The Ottawa Nationals were a professional men's

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 out of

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

that played in 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) ...

(WHA) during the

1972–73 WHA season The 1972–73 WHA season was the List of WHA seasons, first season of the World Hockey Association (WHA). Twelve teams played 78 games each. The league was officially incorporated in June of 1971 in sports, 1971 by Gary Davidson and Dennis Murphy ...

. The WHA had originally granted a franchise to Doug Michel for "Ontario." Original plans called for the team to play at

Maple Leaf Gardens Maple Leaf Gardens is a historic building located at the northwest corner of Carlton Street and Church Street in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The building was initially constructed in 1931 as an arena to host ice hockey games, though it has sinc ...

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

, but Michel couldn't get a favourable lease. Afterward, it was expected that

Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: People * Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname ** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland ** Lord Hamilt ...

would be the team's home, but it was eventually placed in Ottawa. Nick Trbovich became majority owner before the season began, with Michel running hockey operations. They were coached by Billy Harris and led on the ice by

Wayne Carleton Kenneth Wayne "Swoop" Carleton (born August 4, 1946) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Carleton played in the National Hockey League (NHL) and the World Hockey Association (WHA) in the 1960s and 1970s. He was a member of the 19 ...

, who scored 42 goals and 92 points during the season. They hosted the first-ever WHA game, on October 11, 1972, losing 7-4 to the Alberta Oilers. Their home arena was the

Ottawa Civic Centre TD Place Arena, originally the Ottawa Civic Centre, is an indoor arena located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, seating 9,500. With temporary seating and standing room it can hold 10,585. Opened in December 1967, it is used primarily for sports, inc ...

, but they were a flop at the box office, averaging about 3,000 fans per game. Before the season ended, the City of Ottawa demanded a payment of $100,000 to secure dates for the following season. Rather than agree, the Nationals opted to move elsewhere for the next season and play its playoff dates in Toronto. During this playoff series, the team was referred to as the Ontario Nationals. After the season, the team was sold to John F. Bassett and became the

Toronto Toros The Toronto Toros were an ice hockey team based in Toronto that played in the World Hockey Association from 1973 to 1976. History The franchise was awarded to Doug Michel in 1971 for $25,000 to play in the WHA's inaugural 1972–73 season. Haro ...

. The last Ottawa Nationals player active in North American major professional hockey was Mike Amodeo, who played one season in the NHL, 1979-80, before moving to Sweden, then Italy, before his retirement in 1983.

Season-by-season record

''Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes''

External links

1972-73 Ottawa Nationals Roster & Stats on HockeyDB.com

Season-by-season record

External links

See also