International Hockey League (1987-1989)
Tombstone
Born: August 1987 – Re-branded from Saginaw Generals
Folded: September 1989
First Game: October 16, 1987 (W 7-3 vs. Kalamazoo Wings)
Last Game: April 22, 1989 (L 4-1 @ Fort Wayne Komets)
Turner Cup Championships: None
Arena
Saginaw Civic Center
Opened: 1972
Branding
Team Colors:
Ownership & Affiliation
Owners: Dr. Eugene Chardoul, et al.
NHL Affiliation: Chicago Blackhawks
Background
The Saginaw Hawks of the International Hockey League were a short-lived farm club of the NHL’s Chicago Blackhawks during the late 1980’s. The former Flint Generals franchise arrived in town in 1985 and played as the Saginaw Generals for two seasons before Chicago offered an NHL affiliation during the summer of 1987. As part of the arrangement, the club dropped the Generals nickname – a staple of rough-and-tumble IHL hockey in Michigan dating back to the 1960’s – and became the Hawks.
This team is best known for helping to develop Hall-of-Fame netminder Ed Belfour along his path to NHL stardom. Chicago signed Belfour as an undrafted free agent out of the University of North Dakota in 1987 and assigned him to Saginaw. He won 32 games that winter and helped Saginaw advance to the semi-finals of the IHL’s Turner Cup playoffs, where the team fell in four-game sweep to the Flint Spirits.
Belfour returned for the Saginaw Hawks’ second season in the winter of 1988-89. But he saw considerably less action (29 games) as he spent much of the winter sitting on bench with the Big Club in Chicago. Despite Belfour’s extended absences, Saginaw put together an outstanding 1988-89 season under first-time head coach Darryl Sutter, a recently retired Blackhawks star. Saginaw finished 46 and 26 with 10 overtime losses in the regular season. The Hawks fell to the Fort Wayne Komets in the first round of the 1989 Turner Cup playoffs. The Komets series would mark the final games for the Saginaw franchise.
Demise & Aftermath
The Hawks were troubled financially in Saginaw. Chicago pulled out at the end of the 1988-89 season, shifting their IHL affiliate to the rival Indianapolis Ice franchise. The Ice would go on to to win the 1990 Turner Cup under Darryl Sutter’s direction. The Indianapolis squad relied on many holdovers from the 1988-89 Saginaw Hawks, including goaltender Ray LeBlanc, first line defenseman Bruce Cassidy, and top scorers Brian Noonan, Mike Rucinski, Jari Torkki and Sean Williams.
On the eve of the 1989-90 season, local owner Eugene Chardoul attempted to sell the club to Albany, New York interests. But the sale was vetoed by Chardoul’s fellow IHL owners and the Hawks disbanded instead. The move came just a few weeks before the 1989-90 IHL season was due to begin, forcing the remaining clubs to scramble to re-write their schedules.
As of 2020, Ed Belfour’s 484 career NHL wins rank fourth all-time. He trails only Martin Brodeur, Patrick Roy and Roberto Luongo. Belfour was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 2011.
Former Hawks coach Darryl Sutter coached the Los Angeles Kings to Stanley Cup victories in 2012 and 2014.
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