Houston Aeros (WHA)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Houston Aeros | |
 |
|
| Played | 1972-1978 |
| Home ice | Sam Houston Coliseum (1972-75) The Summit (1975-78) |
| Based in | Houston, Texas |
| Colors | Dark blue, powder blue and white |
| League | World Hockey Association |
The Houston Aeros was a World Hockey Association team that played from 1972 to 1978.
Contents |
[edit] Franchise history
The Aeros became one of the original ten franchises for the World Hockey Association when the Dayton Aeros moved to Houston in 1971. The Dayton entry was doomed from the beginning because a lack of a proper arena and little interest from the local residents. Due to these problems, owner Paul Deneau moved the team to Houston, Texas. In Houston, the team would become one of the most successful franchises in the World Hockey Association.
The Aeros were the Western Division Champions from 1973-74 to 1976-77 seasons, as well as finishing second in the Western Division in 1972-73 and third in the league in 1977-78. They won the AVCO World Trophy in 1974 over the Chicago Cougars and in 1975 over the Quebec Nordiques, winning both series in a four-game sweep; and lost in the 1976 AVCO finals to the Winnipeg Jets, also in a sweep.
In 1977, there were discussions of a possible merger with six clubs from the World Hockey Association joining the National Hockey League and Houston, along with Cincinnati, Winnipeg, New England, Quebec, and Edmonton applied for entry. After a lengthy debate, the NHL voted it down. The team was not accepted when the World Hockey Association tried to merge again with the National Hockey League in 1978 and as a result, folded on July 6, 1978. During the final series of talks, Aeros owner Kenneth Schnitzer campaigned to the NHL that either his team would be admitted as an expansion team independent of a merger, or an existing club would relocate to Houston. Unfortunately, the NHL never acted on the offers.
Bill Dineen was the Aeros head coach during their entire stay in the World Hockey Association.
Among the players for the Aeros were Gordie Howe and his two sons Mark and Marty, who became the first father/son combination to play together in professional hockey.
[edit] 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 |
| 1972-73 | 78 | 39 | 35 | 4 | 82 | 284 | 269 | 1363 | 2nd in Western | Lost in second round |
| 1973-74 | 78 | 48 | 25 | 5 | 101 | 318 | 219 | 1038 | 1st in Western | Won Avco World Trophy |
| 1974-75 | 78 | 53 | 25 | 0 | 106 | 369 | 247 | 1257 | 1st in Western | Won Avco World Trophy |
| 1975-76 | 78 | 53 | 27 | 0 | 106 | 341 | 263 | 1093 | 1st in Western | Lost in finals |
| 1976-77 | 80 | 53 | 27 | 0 | 106 | 320 | 241 | 1432 | 1st in Western | Lost in second round |
| 1977-78 | 80 | 42 | 34 | 4 | 88 | 296 | 302 | 1543 | 3rd in League | Lost in first round |
[edit] See also
- List of WHA seasons
- Houston Aeros, the AHL franchise named after the original Aeros
