World Hockey Association (1972-1973)
Tombstone
Born: 1972 – WHA founding franchise
Moved: Spring 1973 (Toronto Toros)
First Game: October 11, 1972 (L 7-4 vs. Alberta Oilers)
Last Game: April 14, 1973 (L 5-4 @ New England Whalers)
AVCO Cup Championships: None
Arenas
1972-1973: Ottawa Civic Centre
1973: Maple Leaf Gardens
Marketing
Team Colors:
Ownership
Owners: Nick Trbovich & Doug Michel
Our Favorite Gear
Ottawa Nationals Replica Jersey
When it comes to Replica Jerseys, we turn to our friends at Royal Retros, who put extraordinary detail into their fully customizable hockey sweaters.
Free Customization Included
Each jersey individually handmade
Any name and number
Sewn tackle twill crest, numbers & letters
100% polyester
Heavyweight fabric made to game standards
Fight strap included
When you make a purchase through an affiliate link like this one, Fun While It Lasted earns a commission at no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support!
Background
The Ottawa Nationals were a short-lived original franchise in the defunct World Hockey Association (1972-1979). Originally the WHA and team founder Doug Michel hoped to place the club in either Toronto or Hamilton, but the Nationals struggled to line up an arena in those cities. They ultimately ended up at the Ottawa Civic Centre.
While upstart franchises in Winnipeg, Philadelphia and elsewhere made headlines luring big-name players away from the NHL, the cash-poor Nationals were unable to bring big names to Ottawa. Nevertheless, the club was competitive under Head Coach Billy Harris. The team finished the 1972-73 regular season with a 35-39-4 record and earned a playoff date with the New England Whalers.
Ex-NHL journeyman Wayne Carleton was the Nats’ leading scorer with 42 goals and 49 assists.
The team was poorly supported in Ottawa and chose to move its home playoff games to Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. The Whalers eliminated the Nationals 4 games to 1.
In May 1973 John Bassett Jr., the son of former Toronto Maple Leafs owner John Bassett, Sr., purchased the Nationals. Bassett was considerably wealthier than the club’s previous owners. He moved the franchise to Varsity Arena in Toronto and re-named the team the Toronto Toros prior to the 1973-74 season.
Ottawa Nationals Shop
Editor's Pick
The Rebel League
The Short and Unruly Life of the World Hockey Association
By Ed Willes
The Rebel League celebrates the good, the bad, and the ugly of the fabled WHA. It is filled with hilarious anecdotes, behind the scenes dealing, and simply great hockey. The upstart WHA introduced to the world 27 new hockey franchises, a trail of bounced cheques, fractious lawsuits, and folded teams. It introduced the crackpots, goons, and crazies that are so well remembered as the league’s bizarre legacy.
But the hit-and-miss league was much more than a travelling circus of the weird and wonderful. It was the vanguard that drove hockey into the modern age. It ended the NHL’s monopoly, freed players from the reserve clause, ushered in the 18-year-old draft, moved the game into the Sun Belt, and put European players on the ice in numbers previously unimagined..
When you make a purchase through an affiliate link like this one, Fun While It Lasted earns a commission at no additional cost to you. Thanks for your support!
Links
###
3 Responses
I think Bassett purchased the team in 1973. The Toros actually played the first season at Varsity Arena on the U of Toronto campus. They went to MLG the next season.
Right on both counts, Doug. Thanks for the edits.
AC
Today would be my Dad’s birthday (Doug Michel) Gone too early and too long ago.