The Richmond Wildcats were a minor league professional ice hockey team based in

Richmond, Virginia (Thus do we reach the stars) , image_map = , mapsize = 250 px , map_caption = Location within Virginia , pushpin_map = Virginia#USA , pushpin_label = Richmond , pushpin_m ...

. Richmond joined the Southern Hockey League as an expansion team in 1976, and replaced the void at the

Richmond Coliseum Richmond Coliseum is a defunct arena located in downtown Richmond, Virginia, with a capacity of 13,500 that was most often used for various large concerts. The arena opened in 1971 and the region is looking to replace the aging facility with a la ...

, when the

Richmond Robins The Richmond Robins were a professional ice hockey team based in Richmond, Virginia. They were a member of the American Hockey League for five seasons from 1971–72 AHL season, 1971–72 to 1975–76 AHL season, 1975–76. Their cross-state rivals ...

ceased operations. The Wildcats were affiliated with the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...

, and the

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the s ...

, for the

1976–77 Southern Hockey League season The 1976–77 Southern Hockey League season was the fourth and final season of the Southern Hockey League. The Roanoke Valley Rebels ceased operations, and two new teams were added for the season. The Baltimore Clippers transferred from the Ameri ...

Forbes Kennedy Forbes Taylor Kennedy (born August 18, 1935) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He played 603 games National Hockey League (NHL) with five teams between 1956 and 1969, recording 70 goals and 108 assists for 178 points and 888 p ...

was named the team's coach. The offence was led by Barry Scully with 44 points, Claude Periard with 30 goals, and

Lorne Rombough Lorne David Rombough (April 2, 1948- November 13, 2019) was a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. During the 1973–74 season, Rombough played three games in the World Hockey Association with the Chicago Cougars. He is the brother ...

with 28 goals. The Wildcats played 38 games before the team folded on January 3, 1977 due to financial problems.

Notable players

Notable Wildcats players that also played in the

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 ...

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) ...

: * Willie Brossart * Andre Gill *

Bill Goldthorpe Bill "Goldie" (also "Harpo") Goldthorpe (born June 20, 1953) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey player. He is best known as the inspiration for Ogie Ogilthorpe in the 1977 film '' Slap Shot''. Goldthorpe, a left winger, was a notorious ...

* Greg Hickey *

Keith Kokkola Keith Victor Kokkola (May 4, 1949 - September 24, 2004) was a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Between 1974 and 1977, Kokkola played 54 games in the World Hockey Association with the Chicago Cougars, Denver Spurs/Ottawa Civics, ...

Ralph MacSweyn Donald Ralph "Big Mac" MacSweyn (September 8, 1942 – May 21, 1995) was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman. He played 47 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Philadelphia Flyers from 1968 to 1972 and 147 games in the Wor ...

Jim McCrimmon James Duncan McCrimmon (born May 29, 1953) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman. He played 2 games in the National Hockey League for the St. Louis Blues during the 1974–75 season. He also played 114 games in the World Hockey ...

Danny Schock Daniel Patrick Schock (December 30, 1948 — June 15, 2017) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who played 20 regular season games and one playoff game in the National Hockey League. He played with the Boston Bruins and Philadelphia Flye ...

Results

Richmond won 21 games, compared to 16 losses and a tie, and earned the fifth most points in the league.

References

External links

Bring Hockey Back to Richmond
Defunct ice hockey teams in the United States Ice hockey teams in Virginia New York Rangers minor league affiliates Southern Hockey League (1973–1977) teams Sports clubs and teams in Richmond, Virginia St. Louis Blues minor league affiliates 1976 establishments in Virginia 1977 disestablishments in Virginia Ice hockey clubs established in 1976 Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 1977 {{US-icehockey-team-stub