Albuquerque Six Guns

Central Hockey League (1973-1974)

Tombstone

Born: June 13, 1973 – CHL expansion franchise
Folded: Summer 1974

First Game: October 12, 1973 (L 1-0 vs. Omaha Knights)
Last Game: March 31, 1974 (L 4-3 vs. Oklahoma City Blazers)

Adams Cup Championships: None

Arena

Tingley Coliseum (12,000)
Opened: 1957

Marketing

Team Colors: Blue, Red & Gold

Ownership & Affiliation

Owners: Kansas City Scouts and Richard Ransom, Edward Johnson, David Post, Max Sonnenberg, Frank Summers, et al.

NHL Affiliation: Kansas City Scouts

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Albuquerque Six Guns Logo T from Vintage Ice Hockey

Background

In 1972 a pair of Albuquerque doctors, Edward Johnson and Richard Ransom, began promoting the use of Tingley Coliseum on the grounds of the New Mexico State Fairgrounds as a venue for recreational ice skating. Johnson and Ransom’s group, Ice Sports Corp., grew to include other local businessmen and they soon made a six figure private investment for the installation of an ice plant at the Coliseum. By 1973 the group’s enthusiasm expanded to include the acquisition of a pro hockey team for New Mexico.

Kansas City Scouts Partnership

During the summer of 1973 the New Mexicans were able to secure an expansion club in the 6-team Central Hockey League and a National Hockey League affiliation with the brand new Kansas City Scouts franchise. A July 1973 Name The Team contest gave the club an identity: the Six Guns edged out other finalists including the Coyotes, Sidewinders and the Yuccapucks.

The Scouts partnership was a disadvantageous and rather muddy one. The Six Guns would debut in October 1973 but the Kansas City wasn’t due to join the NHL until the 1974-75 season. The Scouts had little to provide to Albuquerque beyond than their blue, red & gold color scheme. Albuquerque would have to cobble together a 1973-74 squad with outcasts loaned from half a dozen other NHL teams.

News accounts and comments from the Six Guns’ local backers sometimes referred to the Scouts as the actual owners of the CHL franchise. But it was the local group that was on the hook for nearly all of the team’s expenses. The Albuquerque doctors group soon began to squabble with Scouts management over the financial terms of the affiliation. By March 1974, the locals were out nearly $600K operating the Six Guns, on top of their considerable capital investments in Tingley Coliseum

Opening Night

The Six Guns debuted at Tingley Coliseum on October 12, 1973 against the defending CHL champion Omaha Knights. The opening night crowd of 9,116 would turn out to be the largest in the CHL for the entire 1973-74 season. The Knights shut out the hosts 1-0, foreshadowing a winter of offensive futility for the Guns. Albuquerque would score just 2.6 goals per game under the guidance of defensive-minded head coach John Choyce.

Demise & Aftermath

The Guns slogged through a brutal 1973-74 campaign. The team finished 16-40-16, far back in last place in the CHL. Attendance dipped considerably from the packed house on opening night, settling into the 2,500 per game range.

Ray Reeson handled the bulk of the goaltending duties. Career minor leaguer Ken Ireland, a 22-year old center, led the Six Guns in scoring with 19 goals and 33 assists in 65 games.

By the late spring of 1974 the Scouts partnership was dead and the local investors were in a panic over the financial ruin. Noises were made about securing a new affiliation with either the NHL’s California Golden Seals or the Phoenix Roadrunners of the World Hockey Association. But the Six Guns were beyond saving. The team folded over the summer and Ice Sports Corp. filed for bankruptcy in the fall of 1974.

The Albuquerque Chaparrals senior amateur hockey team tried to make a go of it at Tingley Coliseum two winters later, making use of the ice equipment left behind by the Six Guns. The Chaparrals folded midway through their second season in early 1977.