1977 Lewis Cup Finals

The 1977 Lewis Cup Finals would pit the Ottawa Beavers, a team making it's first appearance in the finals, against the LA Wizards, a team looking to repeat as champs. After the Wizards got off to a fast start in game one, taking a 2-0 lead, Ottawa got goals from Casey Beckett, Vince Ward, and Jeff Grant in the third period to take a 1-0 series lead. Game two would be a tight one, with both teams nursing a 2-2 tie through two periods. As the third began, Ottawa had a terrific chance to take the lead once again when Randy McCracken hit the post with a wide open net. At the other end, Sheldon Hopkins scored to give LA the lead before Theo Howell sealed the win with the empty netter. Back in Ottawa for game three, The Beavers took an immediate 2-0 lead, only to have Ray Fowler tie it with two goals late in the second period. Early in the third period, Casey Beckett put the Beavers up 3-2. two minutes later, Brad Tearney scored to give Ottawa a 4-2 lead and ultimately a 2-1 series lead.

 LA desperately needed their captain Stuart Holly, pointless through the first three games, to step up. Holly showed up in a big way in game 4, scoring two goals and assisting on a third from Gilbert Giroux as LA won 3-1 to tie the series. Heading back home for a best of three, LA felt confident they could get control of the series, while Ottawa now knew they could beat the seemingly invincible Wizards. Game 5 was tight, as Holly and Doug Sampson each scored in a 1-1 tie that would hold up throughout regulation. In OT, Dennis Carter made two brilliant saves as Ottawa pressured LA hard for the game winner. towards the end of the first overtime period, Sheldon Hopkins was called for a trip on Vince Ward. Now on the powerplay, Ottawa continued to push. Carter made 7 big saves while defensemen Dennis Garbutt and Sheldon Lane blocked several shots. After killing the penalty successfully, LA began a push of their own. Finally, Ray Fowler scored off a rebound to give the Wizards a 2-1 victory and a chance to repeat. Game six back in Ottawa was dominated by the Wizards, who jumped to a 3-0 lead in the first period on goals from Holly, Hopkins, and rookie Eric Mosher. Ottawa made a push late in the third period but it was too little too late. The LA Wizards capped a record-setting season by hoisting the Lewis Cup for the second straight season.

1977 Playoffs

Entering the 1977 Lewis Cup playoffs, all eyes were on the league's two newest franchises, who had both miraculously made the playoffs. Each team would face a serious challenge in the first round, however, as Long Island would take on Montreal, while Edmonton would face the powerful LA Wizards. Right away, the Northern Lights began proving they just happy to be there, stunning the Wizards 2-0 with Bill Kelly stopping 36 shots for the shutout. LA looked more like themselves in game 2, winning 4-2 on the strength of Stuart Holly's goal and two assists. Holly would score again in game 3, as would would Sheldon Hopkins, but Edmonton would not go away. Rookie Glen Childs scored to bring the game to within one before Don Greer would tie it in the third period. In overtime, Bill Kelly stopped 12 shots right off the bat before Greer scored again for Minnesota to give them the win and a 2-1 series lead. When Edmonton went up 1-0  just 19 seconds into game 4, LA knew they were in trouble. Ray Fowler scored a big goal just 3 minutes later to tie the game, before tough guy Roy Priest put the Wizards ahead. When Holly scored two in the second period, LA appeared to finally be taking back control. Former Wizard Brad Wolfe scored for Edmonton early in the third, but it would be too late, as LA tied the series at two games apiece. The Wizards took the series lead in game 5, but with an opportunity to finally close the Northern Lights out in game 6, Edmonton went goal for goal with the Wizards all game long, sending the game to overtime, where veteran Stan Desmond scored to force game 7. In game 7, Edmonton finally ran out of gas. Stuart Holly scored twice while Dennis Carter pitched a shutout as LA finally put an end to Edmonton's magical first season. LA was not the only contending team to have their hands full in the first round. In other Western Conference action, Minnesota nearly found themselves eliminated by Calgary when the Wranglers went up 3 games to 2. Captain Guy Dupont put the Lumberjacks on his back, scoring two goals and 4 assists in games 6 and 7, as Minnesota took the series in 7. Elsewhere in the west, California defeated St. Louis in 6 games, while Denver upset Chicago in 6.

In the Eastern Conference, only one series went more than 4 games, as the New York Civics took 6 games to eliminate the Toronto Racers. Ottawa swept Boston in 4 straight, while Montreal made short work of the expansion Concordes, sweeping them in 4 straight. Washington's return to the post-season would be short-lived, as the Philadelphia Redshirts swept them in a series that was much closer than the number of game would indicate, with 3 of the 4 games won in the third period. Entering their second round series with Montreal, the New York Civics were a confident club coming off a tough series with Toronto. that confidence would take a hit in game 1 however, as Montreal took it 2-0. The Civics would respond with a pair of wins in games 2 and 3 to take a 2-1 series lead, in game 4, Emmett Hudson's hat-trick for the Royale would prove to be all they needed as Montreal tied the series with a 3-1 win. New York would go on to win the next two, however, to close out the series in 6. In other second round action, Guy Dupont continued his strong play as Minnesota won a tough series against the California Nuggets, Denver managed only one win against LA as the Wizards moved on, while Ottawa defeated the Philadelphia Redshirts in 5 games as well.

The Conference Finals would feature all four division winners for the first time in five years. Taking on the New York Civics, the Ottawa Beavers were determined to finally prove they belonged in the finals. After winning the first two games at home, the Beavers went into New York full of confidence, especially after a convincing 4-1 win in game 2. Game 3 would prove to be a lot closer, going into overtime. With the Civics' season unofficially on the line, Phil Holmes scored a big goal for New York to bring the series to 2-1. When New York went up 2-0 early in game 4, it looked like a new series. But the Beavers would go on to score 3 unanswered goals in the third period, taking the game 3-2 and the series lead 3-1. Game 5 would be another 4-1 win for Ottawa as the Beavers finally reached the Lewis Cup Finals for the first time in franchise history. In the Western Conference Final, LA continued their dominant play against Minnesota, taking a 3-0 series lead right away. It looked like the Lumberjacks were finished yet again. Game 4 went right down to the wire, as LA nursed a 1-0 lead most of the game. With 23 seconds remaining, Roland Webb knocked his own rebound past Carter to send the game to overtime and save Minnesota's season. Veteran Doug Williams scored just 41 seconds into OT to force game 5 back in LA. Bobby Sorel played the game of his life in game 5, stopping 47 LA shots for a shutout to extend the series to 6. In game 6, the teams played a tight 2-2 game until halfway through the third period. when the Lumberjacks scored two quick goals from Webb and Dupont. the lead would hold up as fans in at the Twin Cities Forum gave their team a standing ovation. After facing a 0-3 deficit, the 'Jacks had brought the series all the way to game 7. The deciding game would be another close one, as the teams played to a 2-2 tie entering the third period. Both Sorel and Carter made some big saves in the third period, including a spectacular glove save by Carter on Roland Webb. finally, Stuart Holly would prove to be the hero once again for LA, giving the Wizards a 3-2 lead. The Lumberjacks swarmed the LA net in the dying minutes, trying desperately to tie the game and prolong their season, but Carter met every challenge as LA held on for a 3-2 win and an opportunity to defend their title.

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

1976-77 Regular Season

1976 was an eventful year in the hockey world. The PHL welcomed two new franchises in the fall, the Edmonton Northern Lights and the Long Island Concordes. The expansion led to some controversy when a few GMs from other teams complained that the rules for the expansion draft favored the new clubs too much. Boston was hit particularly hard, losing valuable depth players Don Greer and Daryl Ferguson both to Edmonton just weeks after losing the Lewis Cup to LA. The Bulldogs struggled throughout the year and just barely reached the playoffs with only 27 wins. Both the new clubs made the most of their inaugural season. Long Island got off to a fantastic start under the leadership of George Allen and thanks to a big rookie season from Craig Davidson. At Christmas, the Concordes amazingly found themselves in second place in a very weak Atlantic Division. Despite a mid-season slide, the Concordes fast start gave them enough momentum to hold onto a playoff spot. On April 3, the Long Island Concordes became the first expansion team to clinch a playoff spot (aside from the GHL merger) since the 1946 Buffalo Bulls. Across the continent, the Edmonton Northern Lights also enjoyed an incredible first season, thanks almost entirely to the inspired play of goaltender Bill Kelly. Kelly won all 31 of Edmonton's wins to claim the Whyte trophy as the league's top goaltender as Edmonton matched their expansion cousins in Long Island and secured a playoff spot.



The Washington Generals finally returned to the post season for the first time since their Hamilton days, thanks to a breakout year from Gerry Stokes. Ottawa and New York dominated the Eastern Conference, each winning their divisions with Ottawa just edging out Montreal during the last week of the season to take the Northeast. A new "battle of Ontario" emerged during the 1976-77 season. Toronto, known as "Canada's team" since the PHL's inception, had always had a strong rivalry with the Hamilton Kings. After the Kings' relocation to Washington, Racers fans turned their attention to the Beavers, who were quickly becoming contenders. The budding rivalry came to an explosive head on January 11, 1977, when Ottawa's Randy McCracken bumped Toronto goaltender Ralph Morello. The response from the Racers was swift as the Phil Morrison and Todd Beirness both grabbed a hold of McCracken, who held his own against both players. one month later, the teams met again in Toronto, where they engaged in a minor brawl when Ottawa's Derrick Rowe grabbed a hold of Phil Morrison on the bench after Morrison refused to fight him earlier. As the scrap turned into a full-scale brawl, even the fans began to get into it. Elsewhere in the Northeast Division, the Nova Scotia Claymores and Detroit Mustangs both suffered disastrous seasons, finishing with only 18 and 17 wins respectively. While the aging Claymores simply struggled to keep up with quickly improving competition in the Northeast Division, Detroit was racked with injury problems. Cliff Lyle took a hard hit during the World Hockey Challenge final and missed the first five games with a separated shoulder. When he returned against Quebec on October 16, he took another hard hit from Nationale defenseman Paul Ryan, this time knocking him out while separating his shoulder once again. Lyle would end up missing half of the season. Before he could return, winger Kirk Saunders went down for the year with back injury, while Bobby Vail suffered a severe concussion, missing the rest of the season as well.

 In the Western Conference, the LA Wizards enjoyed a record-breaking season, winning 61 games while only losing 8. Stuart Holly set a new single-season scoring record with 82 goals, while Ray Fowler scored 58. Excitement surrounding the Wizards reached and all-time high as movie stars were seen nearly every night at the Inglewood Colosseum. Stuart Holly and Ray Fowler soon became two of Hollywood's hottest stars themselves with the dynamic duo even being featured on a soap opera at one point. The Wizards/Nuggets rivalry began to heat up. California proved to be LA's stiffest competition, as they were the only team to beat the Wizards more than once, defeating them three times while winning 49 games to take third place in the West.  Guy Dupont, angry after losing the World Hockey Challenge, turned it into a career season, scoring 47 goals and leading Minnesota to another strong 118 point season, while in St. Louis, David Appleby nearly single-handedly led the Spirits to the playoffs for the second straight year. Appleby was quickly proving himself to be one of the top young players in the PHL and a future legend. Back in Toronto, legendary center Mark Benson announced he would retire at season's end after 21 seasons with the Racers. On the final night of the regular season, the Racers held Mark Benson Night, as the team announced they would retire Benson's number 15 the following season. It was a fitting way to end the regular season as a potentially very intriguing post season approached.

1976 World Hockey Challenge

The inaugural World Hockey Challenge began on September 1, 1976 at the Queen Elizebeth Arena in Toronto. It would be the first-ever best-on-best international hockey competition and after years of losing to the Soviets in amateur competition, the Canadians longed to finally face their rivals with there all-star squad, while the Americans, somewhat lacking in PHL talent compared to the Canadian team, were eager to prove they could not only compete but even win the tournament. The tournament opened with the host team taking on the rival Soviets. Things looked ominous at the beginning when speedy Soviet forward Vladimir Gaganov scored two goals just six minutes in. The Canadians pressed hard all game but could not break Soviet goaltender Valeri Rusanov. Finally, Stuart Holly put Canada on the board halfway through the third period, but it was too late as The Soviets held on to defeat the Canadians 2-1. Also on day 1, Finland defeated their rivals Sweden 2-1, while the Americans took out Norway 4-0. Canada would fare much better on day two, defeating Finland 3-0, while the Soviets also enjoyed a 3-0 victory over Norway. The Americans continued their steady play against Sweden with a 3-1 victory. On day three, The Soviets continued rolling through the tournament thanks to their magical top line of Vladimir Gaganov, Sergei Kreyev, and Alexander Orlov. The trio proved to be as potent as any PHL line as they combined for all three goals in a 3-1 victory over Sweden. In other Day three action, Canada defeated Norway 3-0, while Ray Fowler and Eddie Gibbs each scored for Team USA in a 2-0 win over Finland. It was the second shutout of the tournament for 19-year-old American goaltender Brian Donovan, who was quickly moving up the rankings for the 1977 PHL entry draft.

Norway finally got on the scoresheet against Finland on Day four. Speedy offensive defenseman Selbjorn Osen scored twice as the Norwegians upset the Fins 2-1, while Canada defeated blanked Sweden 2-0, and the Soviets won a rather heated battle with the Americans 4-2 in a match that saw several fights break out. Entering the final day of the Round Robin, the Soviets had all but guaranteed a spot in the best-of-three Championship. After they defeated Finland 6-3 to secure first place and a perfect round-robin record, it came down to Canada vs USA for second place and a place against the Soviets for the championship. The Americans struck first with a goal from Ray Fowler, before Canada tied it just a minute later on a goal from captain Guy Dupont. Each team would score again to make it 2-2 before Brian Hunt broke the deadlock for the Canadians just seconds before the end of the second period. Both goaltenders stood tall throughout the third as Bobby Sorel desperately tried to hold the lead for Canada, while Brian Donovan made a series of huge saves to give the Americans a chance to tie the game, including one huge one one David Appleby. His efforts would finally pay off when Gary Johnson's point shot found the net to send the game to OT. The Toronto crowd went silent. As overtime began, Donovan made another huge save on Gil Parsons, but could not hold off a Canadian push late in the overtime as Sheldon Hopkins finally netted his first of the tournament to send Canada to the Championship Round, where they would face the Soviet Union once again.

Heading into the best-of-three final, the Canadians were eager to exact revenge on the rival Soviets for the tournament opener. Game 1 would be a tight contest, tied 2-2 heading into the third period. Bobby Sorel and Valeri Rusanov both stood tall for their teams as regulation time wound down. Frustration began to boil over towards the end of the third period as several scuffles would break out. With just a minute left, Guy Dupont was ejected from the game after punching Soviet winger Igor Travkin in the head, leading to a line brawl. The punch was a response to an earlier hit from Travkin on Johnny Bedford. With Canada shorthanded to start overtime, Bobby Sorel stood on his head, trying to keep his team alive. Although Canada would kill the penalty, Vladimir Gaganov would score his second of the game just seconds after it ended to give the Soviets a 3-2 victory. Canada would dominate a physical and heated game 2. Rusanov played decent but the Soviets were unable to solve Bobby Sorel at the other end while David Appleby, James Cummings, and Gilbert Houle each scored in a 3-0 Canadian win to send the series to a third and deciding game.

Queen Elizabeth Arena was filled once again to capacity with flag-waving red and white-clad Canadian fans for game 3, while nearly Canadian across the country was glued to the TV. the game was tense from the beginning as the Soviets, who had accused the Canadians throughout the tournament as being "thugs" began to retaliate to the Canadian checking. After Soviet center Dimitri Shvernik took a few extra wacks at Bobby Sorel after Sorel covered the puck, Canadian defenseman Ronald Crane crosschecked Shvernik in the face, knocking out four of his teeth. The Soviets struck first on the scoreboard when Valdimir Gaganov beat Sorel to give the Soviets the lead. Just minutes later, Soviet defenseman Igor Paponov's point shot made it 2-0. Appleby and Gil Parsons each scored just minutes apart at the beginning of the second period to tie the game. With a minute to go in the second, Appleby's second goal of the game put Canada ahead 3-2. Excitement began to fill the arena as Canada tightened up, trying to hold the lead. With only 6 minutes to go, Gaganov scored, tying the game and quieting the crowd. Just 24 seconds later, Alexander Orlov stunned the crowd with the go-ahead goal. The Soviets now led 4-3. Canada tried furiously to tie the game as the clock wound down, but Valeri Rusanov met every challenge. Excitement and anticipation across the country turned to heartbreak for Canada, while the Soviet Union celebrated their first Challenge Cup victory.

1976 Off-Season

1976 Entry Draft

The 1976 PHL draft began with a surprise. The Seattle Grey Wolves, who held the first pick, passed on top-rated forward Glen Childs to select speedy offensive defenseman Jeff Reese. Childs ended up going to the expansion Edmonton Northern Lights, while Edmonton’s expansion cousins, the Long Island Concordes, selected Craig Davidson, an American forward slated to play for team USA in the World Hockey Challenge. Vancouver took defenseman Art Rogers fourth overall to solidify their defense, while Dallas also beefed up their D, taking Ray Decker to round out the top five.

1.      Seattle – Jeff Reese, D

2.      Edmonton – Glen Childs, F

3.      Long Island – Craig Davidson, F

4.      Vancouver – Art Rogers, D

5.      Dallas – Ray Decker, D

6.      Washington – Don Lapin, G

7.      Pittsburgh – Dave Ritter, D

8.      Detroit – Ron Marriott, F

9.      Toronto – Ted Lovell, F

10.   Winnipeg – Brian Leblance, F

11.   Nova Scotia – Randy Flint, D

12.   Quebec – Jacques Boivin, F

13.   Boston – Mike Sweetwater, F

14.   Calgary – Jeff Chapman, F

15.   California – Rod Skelton, F

16.   St. Louis – Paul Needham, D

17.   Montreal – Mark Dawkins, F

18.   Denver – Dirk Bowens, D

19.   Philadelphia – Jason Farrell, D

20.   Chicago – Richie Smith, F

21.   New York – Jimmy MacDonald, F

22.   Ottawa – Doug Sampson, F

23.   LA Wizards – Eric Mosher, F

24.   Minnesota – Denis Poirier, F

Retirements:

Guy Benoit, F, Quebec, 1961-1976

Guy Benoit joined the Quebec Nationale just in time for the third of their three straight Lewis Cups in the early 1960s. Benoit was a valuable playmaker to scoring stars Gilbert Giroux and Ben Williams throughout the 1960s. He won a second Lewis Cup with Quebec in 1965 and reached the final with them again in 1970.

Bruce Wallace, G, Chicago, St. Louis, Seattle, 1959-1976

Having to fill goaltending legend James Green’s skates was a tall order for Bruce Wallace when he joined the Chicago Shamrocks in 1959. But Wallace did an admirable job, leading the Shamrocks to the Lewis Cup Finals in 1965. The following year, Wallace left Chicago to join the GHL’s St. Louis Spirits. When the Spirits joined the PHL in 1969, Wallace was booed heartily by the Chicago crowd, who saw him as a traitor. In 1974, Wallace was selected in the expansion draft by the Seattle Grey Wolves, where he played the final two years of his career.

Transactions

LA trades F Jack Carson and 1^st round pick in 1977 entry draft to Edmonton in exchange for F Theo Howell.

Howell adds valuable depth to LA’s already stacked lineup, while Edmonton acquires an extra pick for next year’s draft in an effort to speed up the building process.

News

After bringing the PHL from 14 teams to 24 in just ten seasons as league president, Alan Garcia immediately dispelled rumours of further expansion. Garcia announced there would be no further expansion for at least a decade. “We need to give our newer franchises an opportunity to get stronger” said Garcia. “We’ve brought the league a long way in these last ten years and it’s time to let the game grow into the markets we have.”

In other news a few coaching changes were made during the 1976 off-season. In a somewhat surprising move Minnesota fired head coach Fred Meloche, replacing him with former Boston coach Bob Truman, who had led the Bulldogs to the Lewis Cup in 1971. “It was a tough decision” said GM Kurt Blanchard. “Fred’s regular season record is incredible, but we simply haven’t been able to get over the hump in the post-season and it’s time for a change.” The expansion Long Island Concordes also made headlines in the head coaching category, hiring former playing legend George Allen as their head coach. To some, the move appeared to be yet another jab at the Concorde’s cross-town rivals and Allen’s former team, the New York Civics, who had already surrendered two players to Long Island in the expansion draft. Finally, the Philadelphia Redshirts announced they would be bringing back the greatest goaltender in franchise history, this time behind the bench, as David Zimmer was hired as head coach of the Redshirts.

1976 Expansion Draft Results

On July 1, 1976, and expansion draft was conducted to stock the PHL's newest franchises in Long Island and Edmonton. Each franchise picked 14 players from the league's other 20 franchises (Dallas and Seattle were exempt). Each team was allowed to protect ten players. Here are the selected players with their positions and former teams.

G - Ross Gilles - NY
G - Mike Gilles - NS
D - Dennis Myers - LA
D - Willy Rowe - DEN
D - Jeff Malone - PHI
D - Darrel Gordon - NS
D - Gerald Garner - TOR
F - Brian Reed - WSH
F - Olivier Lambert - MTL
F - Randy Doyle - DEN
F - Bryan Trask - NY
F - Neil Griffith - WPG
F - Carl Brown - STL
F - Steve Peterson - OTT

G - Bill Kelly - MIN

G - Ted Garrett - CHI

D - Alan Copeland - PHI

D - Buddy Tyler - STL

D - Craig Burton - CAL

D - George Harmon - CGY

D - Daryl Ferguson - BOS

F - Paul Murphy - CAL

F - Irving Lamb - CGY

F - Brad Wolfe - LA

F - Theo Howell - CHI

F - Don Greer - BOS

F - Alan Brooks - CAL

F - Stan Desmond - WSH

World Hockey Challenge Rosters, Uniforms Unveiled

The uniforms for the six countries participating in the upcoming World Hockey Challenge as well as the rosters for Team Canada and Team USA. Canada is the only country whose roster is composed entirely of PHL players. USA is composed of a combination of PHL and NCAA players as well as two players from the Atlantic Hockey Association.

Other PHL players participating in the tournament include Calgary's Sven Larsson and Vancouver's Marcus Renberg from Team Sweden, and St. Louis' Bjorn Rasmussen from Team Norway.