San Diego Gulls (WHL, 1973-74)

1973-74 Regular Season--Gulls vs. Seattle Totems

     1973-74 was an improvement over the previous season, as Jack Evans' Gulls finished 40-33-5. That record was good enough for third place in the Western Hockey League, only four points behind league-leading Phoenix.
     Goals-against went up this season, but so did the offense. San Diego was still next-to-last in goal scoring, but they lit the lamp 278 times, a marked improvement from the previous year. Mike Bloom was the leading point-scorer, with 69 points, while Tom Trevelyan had a team-best 31 goals. Five other Gulls scored at least 20.
     San Diego was third best in the goals-against department, allowing 281. The team went through five different goaltenders, but John Adams played the majority of games (69). Bob Champoux, on the roster for that night's game against Seattle, was later dealt to Salt Lake.
     The Gulls again made the WHL Playoffs in 1973-74 and, again, faced Phoenix in Round One. The Roadrunners advanced in four straight, but the series was a close one, as three of the four games were decided by one goal.
     As you can see, this program was autographed by three different players: Bernie Gagnon, Connie Madigan and Jake Rathwell. Madigan would later be dealt to Portland, Gagnon scored 40 points (19 goals) and Rathwell had 16 points (6 goals).
     A Gulls' player of note in that night's program is Willie O'Ree. O'Ree made history in 1957-58 for becoming the first African American to play in the National Hockey League, playing 2 games with Boston. He later played in 43 games for the Bruins in 1960-61, his final year in the NHL.

Aftermath: 1973-74 proved to be the final season of not only the San Diego Gulls, but the Western Hockey League itself. Due to rising costs and competition from the new World Hockey Association, the WHL folded, with several teams joining the rival Central Hockey League for the 1974-75 season. The Gulls, a very popular team in their time, did not join the CHL. The franchise folded and was replaced by the San Diego Mariners of the WHA. The Mariners were originally the New York Raiders/Golden Blades/Jersey Knights, who flopped in their two seasons in the New York area. The Mariners lasted three seasons, drawing small crowds, before folding. Two different teams used the "San Diego Gulls" monicker years later in the IHL and WCHL/ECHL.

Sources:

Western Hockey League Statistics: 1973-74, (from hockeydb.com)

Comments

Port Huron Hockey: Flags/Wings (1962-81)

Now, on to Port Huron. Port Huron has had a long, yet checkered, history of pro hockey. The most successful franchise, by far, was the Port Huron Flags (also called Wings for a few years) of the IHL. The Flags were, for the most part, a competitve team on the ice, making the Turner Cup Finals seven times and winning the Cup on three occasions. For three years, (1971-74), the franchise was a farm team of the Detroit Red Wings, and sent numerous players on to the NHL in it's existence. However, the team had problems drawing big enough crowds. While the Flags lasted for nearly 20 years, former GM Morris Snider later admitted that the franchise could have folded three years before it actually did, due to declining attendance. I've found some Flags/Wings programs online over the years, and here's what I have. 1963-64 Regular Season--Flags vs. Windsor 1963-64 was the second year of existence for the Flags. After missing the...

Indianapolis Checkers (IHL, 1985-86)

1985-86 Regular Season Checkers vs. Flint Spirits The Indianapolis Checkers were back for their second season in the IHL after five seasons in the defunct Central Hockey League. The Checkers remained a secondary affiliate of both the New York Islanders and Minnesota North Stars. Larry Woods purchased the Checkers after the 1984-85 season and moved the team to the 15,900-seat Market Square Arena, home of the NBA's Indiana Pacers. The team kept their Islanders-styled uniforms, but changed the logo. Former Port Huron Flags coach Ron Ullyot was named Coach/GM of the Checkers, and his team greatly improved on their first IHL season. Indy finished with a 41-35-6 mark. They finished last in the very competitive West Division, which had all the teams win at least 40 games. The Checkers' 88 points would have easily taken fourth place in the East. Indy scored just 296 goals that year, better than only Flint and Toledo. Longtime minor lea...

Muskegon Mohawks (IHL, 1965-84)

I know, I said earlier I was going to look at Detroit's minor league teams. That would mean the Vipers would be next, but I decided to cover them later when I had time (I have a TON of programs from that team). Instead, I'm going to look briefly at Muskegon. Muskegon has had a long, colorful past in professional hockey. It all started in 1960 with the expansion Muskegon Zephyrs of the IHL. Five seasons later, 1965-66, the Zephyrs became the Mohawks, and remain so until 1984-85, when they became the Lumberjacks. The Lumberjacks would remain in town through the 1992-93 season. After that season, the franchise would relocate to Cleveland, Ohio. Here are the Mohawks programs I have, along with a couple bonus scans. The Mohawks existed from 1965-84, about 20 seasons, and had two vastly different eras of success. From 1965-76, the Mohawks finished above .500 10 times, winning the Huber Trophy (Regular Season Championship) six times and the ...

Hockey Programs

Search This Blog