Pro hockey arrived in Muskegon, Michigan on the Eastern shore of Lake Michigan in the fall of 1960, along with the opening of the 5,100-seat L.C. Walker Arena. Jerry Delise of New Haven, Connecticut secured Muskegon’s International Hockey League expansion franchise, dubbed the ‘Zephyrs’, at league meetings on June 5th, 1960.
The IHL was a classic Midwestern bus league – think Slap Shot – that initially operated in Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Milwaukee in the decades after World War II. Muskegon’s
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I love seeing this history. Jerry Delise was my great-uncle, so this is family history. I actually have a copy of one of the franchise documents framed at home, as well as (if I can find it) a Mohegan Mohawks puck with the logo printed on it. Great stuff folks — keep up the good work!!
I am trying to locate a Muskegon Zephyr logo puck. any ideas?
Best bet would be to set up an alert for “Muskegon Zephyrs Puck” on e-Bay. Good luck,
AC
I am still looking fora list of ALL of the players that ever played for Muskegon in the early years.
Ken –
Here is a link to your best bet – the Muskegon Zephyrs all-time roster page at HockeyDB.com: http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/display_players.php?tmi=7010
I became a life-long hockey fan watching the Mohawks. I had a paper route and I knew the money I made would get me tickets to watch my team. I am a season ticket holder for the Tampa Bay Lightning now. I have followed them since they started here. Cool to read about Jock Callander as an early member of the Lightning.
What was the score of the Zephyrs versus Red Wings game?
According to this article, Red Wings won:
https://www.mlive.com/lumberjacks/2015/03/alumni_hockey_game_stirs_up_me.html