1972–73 Los Angeles Sharks season

Last updated

1972–73 Los Angeles Sharks
Division3rd Western
1972–73 record37–35–6
Home record18-20-1
Road record19-15-5
Goals for259
Goals against250
Team information
General manager Dennis Murphy
Coach Terry Slater
Captain Ted McCaskill
Alternate captains Earl Heiskala
Gerry Odrowski
Jim Watson
Arena Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena (35 games)
Long Beach Arena (4 games)
Average attendance5,982 (41.7%)
Team leaders
Goals Gary Veneruzzo (43)
Assists J.P. LeBlanc (50)
Points Gary Veneruzzo (73)
Penalty minutes Tom Gilmore (191)
Wins George Gardner (19)
Goals against average Russ Gillow (2.88)
1973–74  

[1] [2]

Offseason

The WHA awarded a franchise to Los Angeles and it was originally called the "Los Angeles Aces," while the San Francisco franchise was called the Sharks. However, when funding fell through and the San Francisco franchise was then moved to Quebec to become the Nordiques, the Los Angeles group took the name Sharks and created the stylized menacing shark logo. The team colors of red and black were based on the original nickname "aces", being that the two colors in a deck of cards are red and black.

Contents

Regular season

The Sharks hung around the .500 mark for much of the season. The Winnipeg Jets, led by Bobby Hull, were clearly the class of the WHA's Western Division. Four teams (the Houston Aeros, Minnesota Fighting Saints, Alberta Oilers, and Sharks staged a season long see-saw battle for 2nd through 5th place, with only the top four making the playoffs (The Chicago Cougars finished in a distant 6th place).

The Sharks strength was their defense, which ranked 3rd in the league. Bart Crashley, Gerry Odrowski, and Jim Watson anchored the blue line. George Gardner (GAA 3.30) was a capable #1 goalie for the first half of the season, while 32-year-old rookie Russ Gillow (2.91 GAA) took over the top spot for most of the second half. In fact, Gillow was second in the WHA to Gerry Cheevers in GAA.

The offense had quality but lacked depth. It was led by 43 goal scorer Gary Veneruzzo while Alton White was 2nd on the team in goals with 20. Veneruzzo also led the team in points with 73, followed by playmaking center J.P. LeBlanc (19 goals and 50 assists for 69 points), and defenseman Bart Crashley, who anchored the power play and chipped in 18 goals and 27 assists.

Sharks special teams were solid, ranking 4th in the league in power play and 5th in penalty killing.

Ultimately, the Sharks went 6–3–1 in their last 10 games, including winning their last two to climb from 5th place to 3rd.

Final standings

Western Division
GPWLTGFGAPIMPts
Winnipeg Jets 784331428524975790
Houston Aeros 7839354284269136382
Los Angeles Sharks 7837356259250147780
Minnesota Fighting Saints 783837325026984379
Alberta Oilers 7838373269256113479
Chicago Cougars 782650224529581154

Game log

Regular season schedule
No.RDateScoreOpponentRecord
1LOctober 13, 19722–3 Houston Aeros (1972–73)0–1–0
2WOctober 15, 19725–1@ Houston Aeros (1972–73)1–1–0
3WOctober 17, 19725–1@ Minnesota Fighting Saints (1972–73)2–1–0
4WOctober 19, 19724–2 Philadelphia Blazers (1972–73)3–1–0
5LOctober 22, 19722–4 Chicago Cougars (1972–73)3–2–0
6LOctober 25, 19725–8 Ottawa Nationals (1972–73)3–3–0
7LOctober 27, 19724–5@ Philadelphia Blazers (1972–73)3–4–0
8WOctober 28, 19724–3 OT@ New York Raiders (1972–73)4–4–0
9WOctober 31, 19724–2@ Quebec Nordiques (1972–73)5–4–0
10TNovember 2, 19721–1@ Ottawa Nationals (1972–73)5–4–1
11WNovember 4, 19723–2 OT@ Chicago Cougars (1972–73)6–4–1
12WNovember 5, 19724–0 Houston Aeros (1972–73)7–4–1
13WNovember 8, 19722–1 New York Raiders (1972–73)8–4–1
14LNovember 9, 19722–7@ Alberta Oilers (1972–73)8–5–1
15LNovember 11, 19723–5@ Alberta Oilers (1972–73)8–6–1
16LNovember 12, 19722–5@ Winnipeg Jets (1972–73)8–7–1
17LNovember 14, 19720–8@ Winnipeg Jets (1972–73)8–8–1
18WNovember 15, 19726–4@ Houston Aeros (1972–73)9–8–1
19LNovember 17, 19721–5 Winnipeg Jets (1972–73)9–9–1
20LNovember 19, 19723–4 Winnipeg Jets (1972–73)9–10–1
21LNovember 21, 19722–5 Cleveland Crusaders (1972–73)9–11–1
22LNovember 23, 19723–4@ Minnesota Fighting Saints (1972–73)9–12–1
23LNovember 24, 19722–3 OT@ Cleveland Crusaders (1972–73)9–13–1
24WNovember 26, 19726–2@ New York Raiders (1972–73)10–13–1
25LNovember 28, 19723–4@ Philadelphia Blazers (1972–73)10–14–1
26WNovember 30, 19726–3 Houston Aeros (1972–73)11–14–1
27WDecember 1, 19725–3@ Chicago Cougars (1972–73)12–14–1
28WDecember 2, 19724–2@ Chicago Cougars (1972–73)13–14–1
29WDecember 8, 19724–2 Alberta Oilers (1972–73)14–14–1
30WDecember 10, 19725–3 Alberta Oilers (1972–73)15–14–1
31TDecember 12, 19723–3 Minnesota Fighting Saints (1972–73)15–14–2
32LDecember 14, 19722–5 New England Whalers (1972–73)15–15–2
33TDecember 17, 19724–4@ Houston Aeros (1972–73)15–15–3
34LDecember 19, 19725–7@ Houston Aeros (1972–73)15–16–3
35TDecember 21, 19724–4@ Ottawa Nationals (1972–73)15–16–4
36LDecember 23, 19721–2@ Quebec Nordiques (1972–73)15–17–4
37WDecember 24, 19725–3@ New England Whalers (1972–73)16–17–4
38LDecember 28, 19722–4 Minnesota Fighting Saints (1972–73)16–18–4
39WDecember 29, 19725–2 Minnesota Fighting Saints (1972–73)17–18–4
40LDecember 31, 19721–3 Philadelphia Blazers (1972–73)17–19–4
41WJanuary 9, 19734–3 OT@ Minnesota Fighting Saints (1972–73)18–19–4
42WJanuary 10, 19738–5@ Chicago Cougars (1972–73)19–19–4
43LJanuary 12, 19731–2 Alberta Oilers (1972–73)19–20–4
44LJanuary 13, 19731–4 Alberta Oilers (1972–73)19–21–4
45WJanuary 15, 19734–3@ Alberta Oilers (1972–73)20–21–4
46LJanuary 16, 19735–6 OT@ Alberta Oilers (1972–73)20–22–4
47LJanuary 19, 19731–4 Cleveland Crusaders (1972–73)20–23–4
48WJanuary 21, 19733–2 Cleveland Crusaders (1972–73)21–23–4
49LJanuary 26, 19734–5 OT New York Raiders (1972–73)21–24–4
50WJanuary 28, 19739–2 New York Raiders (1972–73)22–24–4
51WJanuary 30, 19735–2@ Houston Aeros (1972–73)23–24–4
52WFebruary 2, 19733–1 New England Whalers (1972–73)24–24–4
53WFebruary 4, 19734–3 New England Whalers (1972–73)25–24–4
54WFebruary 8, 19733–1 Minnesota Fighting Saints (1972–73)26–24–4
55LFebruary 10, 19735–6 OT Winnipeg Jets (1972–73)26–25–4
56LFebruary 11, 19730–3 Winnipeg Jets (1972–73)26–26–4
57LFebruary 13, 19731–6 Chicago Cougars (1972–73)26–27–4
58LFebruary 15, 19735–6@ New England Whalers (1972–73)26–28–4
59TFebruary 16, 19732–2@ Quebec Nordiques (1972–73)26–28–5
60WFebruary 18, 19734–1@ Philadelphia Blazers (1972–73)27–28–5
61WFebruary 20, 19734–2@ Ottawa Nationals (1972–73)28–28–5
62LFebruary 24, 19733–5 Quebec Nordiques (1972–73)28–29–5
63WFebruary 25, 19734–2 Quebec Nordiques (1972–73)29–29–5
64WMarch 1, 19734–1@ Minnesota Fighting Saints (1972–73)30–29–5
65LMarch 2, 19731–2@ Winnipeg Jets (1972–73)30–30–5
66LMarch 4, 19731–2@ Winnipeg Jets (1972–73)30–31–5
67WMarch 6, 19733–2 OT Quebec Nordiques (1972–73)31–31–5
68LMarch 7, 19731–3 Houston Aeros (1972–73)31–32–5
69WMarch 9, 19735–1 Houston Aeros (1972–73)32–32–5
70WMarch 11, 19734–2 Ottawa Nationals (1972–73)33–32–5
71LMarch 13, 19731–3 Ottawa Nationals (1972–73)33–33–5
72WMarch 15, 19736–2@ New York Raiders (1972–73)34–33–5
73WMarch 17, 19732–0@ Cleveland Crusaders (1972–73)35–33–5
74TMarch 19, 19735–5@ Cleveland Crusaders (1972–73)35–33–6
75LMarch 20, 19731–4@ New England Whalers (1972–73)35–34–6
76LMarch 23, 19733–7 Philadelphia Blazers (1972–73)35–35–6
77WMarch 25, 19731–0 Chicago Cougars (1972–73)36–35–6
78WMarch 27, 19734–1 Chicago Cougars (1972–73)37–35–6

[3]

Playoffs

The Sharks' 3rd place finish enabled them to avoid a first round matchup with Bobby Hull's powerful Winnipeg Jets and earned them a series with the 2nd place Houston Aeros, who finished 2 points ahead of the Sharks in the standings.

After opening in Houston with an uninspired 7–2 loss, the Sharks bounced back to win game two by a 4–2 score. Heading back to L.A. with a split, the Sharks won a thrilling game three by a score of 3–2; goalie Russ Gillow made several spectacular saves to preserve the win. The turning point was game four. The clubs battled through regulation tied at 2; if the Sharks scored the next goal, they would have a commanding 3–1 series lead but if Houston scored, the series would be tied going back to Houston. Winger Murray Hall scored for Houston, and the Sharks didn't win another game, losing game five 6–3 and game six, 3–2. After the series, coach Terry Slater was criticized for starting George Gardner in games 1 and 5 despite the fact Gillow played better the second half of the season. Gardner was pulled in game 1 (a 7–2 loss) and did not play well in game 5 (a 6–3 loss). Garnder's GAA for the series was 5.69 while Gillow's was 2.91. Slater stated he wanted the veteran Gardner to start game 1 over the rookie Gillow.

Houston Aeros 4, Los Angeles Sharks 2 - Semifinals

#DateVisitorScoreHomeRecord
1April 5 Los Angeles Sharks 2–7 Houston Aeros 0–1
2April 7 Los Angeles Sharks 4–2 Houston Aeros 1–1
3April 11 Houston Aeros 2–3 Los Angeles Sharks 2–1
4April 13 Houston Aeros 3–2 OT Los Angeles Sharks 2–2
5April 15 Los Angeles Sharks 3–6 Houston Aeros 2–3
6April 17 Houston Aeros 3–2 Los Angeles Sharks 2–4

Player stats

Regular season
Scoring
PlayerPosGPGAPtsPIM+/-PPGSHGGWG
Gary Veneruzzo W784330733401305
J.P. LeBlanc C77195069490213
Bart Crashley D70182745100700
Joe Szura C73133245250300
Alton White RW57201737220200
Tom Serviss C73112637320030
Gerry Odrowski D7863137890010
Mike Byers RW56191736200200
Tom Gilmore LW711718351910600
Earl Heiskala LW701217291500200
Jim Niekamp D78722291550010
Bill Young LW50141226460600
Peter Slater RW73121224870300
Ralph MacSweyn D7802323390000
Ted McCaskill C731111221500020
Jim Watson D75515201230100
Steve Sutherland LW4411617980000
Fred Speck C2831316220000
Mike Hyndman RW198715110100
Bernie MacNeil LW424711480000
Bob Jones LW2027980100
Howie Heggedal LW821300100
Jarda Krupicka RW610120000
Larry Mavety D210120100
George Gardner G4901120000
Russ Gillow G3800060000
Mike Jakubo C700000000
Bob Perreault G100000000
Jerry Zrymiak D100000000
Goaltending
PlayerMINGPWLTGAGAASO
George Gardner 271349192241493.301
Russ Gillow 19823817132962.912
Bob Perreault 60110022.000
Team:475578373562473.123
Playoffs
Scoring
PlayerPosGPGAPtsPIMPPGSHGGWG
Fred Speck C63252100
Ted McCaskill C623512000
J.P. LeBlanc C60552000
Tom Gilmore LW51342000
Gary Veneruzzo W63034101
Jim Niekamp D621310000
Ralph MacSweyn D61234000
Gerry Odrowski D61236001
Mike Hyndman RW603317000
Earl Heiskala LW51124100
Bart Crashley D60222000
Steve Sutherland LW60228000
Alton White RW61010100
Jerry Zrymiak D21012000
Jim Watson D40112000
George Gardner G30000000
Russ Gillow G50000000
Howie Heggedal LW10000000
Bernie MacNeil LW30004000
Tom Serviss C60000000
Peter Slater RW60002000
Joe Szura C20000000
Goaltending
PlayerMINGPWLGAGAASO
George Gardner 116312115.690
Russ Gillow 247512122.910
Team:363624233.800

[4]

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
      MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts;

Awards and records

Transactions

Draft picks

3rd round, 8th pick (32nd overall pick) – Robert Klein, D – Kamloops

Farm teams

See also

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References

  1. World Hockey Association (1972). WHA 1972-73 Media Guide. World Hockey Association.
  2. World Hockey Association (1973). WHA 1973-74 Media Guide. World Hockey Association.
  3. "1972–73 Los Angeles Sharks Games". Hockey-reference.com. Retrieved June 29, 2009.
  4. "1972-73 Los Angeles Sharks Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved June 29, 2009.