Hockey Programs

1958-59 Regular Season Red Wings vs. Toronto Maple Leafs      1958-59 was the 23rd season of Detroit Red Wings hockey. The Wings were just four years removed from their most recent Stanley Cup win (1955), but the franchise had fallen quite far since the mid-1950s. The Wings were coming off a disappointing third-place finish (29-29-12) and a blowout loss to Montreal in the first round in four straight. Detroit also had their first midseason coaching change, as Jimmy Skinner resigned 37 games into the season due to illness, replaced by former Production Line center Sid Abel. Abel returned behind the bench for 1958-59, while Jack Adams was in his 31st consecutive season as General Manager. Home games were played at Olympia Stadium.      The Red Wings continued their downward slide in 1958-59, finishing in last place in the NHL with a 25-37-8 record. Their 58 points were six points back of fifth place New York and 33 behind first place Montreal. This was the fi...

1945-46 Regular Season Red Wings vs. Montreal Canadiens      The Detroit Red Wings were in their 19th season of operation when the 1945-46 season opened. World War 2 was still raging, but was nearing it's end. Many of the top stars in the league were either in the armed forces or working defense jobs to help with the war effort. The Red Wings were missing several players, but remained competitive during the war years, winning the Stanley Cup in 1942-43 and reaching the Finals in 1944-45. Jack Adams was General Manager and Head Coach of the Red Wings, positions he had held since the franchise's second season (as the Detroit Cougars). Home games were played at Olympia Stadium, which held 11,563.      The Red Wings finished 20-20-10 in 1945-46, fourth place in the NHL. Their 50 points were five points ahead of fifth place (and defending champion) Toronto, but just six points back of second-place Boston.       Adams had a low-scoring team th...

1965-66 Regular Season Rangers vs. Boston Bruins      Since winning the Stanley Cup in 1940 and finishing first overall in 1942, the Rangers went through a long stretch of mediocrity. World War 2 and Lester Patrick's ill-fated decision to sell off the team's farm club completely derailed the Rangers franchise, which limped through numerous years of frustration. By 1965-66, the Rangers had missed the postseason 18 times since 1942, reaching the Finals just one time in that span (1950).      1965-66 was more of the same, as the Rangers finished last with a 18-41-11 record. Their measly 47 points were just one point behind fifth place Boston, but 27 behind fourth-place Detroit. New York averaged 12,247 per game to the 15,925-seat Madison Square Garden. Head Coach Red Sullivan was fired after a 5-10-5 start, replaced by General Manager Emile Francis.      New York had the second-worst offense in the NHL that season, scoring 195 goals. Former Leaf...

1965-66 Regular Season Red Wings vs. New York Rangers  Note: Emile Francis autographed this program (according to the person who sold it to me). If you look closely, Ted Lindsay's autograph is by Arnie Brown's left leg. The 1960s had been a decent decade for the Red Wings, heading into the 1965-66 season. While not the powerhouse the team was back in the early-mid 1950s (they typically finished fourth), the Wings had qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs five of the last six seasons, reaching the Finals three times. Detroit had rode the hot goaltending of rookie Roger Crozier to a first place finish in 1964-65, their first time finishing first since 1956-57. Sid Abel returned as Head Coach/General Manager, the second season he had both titles. Home games were played at the 13,375-seat Olympia Stadium.      The Red Wings finished comfortably in fourth place in 1965-66, with a 31-27-12 record. Their 74 points put them 26 points ahead of fifth place Boston and just fiv...

Note: Years ago, I had a post about "White Whales" for programs. A Port Huron Clippers program was one of them. I saw this on eBay last week and grabbed it immediately.        1987-88 AAHL Playoffs Clippers vs. Danville Fighting Saints      The 1980s were a bit of a "lost decade" for hockey in Port Huron. Following the folding of the IHL's Port Huron Flags in 1981, the city was represented by the Port Huron Jr. Flags from 1981-84. The Jr. Flags were a successful team in its first two seasons, going to the national championship tournament and dominating the Great Lakes Jr. B Hockey League. Their final season was a different story, as the team went 3-42-3 in the much stronger Western Jr. B Hockey League, based out of Ontario. Despite being welcomed back by that league for 1984-85, McMorran Arena folded the Jr. Flags when they could not get permission from USA Hockey to continue playing in that circuit. Other than high school hockey and the occasional sen...

  1977-78 Regular Season Wolverines vs. North Dakota Fighting Sioux      The University of Michigan has had college hockey since 1922-23 and has won nine NCAA National Championships (second most in college hockey). Since 1973, home ice has been at Yost Ice Arena, which currently seats 5800. Dan Farrell was head coach of the Wolverines for his fourth season. The team competed in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association (WCHA).       Michigan was coming off a trip to the 1977 NCAA Championship Game, losing 6-5 to Wisconsin at Olympia Stadium in Detroit. The 1977-78 squad took a step back, finishing 15-20-1 (12-19-1 in conference play). Their 25 conference points put the Wolverines in a three way tie for seventh place in the WCHA (with Minnesota-Duluth and Notre Dame), nine points ahead of last-place Michigan State.       Michigan scored 169 goals that year, 6th-most in the WCHA. They were led by senior center Dave Debol. The Chi...