The Houston Aeros were a powerhouse club in the World Hockey Association, a 1970’s-era rival to the NHL. The Aeros are best remembered for luring pro hockey’s all-time leading scorer, Gordie Howe, out of retirement in 1973 and signing him to play alongside his sons Mark and Marty Howe. There was little rust on the 45-year old star. Mr. Hockey won league MVP honors in 1974 as the Aeros won the first of two straight AVCO Cup championships that spring.
World Hockey Association (1972-1973) Born: 1972 – WHA founding franchise Moved: Spring 1973 (Toronto Toros) First Game: October 11, 1972 (L 7-4 vs. Alberta Oilers)
Phoenix’s original Roadrunners hockey team of the Western League (1967-1974) and the World Hockey Association (1974-1977) is covered in this entry, along with the first of the many Roadrunners minor league revivals, the Central Hockey League/Pacific Hockey League Roadrunners of 1977 to 1979.
The Birmingham Bulls of the World Hockey Association were one of the first major pro hockey teams to make their home in the Deep South, sharing that distinction with the slightly older Atlanta Flames of the National Hockey League. The Bulls never posted a winning record and made the playoffs only once in three WHA seasons. But the team did make news for its controversial “Baby Bulls” youth movement that saw the team sign a parade of teenage stars from the junior ranks who would later go on to NHL stardom, including Ken Linseman, Michel Goulet, Rick Vaive, Pat Riggin and others. Read more…
The Michigan Stags were a brief and doomed attempt by the rebel World Hockey Association (1972-1979) to challenge the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings head-to-head during the winter of 1974-75. The NHL club was ripe for a challenge, as they were mired in the depths of the “Dead Wings” era. But the Stags’ local owners did not possess the financial fortitude to take on the Red Wings, even in their weakened state. The Stags, who played at 10,000-seat Cobo Arena, threw in the towel after only 43 games and absconded to Baltimore in the middle of the 1974-75 WHA season. The combined Stags/Baltimore Blades team finished the year with a dreadful 21-53-4 last place finish and promptly went out of business.
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