The Southern Hockey League was a low-level minor professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

league that operated from 1973 to 1977. The league was formed when the

Eastern Hockey League The Eastern Hockey League was a minor professional United States ice hockey league. Eastern Amateur Hockey League (1933–1953) The league was founded in 1933 as the Eastern Amateur Hockey League (EAHL). The league was founded by Tommy Lockhart ...

split in two; the southern teams became the Southern Hockey League, and the northern teams became 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 50th season of operation in 2024–25. It is the only Tier II junior league sanctioned by USA Hockey, and acts as an alternati ...

. It was the first professional hockey league to operate wholly within the

Southern United States The Southern United States (sometimes Dixie, also referred to as the Southern States, the American South, the Southland, Dixieland, or simply the South) is List of regions of the United States, census regions defined by the United States Cens ...

, and followed the establishment of the

Atlanta Flames The Atlanta Flames were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta from 1972 until 1980. They played home games in the Omni Coliseum and were members of the West and later Patrick divisions of the National Hockey League (NHL). Along with t ...

in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

; and also 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 to 1975–76. Their cross-state rivals in the AHL were the Virginia Wings. The ...

and the Tidewater Wings in the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...

. The Southern Hockey League was a feeder league for the recently started

World Hockey Association The World Hockey Association () was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972–73 WHA season, 1972 to 1978–79 WHA season, 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (N ...

. Tedd Munchak was appointed the league's first commissioner, and was owner of the Greensboro Generals. The championship trophy of the league was named the James Crockett Cup, after local figure Jim Crockett Sr. The league disbanded during its fourth season, when four of its seven teams folded due to financial issues.

History

In May 1973, the four teams in the

(EHL)'s Southern Division–the

Charlotte Checkers The Charlotte Checkers are a professional ice hockey team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the American Hockey League (AHL), and are the top minor league affiliate of the ...

, Greensboro Generals, Roanoke Valley Rebels, and Suncoast Suns–all left the EHL to form the Southern Hockey League. For some time, the EHL's southern teams had felt chagrin at the costs of traveling to northern arenas, and other regulations such as dressing only 14 players for games. The four charter members were joined by two expansion teams, the Macon Whoopees and Winston-Salem Polar Twins. The SHL established itself as a fully professional league; the EHL was nominally an amateur league, but players were known to be paid for playing. It became a development league for the year-old

(WHA). The affiliation with the WHA brought the promise of better players, but drawbacks included not finalizing rosters until just before the season started, and mid-season callups straining the talent pool. Six teams began the 1973–74 Southern Hockey League season, but two did not complete the schedule due to financial trouble. The Suncoast Suns folded on December 19, 1973. The Macon Whoopees forfeited a game against Charlotte on January 17, 1974, when players refused to play because of not being paid. The team eventually folded on February 15, 1974. The remaining four teams made the playoffs, with the Roanoke Valley Rebels finishing as champions. On July 31, 1975, Jack Riley was announced as the new commissioner of the SHL, taking over for interim leader Gene Hawthorne, of the Roanoke Valley Rebels. The four existing teams returned for the 1974–75 Southern Hockey League season, joined by a fifth expansion team from

Fayetteville, North Carolina Fayetteville ( , ) is a city in and the county seat of Cumberland County, North Carolina, United States. It is best known as the home of Fort Bragg, a major U.S. Army installation northwest of the city. Fayetteville has received the All-Ameri ...

. The new team was named after the Fayetteville Arsenal, and was scheduled to play at the Cumberland County Memorial Arena. In October 1974, owner Bill Raue moved the team, to

Hampton, Virginia Hampton is an independent city (United States), independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 137,148 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, seve ...

, before playing any games, when availability of home ice dates became a problem. The new Hampton Gulls relocated to the Hampton Coliseum, recently vacated by the

Virginia Wings The Virginia Wings were a professional ice hockey team based in Norfolk, Virginia of the greater Hampton Roads area. They were an affiliated farm team of the Detroit Red Wings, and a member of the American Hockey League for three seasons from 19 ...

of the American Hockey League. The five teams played a complete schedule of 72 games, with the Charlotte Checkers winning both the regular season and playoff titles. The five existing teams returned for the 1975–76 Southern Hockey League season, joined by a sixth expansion team from

Norfolk, Virginia Norfolk ( ) is an independent city (United States), independent city in the U.S. state of Virginia. It had a population of 238,005 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Virginia, third-most populous city ...

. The Tidewater Sharks joined the league owned by Virginia politician Dick Davis, playing at the

Norfolk Scope Norfolk Scope is a multi-function complex in Norfolk, Virginia, comprising the 11,000-seat Scope Arena, a 2,500-seat theater known as Chrysler Hall, a modular exhibition hall, and a 600-car parking garage. The arena was designed by Italian arch ...

. The six teams played a complete schedule of 72 games, with the Charlotte Checkers repeating as regular season and playoff champions. The Roanoke Valley Rebels ceased operations, and two new teams were added for the 1976–77 Southern Hockey League season. The

Baltimore Clippers The Baltimore Clippers were a minor league professional ice hockey team from in Baltimore, Maryland, playing in the Baltimore Civic Center. The Clippers were members of the American Hockey League from 1962 to 1976, and then played one season i ...

transferred from the

, and the Richmond Wildcats were an expansion team. Both Richmond and Greensboro folded on January 3, 1977, due to financial problems. On January 7, the Tidewater Sharks folded after missing payroll, and Winston-Salem owner Jim Crockett Jr. pulled the Polar Twins out of the league. The remaining three teams considered adding a fourth team, but the league was short on funds when Greensboro and Winston-Salem defaulted on $25,000 loans. The league also considered playing a round-robin tournament to determine a champion, or develop an interlocking schedule with either the North American Hockey League or the International Hockey League. On January 22, 1977, both the NAHL and IHL rejected the proposal. The league played what would be its last game on January 31, 1977. It planned to return for the 1977–78 season, but these plans came to nothing.

Teams

The Southern Hockey League started with teams in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

North Carolina North Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, South Carolina to the south, Georgia (U.S. stat ...

and

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

. Winston-Salem was added next, owned by a group of 15 investors. The league sought out a sixth team in southern states to fill in the gap between North Carolina and Florida. Westward expansion was ruled out, as

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

teams were already in the

Central Professional Hockey League Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

, and hockey in

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, ended in 1960.

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

did not have a suitable facility, nor did it get a professional hockey team until 1993.S. 324 (1993-02-02)
"A concurrent resolution to congratulate and welcome the South Carolina Sharks on their establishment as the first professional hockey team in South Carolina"

South Carolina Senate The South Carolina State Senate is the upper house of the South Carolina General Assembly, the lower house being the South Carolina House of Representatives. It consists of 46 senators elected from single member districts for four-year terms at ...

. Retrieved 2010-11-09.

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

also did not have a suitable arena, and hockey first arrived there with the Birmingham Bulls in 1976. This left

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, and the city of Macon being targeted because it had a suitable arena that was adjacent to

Interstate 75 Interstate 75 (I-75) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. As with most Interstates that end in 5, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, traveling from S ...

; and Macon previously had hockey a temporary hockey team in 1968. The SHL also hoped to build upon the

arriving in 1972. Commissioner Tedd Munchak, wanted a sixth team desperately enough that he put up the $25,000 expansion fee himself for the Macon team. With the loss of its two southernmost teams after the first season, the league was based solely in North Carolina and Virginia, until the addition of a

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

team in 1976. Teams of the Southern Hockey League listed by founding date.

Seasons

The Southern Hockey League played four seasons. Each season was scheduled with 72 games for each of five to seven teams at the beginning of the season. The Charlotte Checkers appeared in all three Crockett Cup finals, winning two. Regular season and postseason results of the Southern Hockey League: † ''First place team on January 31st, when league folded.''

WHA/NHL affiliations

Southern Hockey League franchises were primarily affiliated with

teams, however some also had agreements with

teams. Summary of WHA/NHL affiliation agreements:

References

External links

League history and standings
{{DEFAULTSORT:Southern Hockey League (1973-1977) Defunct ice hockey leagues in the United States