The New England Whalers, later known as the Hartford Whalers, were one of the last two teams to join the brand-new World Hockey Association (WHA) in 1971, but they ended up being one of the most successful clubs in the league, on the ice and at the gate.
The team that would become the Quebec Nordiques began in 1971 as the San Francisco Sharks, a charter member of the WHA. When the new league got skittish on San Francisco, the team was sold to a group of investors from Quebec City.
In the professional sports franchise arms race of the 1970s, there were many casualties, particularly in the world of hockey. One of those was the expansion Kansas City Scouts.
When the National Hockey League (NHL) decided to expand in March 1965, hockey-crazed Minnesota seemed like the perfect market for one of the six new teams. For 25 seasons it was, for the most part. The team, facing many challenges over the years, moved in 1993.
What happened to the Oakland Seals National Hockey League team that played at the Oakland Arena from 1966 to 1976? It’s fascinating tale of hockey from the Bay Area to Cleveland to Minnesota and back to Oakland.
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