1979–80 Colorado Rockies season

1979–80 Colorado Rockies (NHL)
Division 5th Smythe
Conference 11th Clarence Campbell
1979–80 record 19-48-13
Team information
General Manager Ray Miron
Coach Don Cherry
Captain Gary Croteau
Mike Christie
Lanny McDonald
Rene Robert
Arena McNichols Sports Arena
Team leaders
Goals Rene Robert (28)
Assists Rene Robert (35)
Points Rene Robert (63)
Penalties in minutes Rob Ramage (135)
Wins Hardy Astrom, Bill McKenzie (9)
Goals against average Bill McKenzie (3.49)
<1978–79 1980–81>

The 1979–80 Colorado Rockies season was the franchise's fourth season in Colorado and their sixth in the NHL. Trying to jolt the fan base and create some excitement for the club, the team hired Don Cherry away from the Boston Bruins as installed him as the new head coach. In addition, a major mid-season trade netted the Rockies legendary goal-scorer and future Hall-of-Famer Lanny McDonald from the Toronto Maple Leafs.

With the first pick overall in the draft, the Rockies selected offensive-minded defenseman Rob Ramage. It was the first time that the Rockies had the first pick overall.

Contents

Offseason

NHL Draft

Round # Player Position Nationality College/Junior/Club Team
1. 1 Rob Ramage (D)  Canada London Knights (OHL)

Regular season

Season standings

Smythe Division
GP W L T GF GA PTS
Chicago Black Hawks 80 34 27 19 241 250 87
St. Louis Blues 80 34 34 12 266 278 80
Vancouver Canucks 80 27 37 16 256 281 70
Edmonton Oilers 80 28 39 13 301 322 69
Winnipeg Jets 80 20 49 11 214 314 51
Colorado Rockies 80 19 48 13 234 308 51

[1]Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against

Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Game log

No. R Date Score Opponent Record
1 T October 11, 1979 3–3 St. Louis Blues (1979–80) 0–0–1
2 L October 13, 1979 1–2 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1979–80) 0–1–1
3 L October 14, 1979 2–4 @ Winnipeg Jets (1979–80) 0–2–1
4 L October 18, 1979 2–5 Quebec Nordiques (1979–80) 0–3–1
5 W October 20, 1979 4–1 Winnipeg Jets (1979–80) 1–3–1
6 L October 23, 1979 4–7 Los Angeles Kings (1979–80) 1–4–1
7 T October 26, 1979 2–2 Toronto Maple Leafs (1979–80) 1–4–2
8 L October 28, 1979 2–4 @ Buffalo Sabres (1979–80) 1–5–2
9 L October 30, 1979 1–3 @ Atlanta Flames (1979–80) 1–6–2
10 L October 31, 1979 2–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1979–80) 1–7–2
11 W November 3, 1979 7–2 New York Rangers (1979–80) 2–7–2
12 L November 6, 1979 2–7 Hartford Whalers (1979–80) 2–8–2
13 L November 9, 1979 5–6 Minnesota North Stars (1979–80) 2–9–2
14 W November 11, 1979 5–3 @ Buffalo Sabres (1979–80) 3–9–2
15 L November 13, 1979 1–4 @ Los Angeles Kings (1979–80) 3–10–2
16 L November 15, 1979 1–4 Montreal Canadiens (1979–80) 3–11–2
17 L November 17, 1979 1–4 Chicago Black Hawks (1979–80) 3–12–2
18 T November 20, 1979 3–3 Washington Capitals (1979–80) 3–12–3
19 W November 23, 1979 5–2 Detroit Red Wings (1979–80) 4–12–3
20 L November 24, 1979 3–4 @ St. Louis Blues (1979–80) 4–13–3
21 W November 28, 1979 7–4 New York Islanders (1979–80) 5–13–3
22 L December 1, 1979 4–5 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1979–80) 5–14–3
23 W December 2, 1979 5–3 @ Boston Bruins (1979–80) 6–14–3
24 W December 4, 1979 3–1 @ Quebec Nordiques (1979–80) 7–14–3
25 L December 7, 1979 3–5 Buffalo Sabres (1979–80) 7–15–3
26 W December 9, 1979 7–5 @ Montreal Canadiens (1979–80) 8–15–3
27 L December 12, 1979 3–5 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1979–80) 8–16–3
28 L December 14, 1979 3–5 @ Vancouver Canucks (1979–80) 8–17–3
29 W December 15, 1979 6–5 Hartford Whalers (1979–80) 9–17–3
30 L December 18, 1979 2–3 @ New York Islanders (1979–80) 9–18–3
31 L December 19, 1979 3–6 @ Quebec Nordiques (1979–80) 9–19–3
32 W December 21, 1979 5–4 Edmonton Oilers (1979–80) 10–19–3
33 L December 26, 1979 3–4 @ Edmonton Oilers (1979–80) 10–20–3
34 W December 27, 1979 4–3 Minnesota North Stars (1979–80) 11–20–3
35 L December 29, 1979 2–3 Philadelphia Flyers (1979–80) 11–21–3
36 W December 31, 1979 5–3 @ Detroit Red Wings (1979–80) 12–21–3
37 L January 2, 1980 2–5 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1979–80) 12–22–3
38 L January 4, 1980 2–4 Vancouver Canucks (1979–80) 12–23–3
39 T January 8, 1980 2–2 Boston Bruins (1979–80) 12–23–4
40 L January 11, 1980 3–4 Buffalo Sabres (1979–80) 12–24–4
41 L January 13, 1980 2–6 @ Boston Bruins (1979–80) 12–25–4
42 T January 14, 1980 6–6 @ New York Rangers (1979–80) 12–25–5
43 L January 16, 1980 1–5 @ Detroit Red Wings (1979–80) 12–26–5
44 L January 17, 1980 1–4 Atlanta Flames (1979–80) 12–27–5
45 L January 19, 1980 1–3 St. Louis Blues (1979–80) 12–28–5
46 W January 22, 1980 5–3 @ Vancouver Canucks (1979–80) 13–28–5
47 W January 24, 1980 4–1 Pittsburgh Penguins (1979–80) 14–28–5
48 T January 26, 1980 4–4 @ St. Louis Blues (1979–80) 14–28–6
49 T January 27, 1980 3–3 New York Rangers (1979–80) 14–28–7
50 L January 30, 1980 2–3 Montreal Canadiens (1979–80) 14–29–7
51 T February 2, 1980 2–2 Winnipeg Jets (1979–80) 14–29–8
52 L February 3, 1980 2–6 @ Minnesota North Stars (1979–80) 14–30–8
53 L February 7, 1980 3–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (1979–80) 14–31–8
54 T February 8, 1980 4–4 @ Hartford Whalers (1979–80) 14–31–9
55 L February 10, 1980 1–6 Atlanta Flames (1979–80) 14–32–9
56 L February 14, 1980 3–5 New York Islanders (1979–80) 14–33–9
57 L February 16, 1980 3–5 Boston Bruins (1979–80) 14–34–9
58 W February 19, 1980 8–6 Philadelphia Flyers (1979–80) 15–34–9
59 W February 22, 1980 3–1 Edmonton Oilers (1979–80) 16–34–9
60 T February 24, 1980 1–1 Washington Capitals (1979–80) 16–34–10
61 L February 27, 1980 3–4 Toronto Maple Leafs (1979–80) 16–35–10
62 L March 1, 1980 1–4 @ Atlanta Flames (1979–80) 16–36–10
63 W March 2, 1980 3–1 @ Washington Capitals (1979–80) 17–36–10
64 L March 4, 1980 1–4 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1979–80) 17–37–10
65 L March 7, 1980 2–4 Chicago Black Hawks (1979–80) 17–38–10
66 T March 9, 1980 4–4 Vancouver Canucks (1979–80) 17–38–11
67 L March 11, 1980 1–4 @ New York Islanders (1979–80) 17–39–11
68 L March 12, 1980 0–6 @ New York Rangers (1979–80) 17–40–11
69 L March 15, 1980 1–4 @ Hartford Whalers (1979–80) 17–41–11
70 T March 16, 1980 4–4 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1979–80) 17–41–12
71 L March 18, 1980 1–4 @ Washington Capitals (1979–80) 17–42–12
72 L March 20, 1980 2–6 Quebec Nordiques (1979–80) 17–43–12
73 W March 22, 1980 5–1 Detroit Red Wings (1979–80) 18–43–12
74 L March 23, 1980 1–7 @ Minnesota North Stars (1979–80) 18–44–12
75 L March 25, 1980 2–5 Los Angeles Kings (1979–80) 18–45–12
76 W March 28, 1980 5–0 Pittsburgh Penguins (1979–80) 19–45–12
77 T March 30, 1980 2–2 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1979–80) 19–45–13
78 L April 1, 1980 3–4 @ Los Angeles Kings (1979–80) 19–46–13
79 L April 4, 1980 2–6 @ Edmonton Oilers (1979–80) 19–47–13
80 L April 6, 1980 2–3 @ Winnipeg Jets (1979–80) 19–48–13

Transactions

On December 29, 1979, the Maple Leafs traded Lanny McDonald and Joel Quenneville to the Colorado Rockies for Wilf Paiement and Pat Hickey.[2]

Player stats

Regular season

Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Robert, ReneRene Robert RW 69 28 35 63 79 -20 10 0 0
McEwen, MikeMike McEwen D 67 11 40 51 33 -13 5 1 1
Valiquette, JackJack Valiquette C 77 25 25 50 8 -7 6 0 2
McDonald, LannyLanny McDonald RW 46 25 20 45 43 -15 8 0 3
DeBlois, LucienLucien DeBlois C 70 24 19 43 36 -18 4 0 1
Delorme, RonRon Delorme C 75 19 24 43 76 -24 5 0 4
Pierce, RandyRandy Pierce RW 75 16 23 39 100 -11 0 0 1
Berry, DougDoug Berry C 75 7 23 30 16 -23 0 1 1
Ramage, RobRob Ramage D 75 8 20 28 135 -40 4 0 3
Paiement, WilfWilf Paiement RW 34 10 16 26 41 -6 2 2 1
Christie, MikeMike Christie D 74 1 17 18 78 -30 0 0 0
Saleski, DonDon Saleski RW 51 8 8 16 23 -17 0 0 0
Hickey, PatPat Hickey LW 24 7 9 16 10 -2 0 0 0
Morrison, KevinKevin Morrison D 41 4 11 15 23 -6 2 0 1
Schmautz, BobbyBobby Schmautz RW 20 9 4 13 53 -10 2 1 1
Quenneville, JoelJoel Quenneville D 35 5 7 12 26 -21 1 0 0
Johansen, TrevorTrevor Johansen D 62 3 8 11 45 -17 1 0 0
Gillis, MikeMike Gillis LW 40 4 5 9 22 -18 1 0 0
Beverley, NickNick Beverley D 46 0 9 9 10 -4 0 0 0
Sheehan, BobbyBobby Sheehan C 30 3 4 7 2 -7 1 0 0
Comeau, ReyRey Comeau C 22 2 5 7 6 0 0 0 0
Kitchen, MikeMike Kitchen D 42 1 6 7 25 -10 0 0 0
Malinowski, MerlinMerlin Malinowski C 10 2 4 6 2 -1 0 0 0
Beck, BarryBarry Beck D 10 1 5 6 8 -2 0 0 0
Pyatt, NelsonNelson Pyatt C 13 5 0 5 2 -5 0 0 0
Smith, BarryBarry Smith C 33 2 3 5 4 -11 0 1 0
Croteau, GaryGary Croteau LW 15 1 4 5 4 -4 1 0 0
McKechnie, WaltWalt McKechnie C 17 0 4 4 2 -14 0 0 0
Attwell, BobBob Attwell RW 7 1 1 2 0 -5 0 0 0
Owchar, DennisDennis Owchar D 10 1 0 1 2 -3 0 0 0
Turner, DeanDean Turner D 27 1 0 1 51 0 0 0 0
Ashby, DonDon Ashby C 11 0 1 1 4 -2 0 0 0
Flesch, JohnJohn Flesch LW 5 0 1 1 4 -1 0 0 0
Giallonardo, MarioMario Giallonardo D 8 0 1 1 2 -3 0 0 0
Peters, SteveSteve Peters C 2 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0
Astrom, HardyHardy Astrom G 49 0 0 0 6 0 0 0 0
Dwyer, MikeMike Dwyer LW 10 0 0 0 19 -5 0 0 0
McKenzie, BillBill McKenzie G 26 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
Oleschuk, BillBill Oleschuk G 12 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0
Plasse, MichelMichel Plasse G 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Skinner, LarryLarry Skinner C 2 0 0 0 0 -2 0 0 0
Sturgeon, PeterPeter Sturgeon LW 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Watson, DaveDave Watson LW 5 0 0 0 2 -1 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T GA GAA SO
Astrom, HardyHardy Astrom 2574 49 9 27 6 161 3.75 0
McKenzie, BillBill McKenzie 1342 26 9 12 3 78 3.49 1
Oleschuk, BillBill Oleschuk 557 12 1 6 2 39 4.20 0
Plasse, MichelMichel Plasse 327 6 0 3 2 26 4.77 0
Team: 4800 80 19 48 13 304 3.80 1

[3]

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalty Minutes; PPG=Power-play goals; SHG=Short-handed goals; GWG=Game-winning goals
      MIN=Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals Against; GAA = Goals Against Average; SO = Shutouts;

Awards and records

Transactions

Roster

Goaltenders

Defensemen

Wingers

Centers

  • GM:
  • Coach: Don Cherry

Farm teams

Affiliations have included: Flint Generals, Fort Worth Texans [4]

References

  1. ^ Dinger, Ralph, ed (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 152. ISBN 9781894801225. 
  2. ^ Legends of Hockey - Spotlight - One on One with Lanny McDonald
  3. ^ "1979-80 Colorado Rockies Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/CLR/1980.html. Retrieved 2009-05-28. 
  4. ^ A to Z Encyclopaedia of Ice Hockey - Co

External links

Franchise
Lore
Arena
Kansas City • 1976–77 • 1977–78 • 1978–79 • 1979–80 • 1980–81 • 1981–82 • New Jersey
Patrick
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Smythe
Chicago • Colorado • Edmonton • St. Louis • Vancouver • Winnipeg
See also