Winston-Salem Polar Twins
March 19, 2015
Southern Hockey League (1973-1977) Born: 1973 – SHL founding franchise Folded: January 7, 1977 First Game: October 12, 1973 (W 6-4 vs. Greensboro Generals) Last
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Tag: Midseason Meltdowns
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1980 Syracuse Hornets
October 4, 2014
Eastern Hockey League (1980) Born: August 1980 – EHL expansion franchise Folded: November 11, 1980 John Mitchell Cup Championships: None State Fairgrounds Coliseum Team Colors: Owner:
Greensboro Generals (1959-1977)
August 30, 2014
The Greensboro Generals were a long-running minor league outfit that was one of the first pro hockey teams to establish a following in the American South. The Generals formed as an Eastern Hockey League expansion franchise in 1959, the same year that the city of Greensboro, North Carolina opened up the 7,000-seater Greensboro Coliseum. Read more…
Memphis Southmen
July 20, 2014
The Memphis Southmen, known colloquially as the “Grizzlies”, were a short-lived member of the World Football League (WFL) that played at the Liberty Bowl for parts of two seasons in 1974 and 1975. In an era when the NFL offered no free agency, the threat of jumping to the WFL offered a brief window of leverage for NFL stars seeking better contracts. The Southmen garnered national headlines (and the cover of Sports Illustrated) when they successfully lured the trio of Larry Csonka, Paul Warfield and Jim Kiick away from the Miami Dolphins for the 1975 season. All three stars suited up for Memphis that fall, but by that time the WFL was already on its last legs. The league disbanded that October without completing its regular season schedule.
Baltimore Metros
July 4, 2014
Doomed, totally forgotten minor league basketball effort that flamed out in Baltimore after a couple of months in early 1979. Team onwer Fred Keller hired ABA and NBA veteran Larry Cannon to coach the team. Cannon, the #5 overall pick in the 1969 NBA draft, got the team off to a 9-5 start. But that wasn’t good enough for Keller, who fired him in December and took the coaching reigns himself. Read more…