In 1972, it was not Canada Cup. It was the Summit Series; 8 games played between Canada and the Soviet Union only, with no other teams. The first Canada Cup, a full-fledged tournament, was played in 1976.
I'm old enough to remember going to Toronto Toros games as a kid. I loved it, hockey was entertaining, and crowds way louder than the boring quiet Leaf crowds at Maple Leaf Gardens. Eventually Toros went broke, because leaf owner Harold Ballard was gouging them big time for rent to play at Maple Leaf Gardens. Too bad, but had no problems watching WHA games, even knowing NHL was far superior. Name of their cup was stupid, I remember that as well..
Mark Howe is the best defenseman to never win a Norris Trophy. And that's most due to the era he played in with Coffey and Bourque. I'm also pretty sure that he played on the wing in the WHA on the line with Gordie and Marty
Shannon, I think it is great that you are featuring some videos and history of the WHA. There were a lot of very good players who played in the league and it did last for seven years, so it was viable for a while.
The championship for the New England Whalers was an interesting one. They had won the Avco World Trophy, but it wasn't ready at that point, so they had to skate around the ice with their divisional championship trophy instead.
Andre Lacroix had incredible talent. NHL GP 325 G 79 A 119 PTS 198 WHA GP 551 G 251 A 547 PTS 798 1974 Summit Series GP 8 G 1 A 6 PTS 7 WHA First All-Star Team in 1973, 1974, 1975. 4th all-time in WHA history in goals scored. Bill Hunter Trophy winner as the WHA's leading scorer in 1973,1975. Scored one hundred points or more in six consecutive seasons, a mark achieved by only six other major professional players.
At a first quick glance I read NY Raiders as Rangers and thought I knew players jumped leagues but entire hockey organizations?...... Then I put my glasses on.
I remember reading about a 17 year old kid who played in the WHA for the Indianapolis Racers. The article talked about how fantastic this player was and I remember thinking, “Yeah, but that’s the WHA, how good would this guy be in the NHL?” Well I found out, that player was Wayne Gretzky.
At the time , the “experts” said Gretzky would never make it in the NHL.LOL Tied for scoring lead first year in NHL. NHL would not recognize WHA records, but refused to award the Calder trophy to 99 because he played in WHA. TRAVESTY!
@@jimmcdiarmid7308 Well, if the NHL used the same logic as the NFL; I can understand why Gretzky didn't get the Calder Trophy. The NFL says that if you played in any professional football league before the NFL, you aren't considered a rookie. Kurt Warner was never an NFL rookie because he played in the Arena League and the WLAF; Darren Bennett played in the Australian Football League and Josh Lambo was a goalkeeper in MLS. The NHL might have just said, he's not a rookie because of his WHA tenure. But, knowing how the NHL treated the 4 teams absorbed from the NHL; Gretzky didn't get the Calder out of spite. Now, you might say what about players from the minors? Since those players were owned by the teams due to contracts and farm club affiliations, the NHL made their own rules as to who they say is eligible for awards.
Loved going to Fighting Saints games in St. Paul. Huge building with totally clear see-through boards. There was a year or two where the Fighting Saints were more fun to watch than the cross town NHL North Stars. 3 Brothers played for the Saints who would become semi famous in the movie Slap Shot. They were called the Hanson brothers the movie, but were, in fact, the Carlson brothers in real life. Probably the toughest of the 3, Jack Carlson missed the movie because he was playing for the North Stars at the time.
In the original script for "Slap Shot," the three Carlson brothers were basically going to play themselves, and the character played by Jerry Houser was to be "Killer" Hanson. When Jack was called up and became unavailable for the movie, a third player was recruited to be the other brother and the names were switched to the Hanson Brothers and "Killer" Carlson.
I wish the Aeros had gotten into the NHL. I remember going to IHL/AHL Aeros games as a kid, the team payed homage to Gordie’s time in Houston by having his number and name on a banner in the rafters. I always thought that was cool.
1978 was a great year for hockey in Springfield Massachusetts I remember. The Hartford Civic Center roof collapse had the Whalers bus up 20 miles to 7400 seat Springfield Civic Center for 2 years or so while the Eddie Shore AHL Springfield Indians played over the river in West Springfield Big E Coliseum at the Eastern States Exposition fairgrounds. A historic 5500 seat old fashioned barn. This was era where you were up close to the players. The tickets were affordable unlike some ticket prices I'm seeing online these days. I loved the era. Also there was a NEJHL 'Junior hockey league', whereabout comparison maybe to Canadian junior league. The Springfield Olympics who played in an arena the Olympia. I was in hockey heaven.
For a young hockey fan in NYC it was a joy to have the Raiders/Golden Blades. Sunday games at 11 AM that cost a dollar with a school ID and all the scoring and fighting a 12 year old could ask for.
well done great idea! Maybe expand on the salary differences further, & I'll mail you a hockey card of those 1st European players if you do a pod on the "pioneers" of Euro coming over...
I'd love for him to do a series about some of the euro leagues such as the KHL, maybe the top Finnish and swedish leagues and some other hockey hotspots in europe past and present.
The Alberta Oilers did play a number of regular season games each year in Calgary during their early years, much in the way the Carolina Cougars of the ABA alternated home games between Raleigh, Charlotte and Greensboro. It didn't work well in either case, which is why the Oilers ultimately confined themselves to Edmonton and rebranded as the "Edmonton Oilers."
Anton - WHA played a role in bringing over Swedish players... Nilsson and Hedberg to the Winnipeg Jets, and one of their defenceman as well. All top notch players. Nilsson and Hedberg formed a top line with Bobby Hull.
I don't know how I missed this video because I don't recall you mentioning the WHA before nor did you have a WHA jersey in your top 500 jersey countdown(unless I missed it) but kudos to this. The WHA was my first hockey love. I've stated before that my first ever live hockey game was between the Blazers and Sharks at Philadelphia's old Convention Hall. A side note on this game, it was the first time I ever saw a black hockey player as the Sharks had a guy by the name of Alton White who doesn't get enough love for breaking the hockey color barrier. Everybody knows Willie O'Ree but Alton White and Mike Marson who broke in with the Caps in their expansion year were 2 early black hockey players. Sort of the Larry Doby to O'Ree's Jackie Robinson. Anyhoo, don't know if you knew this but when the Whalers won their first AVCO Cup, the league didn't have the trophy ready so they skated around with the Eastern Division championship cup. Also, the Blazers lost in 4 straight to Gerry Cheevers and the Crusaders but it needs to be noted that the Blazers were without Bernie Parent as he left the team in a contract dispute.
To your point about coloured pucks, it was tried. But the dye softened the rubber so a puck would end up looking like a potato. That's why it was abandoned.
Favourite wha story would have to be gary "the suitcase" smith (Minnesota Fighting Saint) doing acid at practice in winnipeg (St James Civic Centre), jumping in the practice rink's community pool in his full goalie gear, then getting hypothermia outside because he went straight to the team bus in -30 in his soaking wet goalie gear, second favourite story is Whalers Coach Harry Neale knocking on tough guy Dale Smedsmo's door after he broke curfew by a few hours, who then punched him out the second he opened the door, and Harry doesn't wake up till next morning
Just a comment. 72 wasn't the Canada Cup, it was the summit series. The Canada Cup started in 76 and did include some WHA players. Otherwise, I love you taking us down memory lane. I saw a few Ottawa Nationals games.
There are alot of guys doing hockey videos on you tube. I think shannon's are the best. It's the type of content he does and his way of presenting it. Not saying there arent some other good you tubers out there, rob talks hockey, oh nyquist, Alyssa hope are just a few I really enjoy just shannon's is much better. They dont do the same kind of content either
I know I keep chiming in here but there are a few big points you missed. You mentioned the Raiders/Golden Blades, what sunk the team from the start was that they were originally set to play in the Nassau Mausoleum(as we know it came to be called) but the NHL quickly awarded NY the Islanders so the WHA teams were forced to take up in MSG for ridiculous prices they couldn't afford let alone not having access to the arena on primo nights. Also, when the league began play they had teams in all 4 major American TV markets: NY, LA, Chicago, Philly. By the end of the 2nd season only the Cougars were left and they were gone after the 75-76 season. Also, to try to gain some credibility the league brought in Maurice Richard to coach the Nordiques. He coached 2 games. Jacques Plante also played in the league 1 season(74-75). Didn't work obviously. And just to add, the reason why the Blazers had such a poor showing in the playoffs was he had a contract dispute with the team and left after losing game one 3-2 in OT.
One of the main reasons that the Islanders exist is because of the prospect of the Raiders playing at Nassau Coliseum. NHL really wanted that nipped in the bud and made an arrangement with the new Coliseum that if the NHL put a team there, that the Coliseum would basically provide exclusivity to the NHL and turn away WHA games. This forced the Raiders to rent rink-time at MSG, which made them pay a huge rent and basically bankrupted them after their first year.
Bobby Hull signed with the Jets in the summer of 72, but could not play as the NHL was sueing the WHA trying to prevent him and other former NHL players from taking the ice. He was not cleared to play in the rival league until November of that year. As far as the NHL was concerned they owned the players contract or not.
Have you ever done a segment on the WHA uniforms? IMHO the Cleveland Crusaders had one of the best in all of hockey. I was a student in Ottawa back in the 70's and was in the building on opening night. I attended several Nationals games up to the time they finished the season...and moved to Toronto for the playoffs. In fairness, Ottawa hockey fans were strictly Junior A...but Billy Harris had been coaching in Europe and had returned to coach the Nationals. The Nats had arguably the weakest roster in the league but with Harris' coaching methods (many of which we see in the NHL today) and "Chilly Gilley" in the cage they survived to become the Toronto Toros.
The biggest takeaway from the first season was how it effected NHL competitiveness. Some NHL teams were decimated (Golden Seals) in a big way and others more subtlety (Bruins, Maple Leafs). The Islanders and Flames were rushed in so the WHA couldn’t put teams in those markets. It was a great time however for so many minor league caliber players to become pro level players. Playing in NHL cities was also disastrous, poor crowds (New York was especially poor) and other teams played in awful arenas. The fact it survived 7 years is amazing in itself.
Technically, the Ottawa Nationals were renamed the Ontario Nationals during the 1973 playoffs, and they also played their home games at Maple Leaf Gardens during that time.
If the NHL recognized WHA numbers then Gordie Howe would be ahead of Gretzky on the goals list which he should be recognized as the all time leading goal scorer but for some reason decades later the league will not allow for those numbers to be added to the overall stats of players who played in both leagues
This is a great series, it would’ve been a great time to be a Hockey fan especially if you had an open mind. You cannot tell the story of Hull or Howe without their WHA chapters even though the NHL loves to try. They should have went with the Red White and Blue idea for the pucks. ABA basketballs are superior to NBA Basketballs because you see the rotation of the ball so well, it makes teaching someone how to shoot so much easier.
It's very hard to tell. The best players I can find to do a comparison with are Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson. They were superstars in the WHA, then signed with the Rangers and would be called either weak first-liners or strong second-liners. It was definitely better than AHL; it would probably be impossible to compare to the KHL.
Wait, no mention of the Zamboni cracking the ice at Philly's Convention Hall leading to a postponement of the first game prompting the fans to pepper the ice with the orange promotional pucks they gave out? Surprised you missed that in a video called "Rocky Start for the WHA".
The NHL was between a rock and a hard place when the Summit Series came up. If they let WHA players in, some of Canada's best, they give legitimacy to the WHA. Instead they barred guys like Bobby Hull. If they'd lost to the Russians, everyone connected to hockey in Canada would second-guess that decision, suggesting "if we'd only had Hull, or Cheevers, or whoever..." and the WHA could promote the hell out of it, that Canada's best weren't allowed to play and look what happened."
Adam - yeah pretty cool jersey, The LA Sharks had a good one, so did the Hartford Whalers and the Toronto Toros. They never wound up playing a game, but loved the name Miami Screaming Eagles
Hull actually did have a slightly higher points-per-game than Lacroix, 1.63 to 1.59. It probably would have been close though. There's no telling what might have happened in those 15 missed games.
Jets fans will love this WHA series
Jets had some good teams in the WHA
Jesse Pullock would love this
*Coyotes
Sorry I had to
@@rohinkartik-narayan7535 it was Phoenix Roadrunners in WHA
@@craigyoung4156 Jets won the cup 3 years out of the 7
If there was a PhD or doctorate degree available in hockey blog creations, Shannon would receive one instantly.
I'm glad you're doing a full series on the WHA history.
Thanks again man!
J Sullivan - I agree, this is a great idea
You are going through all of the WHA seasons?! Phenomenal!
I love the WHA topic. I remember the WHA because I'm old.
the WHA encased all of my teenage years so I guess I'm getting up there as well.
I was at the Winnipeg airport with my kids to welcome the Jets home after they lost the finals the first year. Huge crowd.
In 1972, it was not Canada Cup. It was the Summit Series; 8 games played between Canada and the Soviet Union only, with no other teams.
The first Canada Cup, a full-fledged tournament, was played in 1976.
Gordie Howe was grossly underpaid in Detroit but got rewarded in the WHA
I'm old enough to remember going to Toronto Toros games as a kid. I loved it, hockey was entertaining, and crowds way louder than the boring quiet Leaf crowds at Maple Leaf Gardens. Eventually Toros went broke, because leaf owner Harold Ballard was gouging them big time for rent to play at Maple Leaf Gardens. Too bad, but had no problems watching WHA games, even knowing NHL was far superior. Name of their cup was stupid, I remember that as well..
Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nelson were lured from Jets to Rangers and Anders said the Jets were a superior team to the Rangers.
Mark Howe’s numbers in the WHA absolutely helped him get in the HOF.
Had great years with the Flyers as well
I went to many WHA games in Edmonton as a kid. Mark Howe was the best skater I’ve ever seen, even better than Paul Coffey.
Mark Howe is the best defenseman to never win a Norris Trophy. And that's most due to the era he played in with Coffey and Bourque. I'm also pretty sure that he played on the wing in the WHA on the line with Gordie and Marty
You are correct
Shannon, I think it is great that you are featuring some videos and history of the WHA. There were a lot of very good players who played in the league and it did last for seven years, so it was viable for a while.
The championship for the New England Whalers was an interesting one. They had won the Avco World Trophy, but it wasn't ready at that point, so they had to skate around the ice with their divisional championship trophy instead.
Love this series, I remember this happening as a young kid because being a Red Wing fan it was huge that Mr. Hockey was playing again
Waited all day for part 2. Thanks!
Andre Lacroix had incredible talent.
NHL GP 325 G 79 A 119 PTS 198
WHA GP 551 G 251 A 547 PTS 798
1974 Summit Series GP 8 G 1 A 6 PTS 7
WHA First All-Star Team in 1973, 1974, 1975.
4th all-time in WHA history in goals scored.
Bill Hunter Trophy winner as the WHA's leading scorer in 1973,1975.
Scored one hundred points or more in six consecutive seasons, a mark achieved by only six other major professional players.
At a first quick glance I read NY Raiders as Rangers and thought I knew players jumped leagues but entire hockey organizations?......
Then I put my glasses on.
As a Chicagoan - I always liked the North Stars Jerseys and logo.
I remember reading about a 17 year old kid who played in the WHA for the Indianapolis Racers. The article talked about how fantastic this player was and I remember thinking, “Yeah, but that’s the WHA, how good would this guy be in the NHL?” Well I found out, that player was Wayne Gretzky.
At the time , the “experts” said Gretzky would never make it in the NHL.LOL Tied for scoring lead first year in NHL. NHL would not recognize WHA records, but refused to award the Calder trophy to 99 because he played in WHA. TRAVESTY!
@@jimmcdiarmid7308 Well, if the NHL used the same logic as the NFL; I can understand why Gretzky didn't get the Calder Trophy. The NFL says that if you played in any professional football league before the NFL, you aren't considered a rookie. Kurt Warner was never an NFL rookie because he played in the Arena League and the WLAF; Darren Bennett played in the Australian Football League and Josh Lambo was a goalkeeper in MLS. The NHL might have just said, he's not a rookie because of his WHA tenure. But, knowing how the NHL treated the 4 teams absorbed from the NHL; Gretzky didn't get the Calder out of spite. Now, you might say what about players from the minors? Since those players were owned by the teams due to contracts and farm club affiliations, the NHL made their own rules as to who they say is eligible for awards.
Loved going to Fighting Saints games in St. Paul. Huge building with totally clear see-through boards. There was a year or two where the Fighting Saints were more fun to watch than the cross town NHL North Stars. 3 Brothers played for the Saints who would become semi famous in the movie Slap Shot. They were called the Hanson brothers the movie, but were, in fact, the Carlson brothers in real life. Probably the toughest of the 3, Jack Carlson missed the movie because he was playing for the North Stars at the time.
In the original script for "Slap Shot," the three Carlson brothers were basically going to play themselves, and the character played by Jerry Houser was to be "Killer" Hanson. When Jack was called up and became unavailable for the movie, a third player was recruited to be the other brother and the names were switched to the Hanson Brothers and "Killer" Carlson.
I wish the Aeros had gotten into the NHL. I remember going to IHL/AHL Aeros games as a kid, the team payed homage to Gordie’s time in Houston by having his number and name on a banner in the rafters. I always thought that was cool.
I grew up with the WHA. Love this series.
Go Jets Go!
All of us Aeros fans are looking forward to the next two episodes. Sam Houston Coliseum + Howes = Avco Cups.
1978 was a great year for hockey in Springfield Massachusetts I remember. The Hartford Civic Center roof collapse had the Whalers bus up 20 miles to 7400 seat Springfield Civic Center for 2 years or so while the Eddie Shore AHL Springfield Indians played over the river in West Springfield Big E Coliseum at the Eastern States Exposition fairgrounds. A historic 5500 seat old fashioned barn. This was era where you were up close to the players. The tickets were affordable unlike some ticket prices I'm seeing online these days. I loved the era. Also there was a NEJHL 'Junior hockey league', whereabout comparison maybe to Canadian junior league. The Springfield Olympics who played in an arena the Olympia. I was in hockey heaven.
Great...though 72 is not the Canada Cup.
Canada Cup became a thing in 1976.
This is a very interesting history class! :)
The LA Sharks logo was pretty sharp. And sounds way meaner than the Golden Seals.
First professional hockey games, I watched in person, was the WHA in Winnipeg 👍👍
I was a bigger NHL fan though.
You had me laughing quite a bit! 😂😂 Thank you for that!
The oilers were supposed to be a regional team with home games in calgary and edmonton, but the arrangement in calgary didn't work out.
For a young hockey fan in NYC it was a joy to have the Raiders/Golden Blades. Sunday games at 11 AM that cost a dollar with a school ID and all the scoring and fighting a 12 year old could ask for.
well done great idea! Maybe expand on the salary differences further, & I'll mail you a hockey card of those 1st European players if you do a pod on the "pioneers" of Euro coming over...
I'd love for him to do a series about some of the euro leagues such as the KHL, maybe the top Finnish and swedish leagues and some other hockey hotspots in europe past and present.
Enjoying this series!!
Thanks Shannon for doing these WHA series, great to preserve the history of hockey.
New York Raiders had some wild parties. Police Raided their Hotel when then they played in Minnesota.
The Alberta Oilers did play a number of regular season games each year in Calgary during their early years, much in the way the Carolina Cougars of the ABA alternated home games between Raleigh, Charlotte and Greensboro. It didn't work well in either case, which is why the Oilers ultimately confined themselves to Edmonton and rebranded as the "Edmonton Oilers."
I have that Blazers jersey and I love telling strangers the story of the Blazers when I'm at hockey games 😁👌
Imagine the 76 WHA champion played against the 76 Canadians
That was the Winnipeg Jets that season
Even the WHA headquarters moved....the last few years it was in Hartford...
Love the Jets jersey peaking in background
The reason the WHA had so few tied games is that they had a sudden death overtime period where the game ended a soon as a team scored.
their overtimes were 10 minutes long compared to 5 in the NHL
Waiting for Barkley's favorite team- Birmingham Bulls- enters the WHA!
Love the content! Watching every video. Keep it up! fan from Sweden
Anton - WHA played a role in bringing over Swedish players... Nilsson and Hedberg to the Winnipeg Jets, and one of their defenceman as well. All top notch players. Nilsson and Hedberg formed a top line with Bobby Hull.
I don't know how I missed this video because I don't recall you mentioning the WHA before nor did you have a WHA jersey in your top 500 jersey countdown(unless I missed it) but kudos to this. The WHA was my first hockey love. I've stated before that my first ever live hockey game was between the Blazers and Sharks at Philadelphia's old Convention Hall. A side note on this game, it was the first time I ever saw a black hockey player as the Sharks had a guy by the name of Alton White who doesn't get enough love for breaking the hockey color barrier. Everybody knows Willie O'Ree but Alton White and Mike Marson who broke in with the Caps in their expansion year were 2 early black hockey players. Sort of the Larry Doby to O'Ree's Jackie Robinson. Anyhoo, don't know if you knew this but when the Whalers won their first AVCO Cup, the league didn't have the trophy ready so they skated around with the Eastern Division championship cup. Also, the Blazers lost in 4 straight to Gerry Cheevers and the Crusaders but it needs to be noted that the Blazers were without Bernie Parent as he left the team in a contract dispute.
Same here as a Cincinnati Stingers fan
Loved the Stingers. Best jersey ever. Hello from Winnipeg.
Awesome logo
Stingers fan. Andy MacWilliams on WLW was the best.
The Whalers had to skate around with their division championship trophy after winning the Finals because the Avco trophy wasn't completed yet.
To your point about coloured pucks, it was tried. But the dye softened the rubber so a puck would end up looking like a potato. That's why it was abandoned.
While I vehemently disagree with your opinion on brodeur I must say your channel is delightful and you do an outstanding job
WHA: “make money? We don’t do that here”
Favourite wha story would have to be gary "the suitcase" smith (Minnesota Fighting Saint) doing acid at practice in winnipeg (St James Civic Centre), jumping in the practice rink's community pool in his full goalie gear, then getting hypothermia outside because he went straight to the team bus in -30 in his soaking wet goalie gear, second favourite story is Whalers Coach Harry Neale knocking on tough guy Dale Smedsmo's door after he broke curfew by a few hours, who then punched him out the second he opened the door, and Harry doesn't wake up till next morning
Just a comment. 72 wasn't the Canada Cup, it was the summit series. The Canada Cup started in 76 and did include some WHA players. Otherwise, I love you taking us down memory lane. I saw a few Ottawa Nationals games.
I just hope this get the view counts for this series to continue and for Shannon to do other historical videos.
There are alot of guys doing hockey videos on you tube. I think shannon's are the best. It's the type of content he does and his way of presenting it. Not saying there arent some other good you tubers out there, rob talks hockey, oh nyquist, Alyssa hope are just a few I really enjoy just shannon's is much better. They dont do the same kind of content either
Good to hear about the Houston Aeros. Hopefully they will return for a 3rd time.
The Atlanta Flames played against the Birmingham Bulls in 78. Bulls won! Roll Tide lol
I loved the league and the logos.
I know I keep chiming in here but there are a few big points you missed. You mentioned the Raiders/Golden Blades, what sunk the team from the start was that they were originally set to play in the Nassau Mausoleum(as we know it came to be called) but the NHL quickly awarded NY the Islanders so the WHA teams were forced to take up in MSG for ridiculous prices they couldn't afford let alone not having access to the arena on primo nights. Also, when the league began play they had teams in all 4 major American TV markets: NY, LA, Chicago, Philly. By the end of the 2nd season only the Cougars were left and they were gone after the 75-76 season. Also, to try to gain some credibility the league brought in Maurice Richard to coach the Nordiques. He coached 2 games. Jacques Plante also played in the league 1 season(74-75). Didn't work obviously. And just to add, the reason why the Blazers had such a poor showing in the playoffs was he had a contract dispute with the team and left after losing game one 3-2 in OT.
The WHA was the Michael Scott Paper Company of hockey
Bobby Hull: 103 in 63 = 127.5 points. More than Lacroix. Also 72 is "Summit Series", not Canada Cup. (Sorry to correct, but I'm older).
The Avco Cup looks like an ashtray.
One of the main reasons that the Islanders exist is because of the prospect of the Raiders playing at Nassau Coliseum. NHL really wanted that nipped in the bud and made an arrangement with the new Coliseum that if the NHL put a team there, that the Coliseum would basically provide exclusivity to the NHL and turn away WHA games. This forced the Raiders to rent rink-time at MSG, which made them pay a huge rent and basically bankrupted them after their first year.
70's flow not hindered by helmets in that thumbnail.
Bobby Hull signed with the Jets in the summer of 72, but could not play as the NHL was sueing the WHA trying to prevent him and other former NHL players from taking the ice. He was not cleared to play in the rival league until November of that year. As far as the NHL was concerned they owned the players contract or not.
Have you ever done a segment on the WHA uniforms? IMHO the Cleveland Crusaders had one of the best in all of hockey. I was a student in Ottawa back in the 70's and was in the building on opening night. I attended several Nationals games up to the time they finished the season...and moved to Toronto for the playoffs. In fairness, Ottawa hockey fans were strictly Junior A...but Billy Harris had been coaching in Europe and had returned to coach the Nationals. The Nats had arguably the weakest roster in the league but with Harris' coaching methods (many of which we see in the NHL today) and "Chilly Gilley" in the cage they survived to become the Toronto Toros.
Some W H A teams had a star player serving as head coach then .
Damnnn! Those Blazers uniforms look good!
The biggest takeaway from the first season was how it effected NHL competitiveness. Some NHL teams were decimated (Golden Seals) in a big way and others more subtlety (Bruins, Maple Leafs). The Islanders and Flames were rushed in so the WHA couldn’t put teams in those markets. It was a great time however for so many minor league caliber players to become pro level players. Playing in NHL cities was also disastrous, poor crowds (New York was especially poor) and other teams played in awful arenas. The fact it survived 7 years is amazing in itself.
Thanks for doing these
Technically, the Ottawa Nationals were renamed the Ontario Nationals during the 1973 playoffs, and they also played their home games at Maple Leaf Gardens during that time.
Cool Fighting Saints jersey
If the NHL recognized WHA numbers then Gordie Howe would be ahead of Gretzky on the goals list which he should be recognized as the all time leading goal scorer but for some reason decades later the league will not allow for those numbers to be added to the overall stats of players who played in both leagues
Gretz got shafted on the Calder due to the exact opposite reasoning.
Michigan Stags had the best logo ever
Great series. Question, any idea why the Ties were so low compared to the NHL? The Blazers had zero ties!
The WHA had 10 minute overtime periods compared to 5 minutes in the NHL.
@@robins5798 Ahh, that's it. Thanks for the reply.
My god you could make an amazing Netflix series about all this
This is a great series, it would’ve been a great time to be a Hockey fan especially if you had an open mind. You cannot tell the story of Hull or Howe without their WHA chapters even though the NHL loves to try. They should have went with the Red White and Blue idea for the pucks. ABA basketballs are superior to NBA Basketballs because you see the rotation of the ball so well, it makes teaching someone how to shoot so much easier.
Hey Shannon, how close to the NHL's level do you think the WHA was? Was it comparable to the AHL or KHL? Was it closer than that? Was it on par?
It's very hard to tell. The best players I can find to do a comparison with are Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson. They were superstars in the WHA, then signed with the Rangers and would be called either weak first-liners or strong second-liners. It was definitely better than AHL; it would probably be impossible to compare to the KHL.
Detroit's ownership wasn't thrilled with Gordie and his sons going to Houston.
Ngl, before I saw it written down I thought it was the Houston Arrows.
They originally intended the team to be the Dayton Arrows, so your confusion is forgiven.
"Danny Lawson : 78 games played; 61 goals, 45 assists for 56 points". I tell you, no respect for the WHA players.
I wish I had all the hockey stuff he's got. That'd be my heaven
Wait, no mention of the Zamboni cracking the ice at Philly's Convention Hall leading to a postponement of the first game prompting the fans to pepper the ice with the orange promotional pucks they gave out? Surprised you missed that in a video called "Rocky Start for the WHA".
I used to play with light blue pucks when I was a mite
I got to see a Blazers vs Whalers game in that first season. Being used to the NHL, the caliber of play in the WHA was really sub-par.
I learnt that I’m related to Bill Hunter a co owner of the Alberta oilers
The NHL was between a rock and a hard place when the Summit Series came up. If they let WHA players in, some of Canada's best, they give legitimacy to the WHA. Instead they barred guys like Bobby Hull. If they'd lost to the Russians, everyone connected to hockey in Canada would second-guess that decision, suggesting "if we'd only had Hull, or Cheevers, or whoever..." and the WHA could promote the hell out of it, that Canada's best weren't allowed to play and look what happened."
Nice fighting saints jersey
Adam - yeah pretty cool jersey, The LA Sharks had a good one, so did the Hartford Whalers and the Toronto Toros. They never wound up playing a game, but loved the name Miami Screaming Eagles
How many jerseys do you have
Hull actually did have a slightly higher points-per-game than Lacroix, 1.63 to 1.59. It probably would have been close though. There's no telling what might have happened in those 15 missed games.
Fighting Saints were puttin' on the foil.
Shannon of course Clarence Campbell was vocal, dude was part of the Nuremburg Trials for fucks sake.
Philadelphia Blazers with no ties is quite something.
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It was not "The Canada Cup" in '72..It was the "Summit Series"...
Canada beating the Russians was like the United States beating the Russians in 1980
@@craigyoung4156 Yup, but the U.S. beat the Finns for the Gold...
@@timsmith428 yeah people forget they beat Finland for the gold
@Hockeygod98 speech helped them win
Eliminating Minnesota in 5 games is just what Winnipeg does, I guess.
Howe and Hull couldn't play in the72 Summit Series because they were in the WHA.....
Howe was retired in 1972, but Hull should have played.
And Cheevers, and Sanderson...they had just won the Stanley Cup!
Montreal Canadiens would have destroyed the New England Whalers if there was a series in 1973
720/13K 2 years ago 269K
If the WHA and the NY Raiders never existed, the NY Islanders would not have existed as well.
Here are the all time scoring leaders in the WHA
www.quanthockey.com/wha/en/records/wha-players-all-time-points-leaders.html
LA Sharks is just wrong
Hi cats