The 1976–77 IHL season was the 32nd season of the International Hockey League (IHL), a North American minor professional league. Nine teams participated in the regular season, and the Saginaw Gears won the Turner Cup.
IHL commissioner Bill Beagan testified at the July 1976 United States House of Representatives inquiry into professional sports, which investigated United States antitrust law, the effect of United States nationality law, finances of leagues and their franchises, and violence in sport. [1] He stated that IHL players were not considered professionals despite receiving some compensation, and were classified as amateurs by the Amateur Hockey Association of the United States (AHAUS). [2] He testified that the IHL was the largest financial contributor to AHAUS at the time, and had an agreement with the National Hockey League (NHL) to develop on-ice officials and players, but the World Hockey Association (WHA) showed no interested in negotiating any agreement. [3] Beagan felt that the NHL was no longer able to contribute much towards amateur programs in the United States or Canada due to competition from the WHA, which undermined the IHL. [4] He stated the league faced challenges to maintain quality due to changes to immigration laws which deterred participation by players and referees who were Canadian. [2]
Northern Division | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Saginaw Gears | 78 | 40 | 27 | 11 | 338 | 292 | 91 |
Kalamazoo Wings | 78 | 38 | 27 | 13 | 325 | 290 | 89 |
Flint Generals | 78 | 35 | 33 | 10 | 342 | 306 | 80 |
Muskegon Mohawks | 78 | 31 | 36 | 11 | 294 | 322 | 73 |
Port Huron Flags | 78 | 27 | 43 | 8 | 268 | 328 | 62 |
Southern Division | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Toledo Goaldiggers | 78 | 40 | 31 | 7 | 321 | 317 | 87 |
Dayton Gems | 78 | 35 | 38 | 5 | 304 | 312 | 75 |
Fort Wayne Komets | 78 | 32 | 36 | 10 | 301 | 311 | 74 |
Columbus Owls | 78 | 28 | 35 | 15 | 294 | 309 | 71 |
Turner Cup-Quarterfinals | Turner Cup-Semifinals | Turner Cup-Final | ||||||||||||
N1 | Saginaw Gears | 4 | ||||||||||||
N4 | Muskegon Mohawks | 3 | ||||||||||||
N1 | Saginaw Gears | 4 | ||||||||||||
N2 | Kalamazoo Wings | 1 | ||||||||||||
N2 | Kalamazoo Wings | 4 | ||||||||||||
N3 | Flint Generals | 1 | ||||||||||||
N1 | Saginaw Gears | 4 | ||||||||||||
S1 | Toledo Goaldiggers | 3 | ||||||||||||
S1 | Toledo Goaldiggers | 4 | ||||||||||||
S4 | Columbus Owls | 3 | ||||||||||||
S1 | Toledo Goaldiggers | 4 | ||||||||||||
S3 | Fort Wayne Komets | 1 | ||||||||||||
S2 | Dayton Gems | 0 | ||||||||||||
S3 | Fort Wayne Komets | 4 |
The World Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (NHL) since the collapse of the Western Hockey League in 1926. Although the WHA was not the first league since that time to attempt to challenge the NHL's supremacy, it was by far the most successful in the modern era.
The International Hockey League (IHL) was a minor professional ice hockey league in the United States and Canada that operated from 1945 to 2001. The IHL served as the National Hockey League's alternate farm system to the American Hockey League (AHL). After 56 years of operation, financial instability led to the league's demise. Six of the surviving seven teams merged into the AHL in 2001.
The Houston Aeros were a professional ice hockey team in the International Hockey League (IHL) and the American Hockey League (AHL). The team played in Houston, Texas, at The Summit from 1994 until 2003 and the Toyota Center from 2003 to 2013. In the IHL, the team operated as an independent minor league team from 1994 to 2001, though the team occasionally accepted players on loan from various National Hockey League (NHL) clubs for development. Upon joining the AHL for the 2001–02 season, they became the primary affiliate of the one-year-old NHL expansion team, the Minnesota Wild, a partnership they maintained until the franchise's relocation in 2013. While the team's only formal partnership with the Dallas Stars was a partial affiliation agreement during the 2004–05 season, Dallas occasionally sent some of their prospects to the Aeros on individual loans from 1993 to 2005, until the establishment of the Iowa Stars gave Dallas its own primary farm team.
Blaine A. Stoughton is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played twelve professional seasons. Stoughton played nine seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Hartford Whalers and New York Rangers, which bookended three seasons in the World Hockey Association (WHA) split among the Cincinnati Stingers, Indianapolis Racers and New England Whalers.
The 1970–71 WCHL season was the fifth season of the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL). It featured ten teams and a 66-game regular season. For the second time in team history, the Edmonton Oil Kings topped the regular season standings, posting 45 wins on the season. In the playoffs, after losing the previous two league finals to the Flin Flon Bombers, the Oil Kings met the Bombers for a third straight season, this time winning the club's first President's Cup. On the national scene, the season was the first to be sanctioned by the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association under a new agreement signed in 1970, which included the participation of the WCHL champion in the Memorial Cup final. The Oil Kings thus advanced to the 1971 Memorial Cup final, which they lost to the Quebec Remparts.
Ronald Kenneth Zanussi is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger who played five seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Minnesota North Stars and Toronto Maple Leafs between 1977 and 1982.
Gordon Dennis Roberts is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman who played 1,097 NHL regular season games from 1979 to 1994. He was a two-time Stanley Cup winner with the Pittsburgh Penguins. He is an honoured member of the United States Hockey Hall of Fame.
George Samuel Dudley was a Canadian ice hockey administrator. He joined the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) executive in 1928, served as its president from 1934 to 1936, and as its treasurer from 1936 to 1960. He was elected to Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) executive in 1936, served as its president from 1940 to 1942, as its secretary from 1945 to 1947, and as its secretary-manager from 1947 to 1960. He was secretary of the International Ice Hockey Association from 1945 to 1947, and was later vice-president of the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF) from 1957 to 1960. He was expected to become the next president of the IIHF before his death. He graduated from Osgoode Hall Law School in 1917 then practiced law for 43 years as the town solicitor for Midland, Ontario.
The 1978–79 OMJHL season was the fifth season of the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League (OMJHL). The Hamilton Fincups moved to Brantford, Ontario, becoming the Alexanders. Twelve teams each played 68 games. The Peterborough Petes won the J. Ross Robertson Cup, defeating the Niagara Falls Flyers.
The 1977–78 OMJHL season was the fourth season of the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League (OMJHL). The Fincups franchise moved back from St. Catharines to Hamilton after a temporary year away from the city due to lack of a suitable arena. The league featured a wealth of scoring talent during the season, with two players recording the league's highest single season point totals. Third season veteran Bobby Smith, edged 17-year-old rookie Wayne Gretzky for the Eddie Powers Memorial Trophy, scoring 192 points; as of 2023, Smith's and Gretzky's performance this season still stand as the top two scoring totals in OHL history. Twelve teams each played 68 games. The Peterborough Petes won the J. Ross Robertson Cup, defeating the Hamilton Fincups.
Mark Joseph Suzor is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player.
Mike Clarke is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who, in 1973, was drafted by both the National Hockey League and World Hockey Association.
William George Hardy was a Canadian professor, writer, and ice hockey administrator. He lectured on the Classics at the University of Alberta from 1922 to 1964, and served as president of the Canadian Authors Association. He was an administrator of Canadian and international ice hockey, and served as president of the Alberta Amateur Hockey Association, the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA), the International Ice Hockey Association, and the International Ice Hockey Federation.
Byron Shutt is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in the World Hockey Association (WHA). Drafted in the ninth round of the 1975 NHL Amateur Draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins, Shutt opted to play in the WHA after being selected by the Toronto Toros in the seventh round of the 1975 WHA Amateur Draft. He played for the Cincinnati Stingers during the 1978–79 WHA season. He is the younger brother of Hockey Hall of Famer Steve Shutt.
William John Devine was a Canadian ice hockey administrator and radio sports commentator. He worked for CJBQ radio in Belleville, Ontario for 40 years as the sports director. He was involved with the local sports scene, and was president of the Ontario Hockey Association from 1967 to 1969. He moved up to the national level in 1969 becoming vice-president of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) in 1969, and later served as its president from 1973 to 1975.
Joseph Julius Kryczka was a Canadian ice hockey administrator, coach and referee, and had a legal career as a lawyer and judge, where he was commonly known as "Justice Joe". He graduated from the University of Alberta, and played hockey with the Golden Bears. He practiced law in Calgary for more than 20 years, beginning in 1959 as a lawyer, becoming a judge, and was eventually elevated to a justice on the Court of Queen's Bench of Alberta.
The International Ice Hockey Association was a governing body for international ice hockey. It was established in 1940 when the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association wanted more control over international hockey, and was in disagreement with the definition of amateur used by the International Olympic Committee. The Amateur Hockey Association of the United States co-founded the association, with the British Ice Hockey Association joining later. The association oversaw the relationships between the National Hockey League, and leagues within the national amateur associations. W. G. Hardy served as its president, and planned for an amateur hockey World Series after World War II. The association was merged into the Ligue Internationale de Hockey sur Glace in 1947.
Clarence Vincent "Tubby" Schmalz was a Canadian ice hockey administrator. He served as vice-president of the Western Ontario Athletic Association from 1940 to 1950, and coached and managed the senior ice hockey team in Walkerton, Ontario. He was elected to the Ontario Hockey Association executive (OHA) in 1956, and served as its president from 1969 to 1972. He was the first commissioner of the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League (OMJHL), serving from 1974 to 1978. He became vice-chairman of the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) in 1979, and was elected its chairman in 1981. He was a graduate of St. Jerome's College, and operated the Hartley House hotel in Walkerton. He served on the Walkerton Town Council for 17 years, including three years as reeve from 1979 to 1981.
William Thomas Beagan is a Canadian retired ice hockey administrator and ice hockey referee. He served in the Canadian Army for thirteen years, before refereeing in the National Hockey League (NHL) for two seasons. He was commissioner of the International Hockey League (IHL) from 1969 to 1978, the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League (OMJHL) from 1978 to 1979, the Eastern Hockey League from 1979 to 1981, and the Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) from 1985 to 1998. He was a partial owner and the general manager of the Toledo Goaldiggers from 1981 to 1985, and led the team to two Turner Cup championships.
Frank Gallagher was a Canadian–American ice hockey executive who served as president and commissioner of the International Hockey League and was the first owner of the Flint Generals of the same league.
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