1971 Portland Buckaroos Program

Western Hockey League
(1952-1974)

Tombstone

Formed: 1952
Disbanded: June 12, 19741ASSOCIATED PRESS. “Western Hockey League Folds; S.L.C. May Join Central League”. The Standard-Examiner (Ogden, UT). June 13, 1974

First Game: October 8, 1952
Last Game: April 28, 1974

Seasons: 22
States & Provinces:  10
(Alberta, Arizona, California, British Columbia, Colorado, Minnesota, Oregon, Saskatchewan, Utah, Washington)

Leadership

President:

  • 1952 – July 1969: George Leader
  • August 1969 – May 1971: Eugene Kinasewich
  • May 1971 – April 1974: William H. MacFarland

Trophy Case

The Leader Cup (Most Valuable Player)

Year Player Position Team
1952-53 Emile Francis Goaltender Vancouver Canucks
1953-54 Gump Worsley Goaltender Vancouver Canucks
1954-55 Max McNab Center New Westminster Royals
1955-56 Phil Maloney Center Vancouver Canucks
1956-57 (Prairie Division) Lucien Dechene Goaltender Brandon Regals
1956-57 (Coast Division) Guyle Fielder Center Seattle Americans
1957-58 (Prairie Division) Sid Finney Center Calgary Stampeders
1957-58 (Coast Division) Guyle Fielder Center Seattle Americans
1958-59 (Prairie Division) Eddie Dorohoy Center Calgary Stampeders
1958-59 (Coast Division) Guyle Fielder Center Seattle Totems
1959-60 (tie) Hank Bassen Goaltender Vancouver Canucks
1959-60 (tie) Guyle Fielder Center Seattle Totems
1960-61 Lou Jankowski Right Wing Calgary Stampeders
1961-62 Bill MacFarland Center Seattle Totems
1962-63 Phil Maloney Center Vancouver Canucks
1963-64 Guyle Fielder Center Seattle Totems
1964-65 Billy McNeill Center Vancouver Canucks
1965-66 Billy McNeill Center Vancouver Canucks
1966-67 Guyle Fielder Center Seattle Totems
1967-68 Art Jones Center Portland Buckaroos
1968-69 John Hanna Defenseman Seattle Totems
1969-70 Andy Bathgate Center Vancouver Canucks
1970-71 Art Jones Center  Portland Buckaroos
1971-72 Fran Huck Center Denver Spurs
1972-73 Ken Broderick Goaltender San Diego Gulls
1973-74 Lyle Bradley Center Salt Lake Golden Eagles

 

The Hal Laycoe Cup (Outstanding Defenseman Award)

Year Player Team
1964-65 Pat Stapleton Portland Buckaroos
1965-66 Connie Madigan Portland Buckaroos
1966-67 Larry Cahan Vancouver Canucks
1967-68 Sandy Hucul Phoenix Roadrunners
1968-69 John Hanna Seattle Totems
1969-70 Marc Reaume Vancouver Canucks
1970-71 John Hanna Seattle Totems
1971-72 Sandy Hucul Phoenix Roadrunners
1972-73 Dave Dunn Seattle Totems
1973-74 John Barber Phoenix Roadrunners

 

Editor's Pick

ICE WARRIORS

The Pacific Coast/Western Hockey League 1948-1974
By Jon C. Stott
 

Between 1948 and 1974, more than 2,500 minor-league professional hockey players skated across the Pacific Northwest states and western Canada as part of the 23 teams that made up the Western Hockey League (known as the Pacific Coast Hockey League before 1952). Some of the young players went on to enjoy careers in the National Hockey League; others were former NHLers willing to extend their careers by returning to the minors. Many of the most colorful, however, were minor-league “lifers” who simply had hockey in their blood and built their reputations in the WHL and other minor pro leagues.Ice Warriors traces the WHL’s origins, rise and fall, and includes interviews with players, coaches and fans as well as statistical records and pictures from the era.

 

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 Western Hockey League was a minor league that operated from 1952 to 1974.  The WHL traces its origins back to the Southern California Hockey League (1942-1944) and the Northwest International Hockey League (1943-44), which merged to form the amateur Pacific Coast Hockey League in 1944.  The PCHL was initially an amateur league but became fully professional in 1948.

The PCHL gained a foothold in British Columbia as well and in 1952 changed its name to the Western Hockey League to better reflect it’s geographic reach.  The Western League operated for 22 seasons, sometimes with as few as five active clubs and never with more than nine.  Starting in the late 1960’s, the WHL began losing cities such as Los Angeles, Vancouver and the Bay Area to NHL expansion.  In 1972, the big-budget World Hockey Association formed to challenge the NHL and began to drain away player talent and additional markets.  The league called it a day when the NHL awarded provisional expansion franchises to two of its six remaining member cities (Denver and Seattle) in the spring of 1974.  Ironically, neither of these planned NHL expansion clubs came to pass.

During the 1965-66 and 1967-68 seasons, the Western League played inter-league games against clubs from the East Coast-based American Hockey League.

After the Western League folded in 1974, the Seattle Totems and Salt Lake Golden Eagles joined the minor Central Hockey League.  The Denver Spurs and Phoenix Roadrunners upgraded to the World Hockey Association.

 

Western Hockey League Franchise List

FRANCHISEYEARS ACTIVEPresident's Cup/Lester Patrick Cup Champions
Brandon/Regina Regals1955-19571957
Calgary Stampeders1952-19631954
California Seals1966-19671963 & 1964 (as San Francisco Seals)
Denver Invaders1963-1964Never
Denver Spurs1968-19741972
Edmonton Flyers1952-19631953, 1955 & 1962
Los Angeles Blades1961-1967Never
New Westminster Royals1952-1959Never
Phoenix Roadrunners1967-19741973 & 1974
Portland Buckaroos1960-19741961, 1965 & 1971
Salt Lake Golden Eagles1969-1974Never
San Diego Gulls1966-1974Never
San Francisco Seals1961-19661963 & 1964
Saskatoon Quakers1952-1957 & 1958-1959Never
Saskatoon Regals*1957-1958Never
Seattle Americans1955-1958Never
Seattle Bombers1952-1954Never
Seattle Totems1958-19741959, 1967 & 1968
Spokane Comets1960-1963Never
Spokane Spokes1958-1960Never
St. Paul Saints*1957-1958Never
Tacoma Rockets1952-1953Never
Vancouver Canucks1952-19701958, 1960, 1969 & 1970
Victoria Cougars1952-1961Never
Victoria Maple Leafs1964-19671966
Winnipeg Warriors1955-19611956

*The 1957-58 Saskatoon Regals/St. Paul Saints are the same team.  They split time between the two cities, with a different name in each market.  The experiment ended after a single season and the club settled in Saskatoon for the 1958-1959 season as the Saskatoon Quakers.

 

Western Hockey League Shop

 

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