey Association from 1974 to 1979, the National Hockey League from 1979 to 1987. He featured in the 1986 Stanley Cup Finals with the ...

. Financial backers of the team included former Lewiston Mayor Bill Rocheleau, who led a group of local businesspeople who backed the Nordiques. Rocheleau also served as league President during the NAHL's final season in the winter of 1976–1977.

Coaches

* Michel Harvey: 1973-74 * Michel Harvey and Jean-Charles Gravel: 1974-1975 *

Bob Leduc Bob Leduc (born May 23, 1944 in Sudbury, Ontario) is a former professional ice hockey player who played 158 games in the World Hockey Association. He played with the Ottawa Nationals and Toronto Toros. Leduc played junior hockey with the Sudbu ...

: 1975-1976 * Jean-Charles Gravel: 1976-1977

Season-by-season results

References

1973 establishments in Maine 1977 disestablishments in Maine Ice hockey clubs established in 1973 Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 1977 Ice hockey teams in Maine North American Hockey League (1973–1977) teams Quebec Nordiques minor league affiliates Sports in Lewiston, Maine {{Maine-sport-team-stub