1986 Off-Season

1986 Entry Draft

The 1986 PHL draft was projected to be the richest draft in league history. Leading the talented class was Quebec-born phenom Vincent Ducharme, one of the greatest junior players of all time. There was no shortage of controversy entering the draft. Three teams - most notably the Montreal Royale - were accused of tanking their seasons in an effort to land the number one pick and select Ducharme. Due to lack of evidence, none of the clubs were demoted or stripped of picks but Alan Garcia did make the decision to hold a lottery for the four lowest teams in the standings. The Royale and their fans, who were already buying Ducharme jerseys in droves, were absolutely irate, that is until Montreal won the lottery. The Royale would pick number one after all and predictably selected the 18-year-old phenom, who was ecstatic to play for his childhood team. Minnesota also took a native son, selecting talented Jason Crowley second. New York took two-time 50 goal scorer Aaron Duplacy third, while Calgary selected hard-hitting D-man Jonathan Adams fourth. LA actually passed on supremely talented defenseman Kevin Hoyle to take Viktor Skogg, a Swedish winger who had already played pro in his home country. Hoyle went sixth to California.

1.      Montreal – Vincent Ducharme, F, CAN

2.      Minnesota – Jason Crowley, F, USA

3.      New York – Aaron Duplacy, F, CAN

4.      Calgary – Jonathan Adams, D, CAN

5.      LA – Viktor Skogg, F, SWE

6.      California – Kevin Hoyle, D, USA

7.      Ottawa – Shawn Norton, D, CAN

8.      Quebec – Troy Dowdy, F, CAN

9.      Denver – Teppo Sikkanen, D, FIN

10.   Washington – Grant Sibley, F, CAN

11.   Detroit – Kim Brodie, F, CAN

12.   Toronto – Marc Brunelle, F, CAN

13.   Winnipeg – Scott Chambers, D, UK

14.   Long Island – Ulf Linden, F, SWE

15.   Vancouver – Jeff Jones, F, USA

16.   Boston – Jason Luna, F, CAN

17.   Edmonton – Kevin Wyatt, D, CAN

18.   LA (From Pittsburgh) – Jeff Whittle, D, USA

19.   Chicago – Scott Benson, D, CAN

20.   Milwaukee – Craig McKay, D, CAN

21.   Minnesota (From Nova Scotia) – Mats Ulberg, D, SWE

22.   Seattle – Kyle Gray, F, USA

23.   St. Louis – Luke Broderick, F, CAN

24.   Philadelphia – Brendan Carnes, F, CAN

Notable Retirements:

Bobby Sorel, G, CHI, MIN, LI, 1967-1986

With two Lewis Cup victories, four Whyte Trophies, and a heroic performance in two World Hockey Challenges, Bobby Sorel established himself as one of the greatest goaltenders in PHL history. Sorel broke in with Chicago in 1967 but was traded to Minnesota after only two seasons. After just three seasons with the Lumberjacks, Sorel finally backstopped the club to its first Lewis Cup. Sorel and the ‘Jacks won a second cup in 1979 with Sorel taking his fourth Whyte Trophy as the league’s top goaltender. In 1980, Sorel backstopped team Canada to a World Hockey Challenge victory, where his big save in the final seconds of the championship game went on to become one of the biggest moments in Canadian sports history. Sorel played for Minnesota until 1984 when he was traded to the Long Island Concords, where he would play his final two years.

Dave Hawthorne, F, CHI, 1967-1986

The last player on the Shamrocks recruited by the late Fred Garfield Sr., Dave Hawthorne bled Green and White for nearly twenty years. Hawthorne proved to be a reliable scorer playing most of his career alongside Don Newman. Hawthorne helped lead Chicago to a dramatic Lewis Cup victory in 1983, the only won he would win as a player.

Ricky Spooner, G, BOS, STL, 1969-1986

Bobby Sorel wasn’t the only goaltending legend to call it quits in 1986. Ricky Spooner’s stellar career began with Boston in 1969-70. In only his second season, Spooner backstopped the Bulldogs to the Lewis Cup, then went on to take them to the finals again in 1976 where they lost to the LA Wizards. In 1980, Spooner was already 30 years old when he was traded to the St. Louis Spirits. But he was only getting started. Spooner backstopped the powerhouse Spirits to three Lewis Cups during the 1980s, finally deciding to retire on top after the 1986 victory.

Martin Gilbert, D, MTL, 1966-1986

Gilbert played a big role in Montreal’s Lewis Cup victory in 1968, his second year in the league. He served as a steady, reliable presence on the Royale blueline for two decades.

Casey Beckett, F, OTT, PIT, 1966-1986

The PHL’s first true enforcer, Casey Beckett proved to be much more than a feared fighter. Beckett went on to lead the Beavers in all-time goals and eventually became the team’s captain, leading them to the final in 1977. Beckett played his final year with Pittsburgh, where he played in his second final before retiring.

Notable Trades

Pittsburgh trades 1^st round pick to LA in exchange for D Shannon Lane.

Pittsburgh adds to their defensive depth, LA uses the pick to take defenseman Jeff Whittle.

Minnesota trades D Trevor Duffas to Nova Scotia in exchange for 1^st round pick

Minnesota selects Swede Mats Ulberg, Nova Scotia continues to bulk up for another run.

St. Louis trades F Jari Pukki to California in exchange for G Jaroslav Danek

The blockbuster trade of the summer, St. Louis addresses their need for a goaltender, acquiring top goaltending prospect Danek from California. The Nuggets get a true superstar in Pukki.

Key Free Agents

Tony Knight (OTT) signs four-year deal with Milwaukee worth $800,000

Ron Marriott (DET) signs five-year deal with Montreal worth $750,000

Roland Webb (MIN) signs three-year deal with Edmonton worth $700,000

News

The biggest news of the 1986 off-season came when Alan Garcia announced that the league would begin accepting bids for expansion franchises beginning in the summer of 1987. Two teams would debut in the 1989-90 season. Kansas City is rumoured to be a lock for a new team, while other cities rumoured to be interested include Cleveland, Atlanta, Houston, Hamilton, Portland, Miami, and Oakland. “Next summer we’re going to focus on choosing the best cities for new franchises.” Said Garcia. “Once selected, our teams should have plenty of time to then prepare for October ’89.”

In other news Helsinki, Finland was selected as the host city for the 1988 World Hockey Challenge. Helsinki, with a new arena seating 16,000, beat out London, Stockholm, Moscow, and Montreal for hosting rights.

1986 Logo & Uniform Updates

Two teams updated their looks over the summer of 1986. New league rules stated that teams were now required to wear a white jersey for all home games, forcing the Pittsburgh Stingers to re-introduce a white sweater for home games. The Stingers also took the opportunity to update their logo, eliminating the roundel and allowing the insect to stand out on it's own.

The New York Civics also introduced a new look. The famous "NYC" logo was updated and completely new uniforms were unveiled featuring stars lining the waist stripe. The color of the text on the jerseys was also updated to red. "We feel it's time to introduce a new look as we move into a new era of Civics hockey." said owner Rick Durham.

1986 Lewis Cup Finals

The 1986 Lewis Cup Finals would pit arguably the two top teams of the 1980s against one another for the second time in the decade. The teams had met in the finals in 1982 as well with David Appleby’s Spirits winning the series in six games to claim their first Lewis Cup. Four years later and Appleby and Danny Stevenson had established themselves as the top players of the 1980s. The St. Louis Spirits entered the series clearly as the team of the decade to that point, while the Pittsburgh Stingers were the team trying to prove themselves as equals.

Game one was all St. Louis as Appleby, Millen, and Niklas Ekberg all scored in a 6-4 victory. Game two went into overtime after a very tight contest with Ekberg netting the winner for the Spirits. St. Louis took a commanding 3-0 series lead in game three with another 4-3 overtime win this time with Grant Millen scoring the winner. The Spirits stood just one win away from their third Lewis Cup. The overtime epics continued in game four as the Stingers tried desperately to extend the series. Jakob Martensson’s play through two extra periods was nothing short of heroic as the Spirits pushed hard for the winning goal. Finally, Dave Breedon ended the marathon with just 1:31 left in the second overtime to extend the series to a game five in St. Louis. Just prior to game five, Pittsburgh head coach Bob King made an emotional pre-game speech challenging the team to play like the team they knew they could be. Rumours had been circulating all year that the 70-year-old King would retire at season’s end.

Game five went back and forth with St. Louis giving up the lead three times. Pittsburgh finally pulled ahead on a goal from Stevenson late in the third. The Spirits pushed for the tying goal but could not beat Martensson as the series stretched to a sixth game in Pittsburgh. Frustration boiled over toward the end of the game as both teams began pushing and shoving by the benches and a few fights broke out with Nate Carroll and Roy Jones engaging in the main event at center ice. Pittsburgh was now only two wins away from the biggest comeback of all time while the Spirits suddenly found themselves unable to close out games.

St. Louis barely got into game six. Dave Farris opened the scoring and Pittsburgh went on to hold the lead the entire game until the final minutes when the Spirits found themselves on the powerplay when Brad Bush was called for high-sticking. The Spirits pulled Ricky Spooner and tried desperately to tie the game until Breedon slid the puck into the empty net to seal the win and force a miraculous game seven in St. Louis.

The Stingers had managed the impossible, rallying from a 3-0 deficit to force a game seven. Meanwhile, the stunned Spirits struggled to find answers. Martensson had played unbelievably for the Stingers, holding Appleby and Millen to only four points through three games. Game seven would be the first PHL game ever played in the month of June, and the Spirits came out flying in the first period. David Appleby scored just three minutes in before Niklas Ekberg followed with two goals of his own. St. Louis finally had control again for the first time since game three. Dave Farris scored for Pittsburgh to bring the game within two but that was as close as the Stingers would get. Grant Millen and Adam Lawless each scored before Appleby scored his second of the game to secure a 6-2 win and the third Lewis Cup in six years for the Spirits. An emotional Bob King had nothing but praise for his team. “I’ve never seen 20 men play like my guys did this week.” Said King, who refused to confirm his retirement.

With the victory, the Stingers clearly established themselves as the PHL’s latest dynasty. Appleby once again confirmed with his performance in game seven that he was among the best clutch performers in history.

1986 Playoffs

In 1922 The Philadelphia Redshirts, then playing in the old Eastern Hockey League, recruited a young man named Donald Graves. Graves led the team in scoring through most of 1922-23, his first season in professional hockey. Towards the end of the year, Graves was caught drinking with some friends, breaking strict team rules. Redshirts’ coach Herb Sheffield promptly released the 20-year-old, to which Graves allegedly promised the coach he would do everything in his power to ensure the Redshirts never again won a championship. Of course Graves’ intention was to accomplish this by joining a new club and leading them to victory. But tragedy struck when Graves became sick with pneumonia and died just weeks after his release.

17 years later, the Redshirts were one of the nine founding teams for the new Professional Hockey League. By this time, talk of a “curse” in Philadelphia had already begun. As the years turned into decades and the Redshirts continuously failed to bring home the Lewis Cup, urban legends about Donald Graves became more and more common, including many reports of Graves’ ghost being seen around the old Philadelphia Arena. When the Redshirts moved into the new PhillyDome, the hope among superstitious fans was that any presence preventing the team from winning would not follow the team to the new building. 1986, the most successful in the teams’ PHL history, would be the perfect test.

The Redshirts began their playoff run against Washington, a team returning to the post-season after a disappointing 1984-85 season. Gary Johnson continued as the top shut-down man in the league while budding superstar goalie Antero Parvainen played brilliantly as the Redshirts downed the Generals in five games. Veteran Boston forward Colin Fleming called the Bulldogs series with the Long Island Concordes the toughest two weeks of hockey he had ever played in. The home team won every game as Boston eked out wins in games five and seven at home to take the series. Game seven marked the end of legendary goaltender Bobby Sorel’s playing career. Also in the East, Nova Scotia defeated Detroit in a series that was much closer than the six games would indicate, while Danny Stevenson and the Stingers swept Toronto if four straight.

Out west, the Vancouver Bighorns made their first appearance in the playoffs since 1970, facing the Milwaukee Choppers in the first round. Milwaukee was heavily favoured to win the series and won the first two games at home fairly easily. However, the Bighorns managed to turn the momentum in Vancouver with two big overtime wins to tie the series. The OT hero in both games was young forward Brett Townsend. After the Choppers won game five to retake the lead, the teams again went to OT in game six, once again with Townsend scoring the winner. Townsend had set a unique PHL record scoring three overtime goals in the same series, earning him the nickname “Sudden Death”. The Bighorns had made the most of their return to the playoffs, but unfortunately their magic would run out in game seven. Milwaukee led 5-0 through two periods, eventually advancing with a 5-1 win.

Meanwhile, the Edmonton Northern Lights were determined to prove their colossal upset the previous year over St. Louis was no fluke. This time facing the Chicago Shamrocks, the Northern Lights once again employed a very chippy, physical playing style, often ganging up on superstar Vladimir Gaganov. It was no easy task, as the equally tough Shamrocks proved to be much better prepared for the physicality than the Spirits had. It proved to be a bizarre series when a game three Edmonton blowout resulted in an ugly brawl. The resulting suspensions left the Northern Lights without enough skaters for game four. Ultimately, third-string goalie Brent Kahler was forced to play as a forward in game four, which Edmonton won 3-2. The Northern Lights went on to upset the Shamrocks in seven games, establishing themselves as a playoff force. Elsewhere in the West, Seattle took out the Winnipeg Pioneers in six games, while David Appleby’s nine goals propelled the Spirits past the Denver Bulls in five.

In round two the Spirits finally got their opportunity for revenge against the Edmonton Northern Lights. David Appleby, determined not to be fazed this time by Edmonton’s hard-nosed style, scored a hat-trick in both games one and two, then followed up with five more goals over the next three games as St. Louis defeated Edmonton in five games. Appleby was back to his old form, scoring an incredible 20 goals in only ten playoff games. Appleby was also on pace to become the first player in PHL history to score at least one goal in every game during a playoff run. The other three second-round series all went to seven games. Nova Scotia took a 3-2 series lead over Pittsburgh before the Stingers won game six and seven to take the series, while Milwaukee managed to win a very tough seven-game series against the Seattle Grey Wolves, a victory that unfortunately cost the Choppers star forward Travis Curry, who went down with a knee injury in game six.

One of the PHL’s greatest and oldest rivalries was renewed when the Philadelphia Redshirts clashed with the Boston Bulldogs. The series was everything it was expected to be, tight, hard-hitting, and downright nasty. The teams split the first four games 2-2, before Boston edged out the Redshirts 4-3 in a very emotionally tense game. With their backs against the wall, the Redshirts won game five by a decisive score of 5-1. Emotions boiled over as the final buzzer sounded and three big fights broke out as the teams were leaving the ice. Game seven in at the PhillyDome was played before a crowd of over 31,000, one of the largest ever to watch a playoff game. The game went into overtime where Philly’s Jeff Waters rifled the puck past Boston goalie Ron Buckner to send the Redshirts to the Eastern Conference Final. It appeared the Redshirts might finally break the curse, but they would still have to get past their state rivals and the defending Lewis Cup Champions, Danny Stevenson and the Pittsburgh Stingers.

The Eastern Conference Finals promised to be dramatic series from start to finish and it did not disappoint. The teams split the first four games 2-2. Game five in Philadelphia proved to be one of the most exciting games in Redshirts’ history. Pittsburgh jumped to an early 2-0 lead with Stevenson and Risto Rautianen scoring the goals for the Stingers. In the third period, Gary Johnson’s goal on a point shot gave the Redshirts life. Jakob Martensson turned in a spectacular effort in goal for the Stingers as the Redshirts continued to press for the tying goal. Finally, veteran forward and former New York Civic Dave Tobin beat Martensson glove side to tie the game. Just three minutes into overtime, Brady Glenn scored on a breakaway to give Philadelphia a 3-2 win and a 3-2 series lead.

The Stingers would win game six 2-0 to force a game seven that would feature perhaps the strangest moment in PHL history. The Redshirts carried the play for the first two periods, finally jumping to a commanding 3-0 lead on goals from Jeff Waters, Magnus Swedberg, and Gary Nichols. It appeared the Redshirts were on their way to the Lewis Cup Finals. With less than six minutes left in the third, referee Doug Trevors suddenly blew his whistle. The call was too many men for Philadelphia, except nobody but Trevors had seen a sixth man on the ice. Play-by-play man Don Chafee thought he had seen a sixth man on the ice but replays confirmed that Philadelphia only had five men on the ice. Because the officials had no access to replays, the call on the ice stood and Pittsburgh went on the powerplay. The Philadelphia crowd was irate, as if they knew what would happen next. Just seconds into the powerplay, Danny Stevenson scored to put Pittsburgh back in the game. With the teams now at even strength, Terry Willis stunned the entire building with another goal for the Stingers just seconds after the Stevenson marker. The lead was now 3-2. The Stingers pulled Martensson with two minutes left and Stevenson scored again. 3-3. Clearly shaken up by the bad call, the Redshirts simply could not stop the bleeding so Zimmer called a timeout. With 29 seconds left, defenseman Jason Farrell turned the puck over, sending Kenny Sharp on a breakaway. Sharp flipped the puck over  Parvainen’s shoulder to give Pittsburgh the lead. Philly pressed but simply could not find the net. The fans began to throw garbage on the ice and the officials had to be escorted by police out of the arena. A devastated Doug Trevors had no real explanation of why he thought there was a sixth man, chalking it up to confusion, except that Don Chafee was convinced he had seen it too. Superstitious fans believed they knew immediately who it was, Donald Graves. According to many fans this was another effort by the Graves ghost to sabotage their beloved Redshirts. Philly coach David Zimmer dispelled the ghost talk and put the responsibility on his team. “It was a bad call to be sure, but the way we responded led to the loss” said the former star goalie. “We had a 3-0 lead and we blew it, we can’t blame that on anyone but ourselves.”

In the Western Conference Finals, the St. Louis Spirits seemed to hit a brick wall in the Milwaukee Choppers. Milwaukee trounced the Spirits 8-2 in game one, then took the series lead again in game three with a 3-1 win. With Travis Curry still out with an injured knee, Bruce Gratton and Terry Hawkins stepped up big for the Choppers while St. Louis struggled to keep up. After the Spirits tied the series in game four, Milwaukee once again took the lead in game five with a 3-2 victory. For the first time in the post-season, the Spirits found themselves backed into a corner. David Appleby, who’s goal streak had been promptly ended in game three, finally put the team in his back in game six, scoring two goals in a 4-2 win. Game seven would take place back in St. Louis, the prize being a trip to the Lewis Cup Final. The Choppers opened the scoring on a goal from Dale McGuire. Appleby responded with a tying goal just seconds later. Olivier Meloche then put the Chops ahead 2-1 before the flood gates opened for St. Louis. Appleby scored two more to complete the hat-trick while Grant Millen and rookie Adam Lawless each scored as well as the Spirits hung on for a 5-3 win to advance to a 1982 Lewis Cup rematch with the Pittsburgh Stingers.

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

1985-86 Regular Season

Tension had been building up between the Professional Hockey Players Association and the PHL throughout the summer ever since several prominent players made the decision to disclose their salaries. Things boiled over during training camp and at the conclusion of the pre-season, the players voted to strike. The union wanted mandatory full disclosure of player salaries, 45 percent of hockey-related revenues, and unrestricted free agency. Alan Garcia attempted to order the players back on the ice, even pushing the federal government to issue back-to-work legislation. The government said they would not get involved so Garcia and the owners were left with no choice but to negotiate with the players. Garcia hired Darryl Byrd, a well-known lawyer from Boston to negotiate on behalf of the owners. Byrd was known as a no-nonsense, tough negotiator who knew how to play hardball and made it known immediately he would not give in to the players easily. October 5, the day the season was supposed to start, came and went with no resolution. The strike went on through October and November as negotiations would start, then break down. The players continued to stand firm. By December, when there was a real fear that the unthinkable could happen and the season could be lost, the talks became more serious as both sides tried desperately to find middle ground. Finally, on December 6, Garcia put an end to the strike by agreeing to give the players 42 percent of revenues. Full disclosure of player salaries would also be mandatory, meaning players could now measure their worth against each other’s salaries. Unrestricted free agency would also be implemented, but not until the player reached age 30, or had played ten seasons in the league. The collective agreement would expire after the 1995-96 season with an option for two more seasons overall, the strike was seen as a huge success for the players, who seemingly had brought the league to its knees. A full year without hockey would be an unprecedented disaster for the league and Alan Garcia knew it.

A shortened 56-game regular season finally got underway on January 1, 1986. Teams would only play within their own conference. Philadelphia immediately took advantage of the odd schedule. Playing only against teams from the weaker Eastern Conference, The Redshirts managed to finish the year first overall in the league. Veteran defenseman Gary Johnson was a big reason for Philly’s success as he took home Defenseman of the Year honors, while 25-year-old Jeff Waters also enjoyed a career year with 54 goals. In the Northeast Division, Nova Scotia enjoyed another strong year, finishing first in their division, while Toronto returned to the post-season thanks in large part to the play of big rookie defenseman Randy Fernandez. In the West, Vancouver finally reached the playoffs for only the second time in their PHL history and the first time since 1970. St. Louis won the Central Division again, finishing just two points ahead of a surprising Milwaukee Choppers team. The Choppers, playing their first season in Milwaukee, made a big trade in early February when they sent rookie Elliot Andrews to the Detroit Mustangs in exchange for future hall-of-fame defenseman and Detroit captain Cliff Lyle. Lyle led all PHL defensemen in points as the Choppers won their last 16 games in a row to take second place in the West.

Despite all that was going on in the PHL, the hockey world was equally focused on the Quebec Hockey League in ’85-86. 18-year-old Vincent Ducharme was on pace to be the most dominant scorer in Canadian Junior Hockey history and had the full attention of the PHL. The Montreal Royale got off to a horrific start in January, losing their first 11 games of the year. Just three days prior to the season, head coach Don Shelburne had been diagnosed with Hodgkin’s Disease. Shelburne recovered but the season was already a lost cause for his new team by the time he made his Montreal debut. The Royale plummeted to last place with an 8-43-5 record, “earning” the right to select first overall in the draft. Montreal fans gave their team a standing ovation at the conclusion of the season, overjoyed that Vincent Ducharme would don Montreal colors. Alan Garcia, however, was not so pleased with the Royale. Garcia launched an investigation into the possibility that Montreal “tanked” their season in an effort to get Ducharme. Regular number one goaltender Victor Malmsten had only played 28 of the Royale’s 56 games, while several of Montreal’s regular skaters were healthy scratches toward the end of the year. Shelburne insisted the Royale were merely “resting” their players, not wanting to risk injuries at the end of a lost season. Garcia issued a strong warning to the Royale and all teams in the league that any similar behavior in the future would result in a loss of draft picks. For Montreal, it didn’t matter. It appeared their future was set as the team began selling jerseys with Vincent Ducharme’s name on them before the playoffs even started.

While the bottom-feeders excitedly prepared for what scouts called the strongest entry draft in PHL history, the contending teams prepared to battle for the Lewis Cup. The first place Philadelphia Redshirts were intent on ending the “Donald Graves Curse” and finally hoisting the Cup for the first time in franchise history, the St. Louis Spirits were determined to return to the final and resume their dynasty, while every other team was bent on taking both teams down.

Milwaukee Choppers Unveil Logo, Uniforms

On September 3, 1985, the newly relocated Milwaukee Choppers finally unveiled their much-anticipated logo. As owner Jerry Drum had already indicated, the logo features a speeding motorcycle imposed on a shield with flames sweeping the bottom corner of the shield. The team did make one last-minute change to their identity, changing their color scheme from Black and Gold to Black and Orange, a tribute to the Harley Davidson  company. "We feel really good about our look" said Drum. "We wanted the logo to represent speed and power and I think it definitely accomplishes that."