Hockey Programs

1976-77 Regular Season Black Hawks vs. Colorado Rockies      Despite the picture on the front cover, this is actually a Chicago Black Hawks program from 1976-77. Many teams used Goal Magazine as the team's official program during this time. Tommy Ivan continued his storied career as Hawks GM, dating back to 1954 after coaching in Detroit. The Hawks were part of the Smythe Division in the Campbell Conference, along with the Colorado Rockies, Vancouver Canucks, St. Louis Blues and Minnesota North Stars. Not the strangest division setup in the league that year, but still rather spread out. By the way, "Black Hawks" was the proper way to write the team's nickname back then. It wasn't until the late 1980s that the Hawks dropped the space in their nickname.      Chicago had a miserable season in 1976-77, with a 26-43-11 record. However, this would still give them a third place finish in the mediocre Smythe Division, ahead of Vancouver and Colorado. In fact, no team

1975-76 Regular Season Gears vs. Port Huron Flags      The Saginaw Gears were in their fourth season of existence and were really starting to get on a roll, on and off the ice. In the previous three seasons, Saginaw reached the Turner Cup Finals, coming within one win of the Cup in 1975. Fans from Saginaw and throughout Mid-Michigan flocked to the Saginaw Civic Center, helping the Gears become one of the hottest tickets not only in the IHL, but in minor-pro hockey. This no doubt pleased President/GM Wren Blair, who retained Head Coach Don Perry      The Gears built on the momentum from the past two seasons by clinching their first-ever North Division championship, with a sparkling 43-26-9 record. Their 95 points put the Gears 12 points ahead of the second-place Port Huron Flags, and 9 back of the Huber Trophy winning Dayton Gems.      Saginaw missed having the IHL's most potent offense by a single goal, as they pumped in 339 in 1975-76. They were led on offense by Paul Evans,

1977-78 Regular Season Gears vs. Fort Wayne Komets      The Saginaw Gears were the defending Turner Cup Champions heading into the 1977-78 IHL season. Wren Blair continued to run the six-year old franchise as President/GM, while Don Perry was back behind the bench. The Gears were still a secondary affiliate of both the Toronto Maple Leafs and Los Angeles Kings.      Championship teams often experience numerous call-ups after the season, and the Gears were no different. Coach Perry had to replace players such as leading scorer Paul Evans, future NHL defenseman Greg Hotham and goaltender Mario Lessard. Saginaw also lost forward Wayne Zuk and defenseman Gordie Malinoski to retirement. However, their replacements were more than up to the challenge in 1978. The Gears finished the season with a spectacular 40-28-12 record. Their 92 points clinched the team's third-straight North Division title, 8 points head of the Kalamazoo Wings, and just 5 behind Huber Trophy-winning Fort Wayne.

1973-74 Regular Season Gears vs. Columbus Owls      The Saginaw Gears were in their second season of existence in the International Hockey League by 1973-74. The Gears were a secondary affiliate of the Minnesota North Stars and were still owned by former North Stars executive Wren Blair. Former EHL tough-guy Don Perry returned behind the bench, and would remain their through 1981. The Gears played their home games at Wendler Arena (now the Dow Event Center).      After a dismal inaugural season, the Gears roster got a bit of a makeover. The core of last year's team, including Dennis Desrosiers, Marcel Comeau, Stu Irving, Mike Hornby and Russ Friesen, returned for Year Two. An offseason trade with the Dayton Gems brought in defenseman Gordie Malinoski, who supplied both experience and brawn (333 PIM).      The Gears  were a much-improved squad in their sophomore season, finishing with a 38-34-4 record. Their 80 point finish was a 17-point improvement over 1972-73 and placed Sa

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 leaguer Charlie Skojdt led the tea

1987-88 Turner Cup Playoffs Hawks vs. Flint Spirits      1987-88 was a fresh start for the Saginaw Generals. After two seasons in Saginaw (using the nickname and colors of Flint's former team), the franchise was rechristened the Saginaw Hawks. The team became the primary farm team of the NHL's Chicago Blackhawks and adopted uniforms virtually identical to the parent club. The lone difference was the shoulder patch, which had an S instead of a C with the interlocking tomahawks. Dr. Eugene Chardoul remained as President of the club, while Dennis Desrosiers returned for his fifth year behind the bench (two in Flint, three in Saginaw). Peter Horachek took off the skates and joined "Rosie" behind the bench as his assistant coach.      The Hawks had an excellent season in 1987-88, finishing with a 45-30-7 record. Their 97 points would have won the Western Divison crown, but was only good enough for third in the very competitive Eastern Division. The Hawks were four poi

1984-85 Turner Cup Playoffs Generals vs. Kalamazoo Wings      The Flint Generals were in their sixteenth year of existence in 1984-85. The franchise was coming off it's finest hour in the previous year, winning their first-ever Turner Cup championship. The Generals swept aside both Milwaukee and Toledo in four straight, the first team to sweep to the Cup since the 1969 Dayton Gems.      Dr. Eugene Chardoul led the consortium that had owned the Generals for the past several years. Former Saginaw Gears and Generals forward Dennis Desrosiers returned for his second season as head coach and general manager. The team played their home games at the 4,021-seat IMA Sports Arena.      Desrosiers' Generals had a fine season in 1984-85, going 43-32-4. Their 93 points placed them in second place in the IHL Eastern Division, ten points behind league-best Muskegon. Flint had the third-most goals scored that season, with 349. Gilles Thibaudeau, a rookie from the Montreal system, led the

1969-70 Regular Season Generals vs. Des Moines Oak Leafs      Flint's long run in professional hockey began in 1969, when a group led by Frank Gallagher purchased an IHL expansion franchise for the Vehicle City. The team was called "Flint Generals" in a nod to the city's close ties to General Motors, which had several factories in town then. Gallagher, a former IHL commissioner as well as former General Manager of the Port Huron Flags, was named GM of the new Generals. He then named Ken Hodge as the team's first head coach. The Generals would play at the similarly new IMA Sports Arena, which held 4.031 with 1,000 standing room.      The new Generals went through the usual growing pains in Year One. Flint finished the 1969-70 season in last place, with a 21-39-12 record. Their 54 points were six behind the Fort Wayne Komets and 46 behind league-best Muskegon. The Generals were actually strong on defense, allowing 270 goals, fourth-fewest in the IHL. This was