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 Hartford Whalers were a professional ice hockey team based for most of its 25-year existence in Hartford, Connecticut. The club played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1972 until 1979, and in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1979 to 1997.
The Minnesota Fighting Saints was the name of two professional ice hockey teams based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, that played in the World Hockey Association. The first team was one of the WHA's original twelve franchises, playing from 1972 to 1976. The second team was relocated from Cleveland, Ohio, and played for part of the 1976–77 season. Neither edition of the franchise completed its final season of play.
The 1978–79 WHA season was the seventh and final season of the World Hockey Association (WHA). Prior to the start of the season, the Houston Aeros folded leaving seven teams to start the season. Only six would finish however, as the Indianapolis Racers folded after 25 games on December 15, 1978. The remaining six teams each played 80 games, including one game each per team against a Soviet All-Star squad and the Czechoslovak National Team, the second consecutive year for this arrangement. The Soviet team won four of their six games and tied another; the Czechoslovak team only won once and tied once against four losses. In addition, because the Racers had folded after playing an odd number of games, the Edmonton Oilers played the Finnish National Team once at home so as to allow each of the six surviving WHA teams to play 80 regular season games. The Oilers won by a score of 8–4, a result which in itself made no difference by the end of the regular season which Edmonton won by an 11–point margin over the Quebec Nordiques.
John Albert McKenzie was a Canadian professional hockey player and coach. He played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for several seasons, most notably with the Boston Bruins, with whom he won the Stanley Cup twice. He also played several seasons in the World Hockey Association (WHA).
Steven George Andrascik is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey right winger. He played one game in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Rangers during the 1972 Stanley Cup playoffs, and 97 games in the World Hockey Association with the Indianapolis Racers, Michigan Stags/Baltimore Blades, and Cincinnati Stingers from 1974 to 1976.
Gregory John Carroll is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre.
Hugh Harris is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He played in the National Hockey League with the Buffalo Sabres during the 1972–73 season and in the World Hockey Association with the New England Whalers, Phoenix Roadrunners, Vancouver Blazers, Calgary Cowboys, Indianapolis Racers, and Cincinnati Stingers between 1973 and 1978.
Bryan Clifford Maxwell is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played 331 games in the National Hockey League and 124 games in the World Hockey Association. He played for the Cleveland Crusaders, Cincinnati Stingers, New England Whalers, Minnesota North Stars, St. Louis Blues, Winnipeg Jets, and Pittsburgh Penguins.
Paul Edward Hoganson is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender. He played two games in the National Hockey League with the Pittsburgh Penguins during the 1970–71 season and 143 games in the World Hockey Association with the Los Angeles Sharks, Michigan Stags/Baltimore Blades, New England Whalers, Cincinnati Stingers, and Indianapolis Racers from 1973 to 1978.
John Donald "Don" Larway was a professional ice hockey player who played 324 games in the World Hockey Association (WHA). He died in November 2019 in Houston, where he had resided for many years, working as a professional videographer for the Houston Aeros of the American Hockey League, Houston Rockets and Houston Astros. Nicknamed "Dart".
David C. Debol is an American former professional ice hockey player.
The 1979–80 Quebec Nordiques season was the Nordiques eighth season overall, however, it marked as their expansion season in the National Hockey League. Quebec had played their previous seven seasons in the now defunct World Hockey Association. In 1978–79, their last season in the WHA, Quebec finished the year with the second best record, as they had a 41–34–5 record, earning 87 points. The Nordiques were then swept by the Winnipeg Jets in the WHA semi-finals. In the NHL, the team finished out of the playoffs.
Lawrence William Sacharuk is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played 151 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues from 1972 to 1977. He also played 15 games in the World Hockey Association (WHA) with the Indianapolis Racers during the 1978–79 season. Sacharuk was drafted by the New York Rangers in second round, 21st overall in the 1972 NHL Amateur Draft.
Bruce Greig was a Canadian professional ice hockey winger who played nine games for the California Golden Seals of the National Hockey League and 60 games for the Calgary Cowboys, Cincinnati Stingers and Indianapolis Racers of the World Hockey Association.
The 1976–77 Quebec Nordiques season was the Nordiques fifth season, as they were coming off their best season to date in 1975–76, earning a team record 50 victories and 104 points, as they finished in second place in the Canadian Division. In the post-season, Quebec win their first Avco Cup in team history. Serge Bernier would win the WHA Playoff MVP trophy, as he earned 36 points for the Nordiques in 17 post-season games.
The 1977–78 Quebec Nordiques season was the Nordiques sixth season in the WHA, as they were coming off of a 47–31–3 record in the 1976–77 season, finishing in first place in the Eastern Division. Quebec defeated the New England Whalers, Indianapolis Racers and Winnipeg Jets to win their first ever Avco Cup.
The 1979 NHL expansion was the culmination of several years of negotiations between the National Hockey League (NHL) and the World Hockey Association (WHA). The result of the negotiations was that the WHA and its six surviving franchises folded, and the owners of four of the teams – the Edmonton Oilers, New England Whalers, Quebec Nordiques, and Winnipeg Jets – were granted expansion franchises, which commenced play in the NHL in the 1979–80 season. The agreement officially took effect on June 22; it ended the seven-year existence of the WHA and re-established the NHL as the sole major league in North American professional ice hockey.
The Long Island Cougars were a minor league professional ice hockey team that played at the Long Island Arena in Commack, New York, from 1973 to 1975. The Cougars were a member of the North American Hockey League, and were runners up for the Lockhart Trophy to the Syracuse Blazers in the 1973–74 season.
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.
