1978 Off-Season

1978 PHL Entry Draft

The 1978 PHL Entry Draft was an important moment for the Winnipeg Pioneers franchise, who picked first overall. The Pioneers selected big forward Mike Wheeler with the first pick. Wheeler had won back-to-back scoring titles while playing major junior, while also leading his team in penalty minutes as well. After Wheeler, the next three picks were defensemen, with Swedish import Jonas Ekbom going second overall to Philadelphia. Ekbom was not the only European selected as the European invasion continued. Magnus Skoglund was selected by Detroit fifteenth overall, Finnish defenseman Jari Pukki was taken eighteenth by St. Louis, while Montreal finally got their future number one goaltender in Swedish goaltender Victor Malmsten.

1.      Winnipeg – Mike Wheeler, F, CAN

2.      Philadelphia – Jonas Ekbom, D, SWE

3.      Nova Scotia – Brett Curry, D, CAN

4.      Boston – Doug Graham, D, USA

5.      Vancouver – Donald Stone, F, CAN

6.      Dallas – Dale Mcguire, F, CAN

7.      Calgary – Gary Fox, D, USA

8.      Long Island – Brian Reese, F, CAN

9.      Toronto – Rex Hull, F, CAN

10.   Seattle – Paul Walsh, F, CAN

11.   Edmonton – Darrell Cox, F, CAN

12.   Washington – James Russell, D, USA

13.   California – Pat Lloyd, F, CAN

14.   Quebec – JC Girard, F, CAN

15.   Detroit – Magnus Skoglund, F, SWE

16.   New York – Clark Pratt, F, USA

17.   Denver – Kerry Patton, D

18.   St. Louis – Jari Pukki, D, FIN

19.   Chicago – Jim McCarthy, F, CAN

20.   Ottawa – Joe Fletcher, D, CAN

21.   Pittsburgh – Terry Willis, F, CAN

22.   Minnesota – Brett Flores, D, CAN

23.   Montreal – Victor Malmsten, G, SWE

24.   LA – Dan Schwartz, F, CAN

Notable Retirements:

Vince Ward, F, PHI, OTT, 1958-1978

For 20 years, Vince Ward was one of the steadiest and most reliable players in the PHL. Ward played 8 years for the Philadelphia Redshirts, where he helped the Redshirts to the Lewis Cup Finals in 1960. In 1966, Ward was traded to the Ottawa Beavers, where he played 12 years. In 1977, Ward finally returned to the finals with the Beavers, who ultimately lost to the LA Wizards.

Stan Desmond, F, HAM/WSH, EDM, 1960-1978

Stan Desmond played a key role for the Hamilton Kings/Washington Generals franchise for 16 years. Desmond played in the playoffs for Hamilton in 1961 but did not play in the post-season again until after the Kings had moved to Washington just over a decade later. In the twilight of his career, Desmond served as an important veteran presence in Washington. In 1976, Desmond was selected in an expansion draft by the Edmonton Northern Lights, where he played two years, leading the club to the playoffs both seasons.

Alan Fox, F, NS, SEA, 1959-1978

When awarded an expansion franchise in 1959, the first player the Nova Scotia Claymores recruited was Alan Fox. Fox went on to be a franchise player for the Claymores for 15 years, helping to lead them to a Lewis Cup in 1967. Fox played for Nova Scotia until 1974, when he was picked up by another expansion team, the Seattle Grey Wolves. Fox played the final 4 years of his career in Seattle, where he finally led the Wolves to the post-season.

Transactions

Boston trades F Phil Reid to Minnesota in exchange for F Denis Poirier and two first-round picks in 1979 and 1980.

The Minnesota Lumberjacks make it clear they are chasing a title with this big trade by bringing in another superstar in Phil Reid. However, the ‘Jacks are paying a very steep price, while Boston finally fully commits to their rebuild, acquiring a top notch prospect in Denis Poirier as well as two first-round picks that will be instrumental in the Bulldogs’ rebuild.

News

Perhaps the biggest news item in 1978 was decisions regarding the 1980 World Hockey Challenge. Prague, Czechoslovakia was selected as the host city. The host Czechs will enter an expanded 8-team tournament along with Great Britain. The format will also change to feature a shortened round-robin as well as a playoff round.

In PHL news, the Boston Bulldogs fired long-time head coach Bruce Winter, replacing him with former NCAA coach Bill Truman. Winter did not take long to find new work, however, signing on as the new head coach of the Winnipeg Pioneers. 

PHL Agrees to 20-Year Uniform Deal

In June, 1978, the PHL signed a groundbreaking 20-year uniform deal with sporting apparel giant SporTech. The new deal will make SporTech the exclusive provider for all PHL game jerseys and socks right through the 1997-98 season. This is the first time the league has gone with one uniform supplier for the whole league as teams previously had their own deals, typically with local companies. Last season, the Professional Basketball League also made SporTech it's exclusive jersey supplier. SporTech faced stiff competition to secure the deal. Duke Sporting Equipment and Windsor Hockey both made a push for the rights as well. In the end, the PHL felt that the technology and advancements SporTech has made with it's uniforms was too good to pass up. The uniforms will be made out of a loose mesh-like fabric that will make the jerseys feel significantly lighter. Part of the deal is that the SporTech logo will appear on the bottom back corner of each jersey.

Although most PHL clubs simply carried their uniforms over to the new system, a handful of teams decided to take the opportunity to make changes.

Denver took their primary logo out of the circle and removed all text while also introducing completely redesigned uniforms. The Bulls had previously planned to change their color scheme to Blue, Red, and Yellow, the colors from the Colorado state flag, but the change was blocked by the league due to concerns that it would be too similar to the California Nuggets.

The Minnesota Lumberjacks made some minor changes to their uniforms, changing the striping patterns at the waist and sleeves and removing the shoulder yoke from both jerseys.

The Calgary Wranglers made perhaps the biggest changes. The Wranlgers updated their logo to include white, introduced a secondary logo featuring a horseshoe forming a "C". The Wranglers also completely changed the striping on their jerseys.

1978 Lewis Cup Finals

The 1978 Lewis Cup Finals would pit back-to-back champions, the LA Wizards, against the upstart Pittsburgh Stingers. Although LA was favoured to win the series, nobody was completely willing to count the Stingers out. Game one would yield a surprising result. Danny Stevenson scored twice, while Gary Bowen made 45 saves including a brilliant stop on Gilbert Giroux that would’ve tied the game in the second period as Pittsburgh took the game 3-1. The Wizards knew they had to step it up in game 2. Holly opened the scoring before Giroux scored to make it 2-0. Just minutes into the third, Stevenson and Nate Carroll each scored to tie the game. Pittsburgh nearly scored again in the third but Dennis Carter made two brilliant saves to preserve the tie and send the game to overtime. In OT, Sheldon Hopkins proved to be the hero, beating Gary Bowen to give LA a 3-2 victory to tie the series. Game three would not be quite so close, as the Wizards never let the Stingers into the game in a 3-0 shutout. LA appeared to be in control. 

Game four would be another close affair, tied 2-2 again after two periods. This time it would not reach overtime, as Ray Fowler delivered the winner before Roy Priest sealed it with the empty-netter. LA was one win away from a third consecutive title. Back home for game five, the Wizards struggled to find the net through the first period while Dennis Carter answered every Pittsburgh challenge. Finally, the Wizards broke through late in the second, as Fowler scored on a breakaway. Before the Stingers could even begin their late push to tie the game, defenseman Dawson Robb’s point shot found the back of the Pittsburgh net. Dennis Carter responded to a late push from Pittsburgh with a series of big saves as the Wizards hung on to the shutout until the buzzer finally sounded. The LA Wizards were Lewis Cup Champions for the third straight season, the first team to win three in a row since the Quebec Nationale of the early 60s. With another big performance throughout the season and playoffs, Stuart Holly was quickly cementing his status as the best player in the game, while the Holly/Fowler pairing was being called the greatest duo in sports. Gilbert Giroux, who won four cups with Quebec in the ‘60s, had now won more titles than any player in history. After less than a decade in the league, the Wizards were now a true dynasty.

1978 Playoffs

As the 1978 playoffs got underway, all the talk seemed to be about the Minnesota Lumberjacks and Guy Dupont’s bold championship guarantee. The Lumberjacks began their quest for the title against the Edmonton Northern Lights. Things got off to an ugly start for the ‘Jacks, as Edmonton led the series 2-1 after the first three games with a pair of shutouts. When he was inevitably asked about the guarantee after game 3, Dupont simply responded confidently, “We’ll be OK”. The captain backed up his words with a big performance in game 4, with a goal and an assist that helped Minnesota tie the series 2-2. The Lumberjacks never looked back as they went on to win the series in six.  The St. Louis Spirits were confident entering their first round series against Denver. For the first time, they finally felt they could contend for the cup. However, it was Denver who immediately jumped to a 3-0 lead with three straight 2-1 victories. The Spirits valiantly won games four and five, setting up a surprisingly dramatic finish, where Denver won game six 2-0 to advance. To round out the first round of the Western Conference playoffs, Chicago took down the California Nuggets in six games, while LA put a swift end to Seattle’s playoff debut, defeating the Grey Wolves in five games.

In the Eastern Conference, the most intriguing series took place between the surprising Pittsburgh Stingers and the Washington Generals. The Stingers momentum from their incredible regular season carried over to the playoffs as they jumped to a quick 3-0 series lead thanks mostly to five points from Danny Stevenson. Washington would respond in game 4, however, with a convincing 3-0 win. Washington would then win games five and six to bring the dramatic series to a seventh and deciding game. Game seven in Pittsburgh would prove to be just as dramatic. Tied 2-2 in  the third period, goaltenders Don Lapin and Gary Bowen made several big stops to keep the game tied. With just 40 seconds left, Washington star Gilbert Boudreau ringed a shot off the post. Gary Bowen made another huge save on Gerry Stokes with 21 seconds left to send the game to overtime. Just over one minute into overtime, Pittsburgh’s Dave Breedon finally beat Don Lapin to give the Stingers the victory and send them to the second round. Elsewhere in the Eastern Conference, Montreal took seven games to take down the Toronto Racers, Ottawa defeated Quebec in five games, while New York made short work of Detroit, sweeping them in four straight.

In the second round, the Denver Bulls momentum ran out as they succumbed to the powerful LA Wizards in four straight. The Minnesota Lumberjacks confidently jumped to a 2-0 series lead over the Chicago Shamrocks. The Shamrocks tightened up at home, however, tying the series at two apiece. Realizing that the series would not come easily, Minnesota played an outstanding game at home in game five, leading the Shamrocks 3-2 entering the third period. The Shamrocks would score two quick goals in the final four minutes however, to win the game and take a 3-2 series lead. Guy Dupont’s guarantee was in serious jeopardy as the Lumberjacks faced elimination in game six. In game six, Chicago goaltender Tim Massey shut the door, only allowing one goal as the Shamrocks sent the Lumberjacks home with a 3-1 victory. When asked if he regretted his bold words prior to the playoffs, Guy Dupont simply responded “No, I said that to try to spark my team. Unfortunately it didn’t work this time, but I don’t regret anything.” In the Eastern Conference, both series went to the full seven games. The New York Civics took an early 3-1 lead over Montreal, before the Royale came back to force game seven. Gil Brady made a heroic 71 saves for New York as the Civics won 2-1 to advance to the Eastern Conference Final for the fourth year in a row. In other Eastern Conference action, Pittsburgh faced the defending Eastern Conference champions, the Ottawa Beavers. Ottawa was heavily favored and it showed in game one as the Beavers skated to a 5-1 victory. Pittsburgh responded in games two and three with a pair of victories to give them a 2-1 series lead. The momentum would shift in game four after a big hit from Ottawa’s Randy McCracken on Pittsburgh’s Nate Carroll knocked Carroll out of the game. Ottawa went on to win 3-1, then took game five 3-2 to lead the series three games to two. Pittsburgh’s magical season appeared to be all but over. However in game six Nate Carroll returned to the Stingers’ lineup and even assisted on Danny Stevenson’s winning goal in the second period while Gary Bowen stood tall as Pittsburgh forced the series to a seventh game in Ottawa. In game seven, the Stingers jumped to a 3-0 lead by the second period. Despite a third period Ottawa push that would result in one goal, the Stingers held on to take the game and the series.

Both conference final series would be fairly uneventful. Chicago never stood a chance against the mighty LA Wizards. Stuart Holly and Ray Fowler combined for 18 points as the Wizards took out the Shamrocks in five games. In the East, Pittsburgh’s momentum continued as they quickly jumped to a 3-0 lead over the New York Civics. New York won game four, but Pittsburgh stepped up in game five, forcing the game to overtime, where Kenny Sharp scored early to send the Stingers to the Lewis Cup Finals, just one year after finishing last place in the Atlantic Division.

Round 1

Round 2

Round 3

1977-78 Regular Season

The 1977-78 PHL season saw several players enjoy breakout seasons, but none quite like Pittsburgh’s 

 Danny Stevenson. Stevenson scored a record 91 goals, helping to lead the Stingers from last place in their division to a miraculous first place finish in the Atlantic Division. In addition to Stevenson’s incredible season, Pittsburgh’s turnaround season was also due to brilliant coaching from Bob King, and a big rookie season from Finnish forward Risto Rautianen. Only two other teams reached the playoffs, New York and Washington. Long Island missed the playoffs, despite a fairly strong second season, Boston also missed the post-season, and Philadelphia suffered a disastrous season due to injuries to Gil Parsons, Bobby Ford, and David Johnson. The Redshirts fell all the way to a tie for last place in the league.  In the Northeast Division, Montreal retook first place, while Ottawa finished second. Detroit triumphantly returned to the playoffs with 39 wins, their best season since the dynasty years. Quebec also returned to the post-season thanks to a big year from young forward Etienne St. Laurent, who scored 44 goals. Toronto just squeaked into the playoffs, needing a win over Quebec and a Long Island loss on the final day of the season to get in.

In the Western Conference, LA won the Pacific Division once again in dominant fashion, while Minnesota took the Central Division for the fourth straight year. Lumberjacks’ captain Guy Dupont made it very clear he was not satisfied with his team’s playoff performance in recent years, boldly guaranteeing that the ‘Jacks would win the Lewis Cup in 1978. Dupont’s bold statement made headlines across the country. Elsewhere in the Western Conference, Chicago enjoyed another strong season, taking second in the Central. David Appleby led the St. Louis Spirits to third place in the Division and fourth place in the Western Conference. Denver rounded out the playoff teams in the Central while Dallas and Winnipeg’s struggles continued as both teams missed the playoffs once again. Despite a tough season, California managed to take second in the Pacific Division, while Edmonton actually improved on their strong debut season and finished third in the Pacific to reach the post-season once again. In Seattle, the Grey Wolves finally broke through and made the playoffs for the first time in franchise history, with Pete Holloway and Jake Fairbanks both enjoying breakout seasons. With two new playoff teams, LA’s bid for a third consecutive Cup, not to mention Guy Dupont’s bold guarantee, there was no shortage of dramatic storylines heading into the 1978 post-season.

1977 Off-Season

1977 Entry Draft

The biggest story of the 1977 PHL entry draft was definitely the surge of European and American talent entering the league. For the first time ever, a Canadian player was not picked until Carl Kennedy went third overall to Nova Scotia. Brian Donovan, already famous for his stellar performance for team USA during the 1976 World Hockey Challenge, made history as both the first American and the first goaltender to be selected first overall when Detroit nabbed him with their top pick. Another American, Brian West, the son of PHL legend Sam West, was selected second overall by Vancouver. Among the Europeans selected in the draft were Finland’s Risto Rautianen, who went to Pittsburgh, and Sweden’s Filip Holmgren, Thomas Akerlund, and Hannes Rehnquist, who were selected by Seattle, California, and Montreal respectively. Philadelphia took a big risk on Soviet forward Vladimir Gaganov, who tore up the World Hockey Challenge, winning the tournament MVP. The issue would be whether or not the Soviet Union would allow its top player to play in the United States, a prospect that seemed very unlikely.

1.      Detroit – Brian Donovan, G, USA

2.      Vancouver – Brian West, D, USA

3.      Nova Scotia – Carl Kennedy, F, CAN

4.      Dallas – Glenn Hammond, F, CAN

5.      Quebec – JP Leclerc, D, CAN

6.      Winnipeg – Pat Luna, D, CAN

7.      Pittsburgh – Risto Rautianen, F, FIN

8.      Seattle – Filip Holmgren, F, SWE

9.      Boston – Bruce McKinnon, D, USA

10.   Edmonton – Ted Clifton, F, CAN

11.   Toronto – Owen Scott, F, CAN

12.   Calgary – Ron Chambers, F, CAN

13.   Long Island – Tom Hunter, F, CAN

14.   St. Louis – Ralph Dixon, F, CAN

15.   Washington – Kurt Reed, D, CAN

16.   Denver – Andy Gray, G, CAN

17.   Philadelphia – Vladimir Gaganov, F, RUS

18.   Chicago – Roger Hughs, D, CAN

19.   New York – Doug Bryant, D, CAN

20.   California – Thomas Akerlund, F, SWE

21.   Montreal – Hannes Rehnquist, D, SWE

22.   Ottawa – Paul Hines, D, CAN

23.   Minnesota – Ken Powell, F, CAN

24.   Edmonton (From LA) – Kevin Gross, D, CAN

Notable Retirements:

Mark Benson, F, Toronto, 1956-1977

Mark Benson will go down as arguably the greatest and most popular players ever to wear the double blue in Toronto. Benson arrived in Toronto as a 19-year-old in 1956 and led the Racers to the Lewis Cup Finals in his first season, where they lost to the New York Civics. In 1958, Benson and the Racers edged Philadelphia in seven games to finally take their first title since 1940 with Benson finishing second in playoff scoring. In 1964, Benson would win his second championship with the Racers, but it would be the last one of his career. He would go on to play a total of 21 seasons in Toronto, leading the franchise all-time in scoring and games played. Benson also served as president of the Professional Hockey Players Association from 1968 until his retirement.

Don Greer, F, Boston, Edmonton, 1958-1977

Don Greer served as a leader with the Boston Bulldogs for 18 seasons, helping them win two Lewis Cups in 1959 and 1971. In game seven of the 1959 final, an 18-year-old Greer scored the tying goal in an eventual 2-1 Boston victory. Greer’s heart and determination combined with his skill made him a fan favorite in Boston. In 1976, Bulldogs fans hearts broke when Greer was selected in the expansion draft by the Edmonton Northern Lights. He played one season with Edmonton, leading them into the playoffs, before retiring in 1977.

James Steger, G, Nova Scotia, Dallas, 1960-1977

Originally recruited by the Hamilton Kings in 1957, James Steger never managed to crack the Kings’ lineup and was released in 1959. His big chance finally came when he was signed by the Nova Scotia Claymores in 1960. Steger quickly helped take the Claymores from lowly expansion team to Lewis Cup Champions in 1967. In 1974, an aging Steger was left unprotected in the expansion draft. Chosen by Dallas, Steger played three years with the Metros before retiring.

Transactions

CGY releases F Sven Larsson, Larsson signs with DET

Larsson will get a considerable increase in ice time in Detroit.

WPG trades F Tim Douglas to MTL in exchange for F George Dickerson

The blockbuster trade of the summer sees the rebuilding Pioneers deal their captain to the Royale, who are hoping to contend this year. In return, Winnipeg gets one of the best young players in the game in Dickerson.

News

The summer of 1977 was a fairly quiet one for the PHL. Among the biggest headlines were a few coaching changes. Nova Scotia fired longtime head coach John Coupe, replacing him with former Claymores defenseman Randy Kane. The Pittsburgh Stingers, determined to finally reach the post season, cleaned out their front office firing both head coach Scott Merkel and GM Neil Jacobs. The Stingers hired veteran PHL coach Bob King as their new head coach and Sam Greer as their GM. King previously coached the Philadelphia Redshirts and Ottawa Beavers in a coaching career dating back to 1958, while Greer had played for the Stingers during their GHL days and early PHL days before going on to manage a junior club in Pittsburgh to back to back championships. Upon being fired by Pittsburgh, Neil Jacobs went on to sign with the Vancouver Bighorns as their new GM.

In other news, Denver Bulls’ captain Brian Hunt was named the new president of the PHPA in the wake of Mark Benson’s retirement. “I’m excited and honoured to have the opportunity to represent my fellow players” said Hunt.