Maine Nordiques | |
---|---|
City | Lewiston, Maine |
League | NAHL |
Operated | 1973-1977 |
Home arena | Central Maine Youth Center |
Colors | Red, White and Blue |
Owner(s) | William Rocheleau, Jr. et al. |
The Maine Nordiques were a professional ice hockey team that operated within the North American Hockey League from 1973 to 1977. They were based at the Central Maine Youth Center in Lewiston, Maine. The Nordiques served as a farm club for the Quebec Nordiques of the World Hockey Association. [1]
The team played for four seasons at Central Maine Youth Center, which had a seating capacity of just 2,800 fans. [2]
The Nordiques were the Quebec Nordiques' top farm club, and were the only professional sports franchise in the state of Maine during the mid-1970s. [2]
The club's all-time leading scorer was Paul Larose, who achieved 179 goals and 248 assists for the team between 1973 and 1977. Larose and Alan Globensky were the only two players to appear in all four seasons. Future National Hockey League players included goaltender Richard Brodeur and defenseman Paul Baxter. [2]
Financial backers of the team included former Lewiston Mayor Bill Rocheleau, who led a group of local businesspeople who backed the Nordiques. Rocheleau also served as league president during the NAHL's final season in the winter of 1976–1977. [2]
Season | League | Games | Won | Lost | Tied | Points | Winning % | Goals for | Goals against | Standing |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1973–74 | NAHL | 74 | 45 | 26 | 3 | 93 | 0.628 | 398 | 309 | Lost in round 1 |
1974–75 | NAHL | 74 | 27 | 46 | 1 | 55 | 0.372 | 266 | 394 | Out of Playoffs |
1975–76 | NAHL | 74 | 18 | 55 | 1 | 37 | 0.250 | 295 | 450 | Lost in round 1 |
1976–77 | NAHL | 74 | 40 | 29 | 5 | 85 | 0.574 | 311 | 284 | Lost in finals |
Lewiston is the second most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine, with the city's population at 37,121 as of the 2020 United States Census. The city lies halfway between Augusta, the state's capital, and Portland, the state's most populous city. It is one-half of the Lewiston–Auburn Metropolitan Statistical Area, commonly referred to as "L/A." or "L-A." Lewiston exerts a significant impact upon the diversity, religious variety, commerce, education, and economic power of Maine. It is known for having an overall low cost of living, substantial access to medical care, and a low violent-crime rate. In recent years, the city of Lewiston has also seen a spike in economic and social growth. While the dominant language spoken in the city is English, it is home to a significant Somali population as well as the largest French-speaking population in the United States while it is second to St. Martin Parish, Louisiana, in percentage of speakers.
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