So the Bobby Hull Money Crusade is skating out for an
encore. Despite Hull's charismatic presence and his unceasing office efforts to
promote the league in its rookie year, the WHA's 12 owners suffered a net loss
of some $15 million, ranging from a low of $300,000 in Winnipeg to more than $2
million in New York. Among the consequences: during the off-season the
Philadelphia Blazers moved to Vancouver and the Ottawa Nationals became the
Toronto Toros—or the Toronto Lawn Mowers, as the rival Maple Leafs call
them—while the showcase New York team underwent a superficial facial.
So what promise does Season II hold for the bookkeepers?
Even with the legendary Gordie Howe performing alongside sons Marty and Mark in
Houston, the WHA faces another red ink flood unless people begin coming to the
games. Only four franchises—the champion New England Whalers, Hull's Winnipeg
Jets, the Quebec Nordiques and the Blazers in Vancouver—seem likely to lose
less than $500,000. The Houston Aeros have increased their season-ticket sales
from 600 to 2,500 since signing the Howe family en masse, but the total revenue
from those 1,900 additional tickets will not even cover the club's salary
payments to the three Howes.
Economics aside, New England will romp to another Eastern
Division championship and another Avco World Trophy unless the Boston Bruins
kidnap Goaltender Al Smith and chain him to the door of their sauna down the
corridor at the Boston Garden. Not only is Smith a valuable property, his
back-line protection is the strongest in the WHA. At least 12 NHL teams would
trade defensemen with the Whalers. Semi reformed tough guy Teddy Green returns
as the defensive ringleader, and three former Maple Leafs, Ricky Ley, Brad
Selwood and Jim Dorey, are as quick with their fists as they are with their
sticks when the enemy arouses their ire.
Offensively the Whalers are strong at center with 39-goal
scorers Larry Pleau and Terry Caffery, although Caffery's sore knee may limit
his ice time during the early season. The Whalers are powerful on the right
wing with Tom Webster (53 goals), Tim Sheehy (33) and Mike Byers (25), and much
improved on the left wing where holdover John (Knuckles) French will be joined
by NHL defectors Al Karlander, Hugh Harris and Don Blackburn. The Minnesota-born
Sheehy may be the classic example of what the WHA has done for hockey. NHL
scouts judged Sheehy "too timid and too slow" when he played for
Boston College and later the 1972 U.S. Olympic team. Signed by the Whalers, he
quickly developed into the most complete right wing in the WHA. "Sheehy is
a crackerjack player," says Cleveland Goaltender Gerry Cheevers.
Unfortunately for Cheevers, Cleveland does not have enough
crackerjacks of its own to challenge the Whalers for first place and will be
pressed to finish second again. Cheevers no longer had Bobby Orr out there
blocking shots for him, but the ex-Bruin had enough talent of his own to be the
WHA's best goaltender last season. Except for Paul Shmyr and an 18-year-old
rookie, Tom Edur, the Crusader defensemen are far from agile. Wayne and Larry
Hillman, Ray Clearwater and Wayne Muloin seem anchored to the ice in front of
Cheevers. "All I know," says Cheevers, "is that they don't let
the opposition stand around too long." Coach Bill Needham will test-market
a power line of Center Ron Buchanan (37 goals) and Wings Gary Jarrett (40) and
Skip Krake—at least until the Blue Cross bills pour in. "They don't have
any size or muscle," admits General Manager Jack Vivian, "but they
can move the puck. Once they start getting battered, though, maybe we'll change
them." Under no circumstances will Needham break up the Jim Wiste (28
goals)-Rich Pumple (21 )-Gerry Pinder (30) line. Instead, he probably will move
aggressive Bill Young, acquired from the Minnesota Fighting Saints, into
Krake's position as a bodyguard for Buchanan and Jarrett.
The Toronto Toros have a former Maple Leaf (Billy Harris) as
their coach, two more Leafs (Forwards Wayne Carleton and Guy Trottier) scoring
goals and yet another ( Defenseman Carl Brewer) trying to keep Goaltenders
Gilles Gratton and Les Binkley from getting puck fright. The iconoclastic
Brewer, 35, is attempting Comeback No. 3, and if he decides to play the way he
can, the Toros could finish second. The trouble is, Brewer might decide to fly
off to Finland or Miami Beach at midseason.
Strange things happen to Defenseman Dale Hoganson. Last
spring in Montreal he collected a full Stanley Cup winner's share of $15,000
even though the Canadiens did not let him dress for any cup games. Now Hoganson
finds himself the only Anglo on the roster of the Quebec Nordiques. He may also
be their only player who knows how to execute a body check. "Hogey will be
our hitter," says J. C. Tremblay, a nonviolent type. Hoganson will toughen
the meek Quebec defense and run interference for Tremblay when J.C. Superstar,
the WHA's best defenseman—he played more than 50 minutes in most games last
year—saunters off on one of his slow rushes up the ice. Besides Hoganson, the
Nordiques also lured Goal-tender Michel Deguise and Forward Rejean Houle from
Montreal and signed retired NHL supergoalie Jacques Plante—last seen with the
Bruins—as coach. All they need now is a Berlitz teacher for Hoganson, some
teammates like Yvan Cournoyer for Houle and an alter for Plante's ego.
In his first official pronouncement as a millionaire, Pat
Stapleton, the newly acquired and lavishly paid player-coach of the Chicago
Cougars, declared, "We won't finish worse than sixth in our
division." Then, realizing there are only six teams in a WHA division,
Stapleton confessed, "] guess I don't know this league yet." For his
personal comfort, Stapleton also persuaded Center Ralph Backstrom to jump with
him from the Black Hawks, and later he convinced another former Hawk, Eric
(Elbows) Nesterenko, to forget about the retirement haven he had found in
Switzerland. If Stapleton could convince a few more Black Hawks, like Dennis
Hull, Pit Martin and Bill White, to join him with the Cougars, they might make
the playoffs.
The only thing golden about the New York Golden Blades will
be their golden blades. An artistic and financial flop when they were known as
the Raiders, the Golden Blades at least will be managed now by someone who
knows the difference between ice hockey and the Ice Capades. Portly Jerry
DeLise made $1 million running minor league teams in Muskegon, Mich., and along
the way he says he learned some things from Montreal's Sam Pollock, the
shrewdest man in the game. If DeLise is correct, the Blades someday may be
golden. While they do have something shiny in Andre Lacroix, the WHA's leading
scorer last year in Philadelphia, for now they are dross—last again.
In the Western Division, Winnipeg Coach Bobby Hull and
Winnipeg Left Wing Bobby Hull both agree that the Jets must acquire a semblance
of balance in order to keep Minnesota or Howeston (all right, Houston) from
stealing first place. "Last year we were too much of a one-line
team," Coach Hull admits, "and we can't win that way again." Rather
than dissolve the line of Player Hull (51 goals). Christian Bordeleau (47) and
Norm Beaudin (38), Coach Hull has formed another potentially dangerous line
composed of Danny Johnson and Kelly Pratt and veteran Winger Ab McDonald, much
traveled as an NHLer and Hull's Chicago teammate a decade ago. More important,
Player Hull expects to have a better season. "With Gordie Howe in the
league I won't have to spend half my time running around North America
promoting the game." Hull says. "I was just about all worn out by the
middle of last season."
The question in Houston is whether Howe's 45-year-old legs
will carry him through his 26th season. "Why not?" Gordie asks.
"It's easier to skate than walk, and I don't have any trouble
walking." There certainly is nothing wrong with his shot (he scored a goal
21 seconds after taking the ice in his first WHA exhibition) or his temperament
(he gave a New England player a mouthful of elbow and a vicious butt-end in one
game, then took 15 minutes in penalties the next). Says Howe: "As long as
they want to jazz around with me, they'll get it." Howe's 18-year-old son
Mark is a wing. The third Howe, 19-year-old Marty, will be Houston's swing
defenseman. "Mark's probably my best defensive winger already," says
Coach Bill Dineen, "and he's got a mean streak in him, just like his
dad."
Minnesota should be the most improved team in the league.
"Forget that David and Goliath stuff, the Fighting Saints against the
North Stars," says General Manager Glen Sonmor. "We're on trial here,
and the people won't accept us unless we give them what the North Stars have
already given them—major league hockey." Sonmor hit the road, wallet in
hand, and signed Forwards Mike and Rob Walton, Steve Cardwell and Murray
Heatley, Defenseman Rick Smith and Goaltender John Garrett.
One of the few quality goal-scorers Sonmor missed en his
midnight raids of the NHL was Marc Tardif, the left wing who scored 75 goals
for Montreal the last three seasons. Tardif signed with the Los Angeles Sharks,
and if one of the team's young centers—either holdover J. P. LeBlanc or Reg
Thomas, snatched from the Black Hawks—can headman the puck to the flying
Tardif, he may score 75 goals this year. One of the more pugnacious Canadiens,
Tardif will fit well with the Sharks. "They used to call us a bunch of animals,"
says Shark Coach Terry Slater. "We'll be more discreet now, but we're
still going to push the other guys around."
In Vancouver, the Blazers will try a fresh start thousands
of miles away from Bernie Parent's attorney. Better still, they have sold
10,000 season tickets. "We had too many stars and too much confusion last
year," says Phil Watson, the former NHL coach who works the bench so that
Coach Johnny McKenzie can play right wing. "We used to have to beg Parent
to get in there and play. Now we've got five goaltenders who really want to
play."
After missing the playoffs, the Edmonton Oilers decided to
try another coach with the same players and hired Brian Shaw, tutor of the
amateur Edmonton Oil Kings. He needs Bobby Hull and Gordie Howe.
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