Cleveland Crusaders
| Cleveland Crusaders | |
|---|---|
 | |
| City | Cleveland, Ohio |
| League | World Hockey Association |
| Operated | 1972–1976 |
| Home arena |
Cleveland Arena (1972–74) Richfield Coliseum (1974–76). |
| Franchise history | |
| 1972 | Calgary Broncos |
| 1972–1976 | Cleveland Crusaders |
| 1976–1977 | Minnesota Fighting Saints |
The Cleveland Crusaders were a professional ice hockey team from Cleveland, Ohio. The Crusaders were owned by Nick Mileti, and played in the World Hockey Association from 1972 to 1976. Their home ice was the Cleveland Arena from 1972 to 1974, and the Richfield Coliseum from 1974 to 1976.
The first coach for the Crusaders was Bill Needham, a long-time minor leaguer with the AHL's Cleveland Barons. Needham coached the Crusaders to winning records in the first two seasons, but failed to advance past the second playoff round. In the 1974–75 season, John Hanna took over as coach, to be replaced mid-season by Jack Vivian. Cleveland finished second in the east division despite a losing record, but fell in the first round of the playoffs. Johnny Wilson led the team for its final season, also losing in the first round of the post-season.
The Crusaders were displaced from Cleveland in 1976, when the National Hockey League's California Golden Seals moved to Cleveland and became the Cleveland Barons. The team was going to relocate to South Florida and become the Florida Breakers, in so far to even having a logo designed.[1] After the proposed move fell through,[2] the Crusaders relocated to St. Paul, Minnesota, becoming the second incarnation of the Minnesota Fighting Saints.
Players
Gary Jarrett was the Crusaders top scorer in their four seasons, playing in 298 games, scoring 104 goals, 119 assists, totalling 223 points. Gerry Pinder played the most games in a Crusader uniform, 304 in total. Other notable Crusaders players included Paul Shmyr (538 penalty minutes in four season), netminder Gerry Cheevers, and defenseman Wayne Hillman.
Season-by-season record
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Season | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM | Finish | Playoffs | Avg. Attendance | ||
| 1972–73 | 78 | 43 | 32 | 3 | 89 | 287 | 239 | 1095 | 2nd, Eastern | Won Quarter-final (Blazers) Lost Semi-final (Whalers) | 5,287 | ||
| 1973–74 | 78 | 37 | 32 | 9 | 83 | 266 | 264 | 1007 | 3rd, Eastern | Lost Quarter-final (Toros) | 6,212 | ||
| 1974–75 | 78 | 35 | 40 | 3 | 73 | 236 | 258 | 1273 | 2nd, Eastern | Lost Quarter-final (Aeros) | 6,931 | ||
| 1975–76 | 80 | 35 | 40 | 5 | 75 | 273 | 279 | 1356 | 2nd, Eastern | Lost Preliminary round (Whalers) | 6,356 | ||
| Totals | 314 | 150 | 144 | 20 | 320 | 1062 | 1040 | 4731 | 6,197 |
References
- ↑ http://cdn2.vox-cdn.com/assets/4759336/Breakers1.png
- ↑ "Breakers go looking for new team to buy". The Miami News. July 26, 1976. p. 2C. Retrieved 2010-05-07.
External links
- season statistics www.hockeydb.com
- Cleveland Crusaders at FunWhileItLasted.net
- List of NHL players www.legendsofhockey.net