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76-77PitPen
1976–77 Pittsburgh Penguins
Division 3rd Norris
Conference 5th Prince of Wales
1976–77 record 34-33-13
Goals for 240
Goals against 252
Team information
General manager Wren Blair (fired Dec 3, 1976)
Baz Bastien
Coach Ken Schinkel
Captain Ron Schock
Arena Pittsburgh Civic Arena
Team leaders
Goals Jean Pronovost (33)
Assists Syl Apps, Jr. (43)
Points Jean Pronovost (64)
Penalty minutes Bob Kelly (115)
Wins Dunc Wilson (18)
Goals against average Denis Herron (2.94)

The 1976–77 Pittsburgh Penguins season was their 10th in the National Hockey League. They finished 3rd in the Norris Division for the third season in a row and lost in the Preliminary round to the Toronto Maple Leafs 2 games to 1.

Off-season[]

Draft Picks[]

Round Pick Player Nationality College/Junior/Club Team
1 2. Blair Chapman Flag of Canada Canada Saskatoon Blades (WCHL)
2 19. Greg Malone Flag of Canada Canada Oshawa Generals (OMJHL)
2 29. Peter Marsh Flag of Canada Canada Sherbrooke Beavers (QMJHL)
3 47. Morris Lukowich Flag of Canada Canada Medicine Hat Tigers (WCHL)
4 65. Greg Redquest Flag of Canada Canada Oshawa Generals (OMJHL)
5 83. Brendan Lowe Sherbrooke Beavers (QMJHL)
6 101. Vic Sirko Flag of Canada Canada Oshawa Generals (OMJHL)

Pre-season[]

The Penguins had five exhibition games against teams from the WHA, winning four and losing one:

September 21, 1976: Pittsburgh Penguins 5, Houston Aeros 1
September 23, 1976: Pittsburgh Penguins 7, Calgary Cowboys 3
September 24, 1976: Winnipeg Jets 5, Pittsburgh Penguins 3
September 26, 1976: Pittsburgh Penguins 3, Edmonton Oilers 1
September 30, 1976: Pittsburgh Penguins 6, Indianapolis Racers 4

Regular Season[]

Despite the fact that Pierre Larouche, Jean Pronovost and Syl Apps were unable to reproduce their franchise record-setting offensive output of the previous season the team finished with a similar regular season record on the strength of improved defensive prowess and the goaltending of Dunc Wilson and Denis Herron, who was re-acquired from the Kansas City Scouts in the off-season.

General Manager Wren Blair, who had been part of the ownership group which bought the club from the NHL in July 1975 until February 1976, was removed from his position December 3, 1976. Aldege 'Baz' Bastien, the man who had coached the American Hockey League's Pittsburgh Hornets to a Calder Cup championship in 1967, was named Blair's replacement.

Co-owners Al Savill and Otto Frenzel sold the club to shopping mall magnate Edward J. DeBartolo, Sr. in February 1977, less than two years after having bought the team from the NHL.

Final Standings[]

Norris Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Montreal Canadiens 80 60 8 12 387 171 132
Los Angeles Kings 80 34 31 15 271 241 83
Pittsburgh Penguins 80 34 33 13 240 252 81
Washington Capitals 80 24 42 14 221 307 62
Detroit Red Wings 80 16 55 9 183 309 41

Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points
Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.


Game Log[]

Regular Season Results
No. R Date Score Opponent Record
1 W October 6, 1976 9–5 Vancouver Canucks (1976–77) 1–0–0
2 L October 7, 1976 1–10 @ Montreal Canadiens (1976–77) 1–1–0
3 L October 9, 1976 4–7 Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) 1–2–0
4 L October 13, 1976 1–4 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1976–77) 1–3–0
5 L October 15, 1976 1–2 @ Atlanta Flames (1976–77) 1–4–0
6 W October 16, 1976 4–3 Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) 2–4–0
7 T October 20, 1976 4–4 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1976–77) 2–4–1
8 L October 23, 1976 1–9 Montreal Canadiens (1976–77) 2–5–1
9 T October 24, 1976 3–3 Atlanta Flames (1976–77) 2–5–2
10 T October 27, 1976 4–4 @ Buffalo Sabres (1976–77) 2–5–3
11 L October 28, 1976 0–3 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1976–77) 2–6–3
12 T October 30, 1976 2–2 New York Rangers (1976–77) 2–6–4
13 W November 2, 1976 7–1 Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) 3–6–4
14 W November 5, 1976 4–1 @ Colorado Rockies (1976–77) 4–6–4
15 T November 7, 1976 2–2 @ Cleveland Barons (1976–77) 4–6–5
16 L November 10, 1976 2–3 @ Minnesota North Stars (1976–77) 4–7–5
17 W November 13, 1976 1–0 Philadelphia Flyers (1976–77) 5–7–5
18 W November 14, 1976 5–1 @ New York Rangers (1976–77) 6–7–5
19 L November 20, 1976 2–5 Colorado Rockies (1976–77) 6–8–5
20 W November 21, 1976 5–0 Chicago Black Hawks (1976–77) 7–8–5
21 L November 24, 1976 0–4 Boston Bruins (1976–77) 7–9–5
22 W November 26, 1976 3–1 @ Cleveland Barons (1976–77) 8–9–5
23 L November 27, 1976 1–3 New York Islanders (1976–77) 8–10–5
24 L November 30, 1976 4–6 @ Washington Capitals (1976–77) 8–11–5
25 W December 2, 1976 4–2 @ New York Islanders (1976–77) 9–11–5
26 L December 4, 1976 1–3 @ Montreal Canadiens (1976–77) 9–12–5
27 W December 7, 1976 6–2 Minnesota North Stars (1976–77) 10–12–5
28 W December 9, 1976 2–1 @ Buffalo Sabres (1976–77) 11–12–5
29 L December 11, 1976 3–6 @ New York Islanders (1976–77) 11–13–5
30 W December 12, 1976 5–3 St. Louis Blues (1976–77) 12–13–5
31 W December 16, 1976 5–4 Cleveland Barons (1976–77) 13–13–5
32 L December 18, 1976 3–5 Washington Capitals (1976–77) 13–14–5
33 L December 19, 1976 3–6 @ Boston Bruins (1976–77) 13–15–5
34 W December 22, 1976 5–2 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1976–77) 14–15–5
35 L December 23, 1976 2–5 @ Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) 14–16–5
36 W December 26, 1976 4–2 Toronto Maple Leafs (1976–77) 15–16–5
37 T December 29, 1976 3–3 Montreal Canadiens (1976–77) 15–16–6
38 W January 1, 1977 6–3 Buffalo Sabres (1976–77) 16–16–6
39 T January 4, 1977 2–2 Vancouver Canucks (1976–77) 16–16–7
40 T January 6, 1977 3–3 @ Washington Capitals (1976–77) 16–16–8
41 W January 8, 1977 4–2 Chicago Black Hawks (1976–77) 17–16–8
42 L January 11, 1977 0–2 Toronto Maple Leafs (1976–77) 17–17–8
43 W January 15, 1977 5–2 Buffalo Sabres (1976–77) 18–17–8
44 L January 16, 1977 5–6 Atlanta Flames (1976–77) 18–18–8
45 W January 19, 1977 3–0 @ Vancouver Canucks (1976–77) 19–18–8
46 L January 20, 1977 3–5 @ Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) 19–19–8
47 W January 22, 1977 3–2 New York Islanders (1976–77) 20–19–8
48 W January 27, 1977 3–0 @ New York Rangers (1976–77) 21–19–8
49 L January 29, 1977 2–5 Philadelphia Flyers (1976–77) 21–20–8
50 W January 30, 1977 5–2 Boston Bruins (1976–77) 22–20–8
51 W February 2, 1977 5–2 Minnesota North Stars (1976–77) 23–20–8
52 T February 3, 1977 0–0 @ Cleveland Barons (1976–77) 23–20–9
53 W February 5, 1977 3–1 Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) 24–20–9
54 L February 6, 1977 2–5 @ Colorado Rockies (1976–77) 24–21–9
55 L February 8, 1977 3–6 @ St. Louis Blues (1976–77) 24–22–9
56 L February 11, 1977 2–3 @ Vancouver Canucks (1976–77) 24–23–9
57 W February 12, 1977 3–2 @ Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) 25–23–9
58 T February 16, 1977 4–4 Montreal Canadiens (1976–77) 25–23–10
59 T February 19, 1977 6–6 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1976–77) 25–23–11
60 W February 20, 1977 4–1 Cleveland Barons (1976–77) 26–23–11
61 L February 22, 1977 1–3 @ Washington Capitals (1976–77) 26–24–11
62 L February 24, 1977 2–3 @ Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) 26–25–11
63 W February 26, 1977 2–1 Washington Capitals (1976–77) 27–25–11
64 T February 27, 1977 2–2 Boston Bruins (1976–77) 27–25–12
65 L March 2, 1977 0–5 Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) 27–26–12
66 L March 3, 1977 1–5 @ Montreal Canadiens (1976–77) 27–27–12
67 T March 5, 1977 3–3 @ Los Angeles Kings (1976–77) 27–27–13
68 W March 8, 1977 2–1 @ St. Louis Blues (1976–77) 28–27–13
69 W March 9, 1977 3–0 Colorado Rockies (1976–77) 29–27–13
70 W March 12, 1977 3–2 Buffalo Sabres (1976–77) 30–27–13
71 L March 13, 1977 0–4 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1976–77) 30–28–13
72 L March 15, 1977 3–7 @ Atlanta Flames (1976–77) 30–29–13
73 W March 16, 1977 7–3 St. Louis Blues (1976–77) 31–29–13
74 L March 19, 1977 2–5 New York Rangers (1976–77) 31–30–13
75 L March 20, 1977 2–3 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1976–77) 31–31–13
76 W March 22, 1977 4–2 @ Minnesota North Stars (1976–77) 32–31–13
77 L March 27, 1977 0–3 @ Boston Bruins (1976–77) 32–32–13
78 L March 30, 1977 3–4 Washington Capitals (1976–77) 32–33–13
79 W April 2, 1977 4–3 @ Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) 33–33–13
80 W April 3, 1977 4–2 Detroit Red Wings (1976–77) 34–33–13

Playoffs[]

Toronto Maple Leafs 2, Pittsburgh Penguins 1[]

The Penguins' opponent in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs was once again the Toronto Maple Leafs. Whilst the Penguins' offensive output greatly improved to ten goals scored (compared to 1976's three goals), the Maple Leafs once again dispatched the Penguins in three games with the away team winning every game in the series.

# Date Visitor Score Home Record
1 April 5 Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 Pittsburgh Penguins 1-0
2 April 7 Pittsburgh Penguins 6-4 Toronto Maple Leafs 1-1
3 April 9 Toronto Maple Leafs 5-2 Pittsburgh Penguins 2-1

Player Stats[]

Skaters[]

Note: GP= Games played; G= Goals; A= Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in Minutes

    Regular Season   Playoffs
Player # GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
Jean Pronovost 19 79 33 31 64 24 3 2 1 3 2
Pierre Larouche 10 65 29 34 63 14 3 0 3 3 0
Syl Apps, Jr. 26 72 18 43 61 20 3 1 0 1 12
Rick Kehoe 8 80 30 27 57 10 3 0 2 2 0
Ron Schock 17 80 17 32 49 10 3 0 1 1 0
Mike Corrigan 27 73 14 27 41 36 2 0 0 0 0
Ron Stackhouse 3 80 7 34 41 72 3 2 1 3 0
Greg Malone 12 66 18 19 37 43 3 1 1 2 2
Blair Chapman 9 80 14 23 37 16 3 1 1 2 7
Wayne Bianchin 14 79 28 6 34 28 3 0 1 1 6
Bob Kelly 22 74 10 21 31 115 3 1 0 1 4
Dennis Owchar 25 46 5 18 23 37 - - - - -
Stan Gilbertson 15 67 6 9 15 13 - - - - -
Mario Faubert 28 47 2 11 13 32 3 1 0 1 2
Russ Anderson 7 66 2 11 13 81 3 0 1 1 14
Don Awrey 24 79 1 12 13 40 3 0 1 1 0
Dave Burrows 4 69 3 6 9 29 3 0 2 2 0
Lew Morrison 16 76 2 1 3 0 1 0 0 0 0
Ed Van Impe 2 10 0 3 3 6 - - - - -
Lowell MacDonald 18 3 1 1 2 0 3 1 2 3 4
Tom Price 6 7 0 2 2 4 - - - - -
Vic Hadfield 11 9 0 2 2 0 - - - - -
Denis Herron 1 34 0 1 1 4 3 0 0 0 5
Dunc Wilson 29 45 0 1 1 21 - - - - -
Yves Bergeron 20 1 0 0 0 0 - - - - -
Steve Lyon 5 3 0 0 0 2 - - - - -
Gordie Laxton 30 6 0 0 0 0 - - - - -
Ed Gilbert 23 7 0 0 0 0 - - - - -

Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Penguins. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only. Traded mid-season

Goaltenders[]

Note: GP= Games played; TOI= Time on ice (minutes); W= Wins; L= Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals Against; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals Against Average

    Regular Season   Playoffs
Player # GP TOI W L T GA SO GAA GP TOI W L GA SO GAA
Denis Herron 1 34 1920 15 11 5 94 1 2.94 3 180 1 2 11 0 3.67
Dunc Wilson 29 45 2627 18 19 8 129 5 2.95 - - - - - - -
Gordie Laxton 30 6 253 1 3 0 26 0 6.17 - - - - - - -

Awards and Records[]

  • The Penguins did not receive any awards this season.

Transactions[]

The Penguins were involved in the following transactions during the 1976–77 season:

Trades[]

August 11, 1976 To Pittsburgh Penguins
Don Awrey
To Montreal Canadiens
3rd round pick in 1978 draft (Richard David)
October 8, 1976 To Pittsburgh Penguins
Dunc Wilson
To New York Rangers
4th round pick in 1978 Draft (Dave Silk)
October 18, 1976 To Pittsburgh Penguins
Mike Corrigan
To Los Angeles Kings
5th round pick in 1977 Draft (Julian Baretta)

Additions and Subtractions[]

Additions
Player Former team Via
Denis Herron Kansas City Scouts free agency (1976-08-07)
Steve Lyon Minnesota North Stars free agency (1976-11)
Tom Price Cleveland Barons free agency (1977-02-28)
Subtractions
Player New team Via
Barry Wilkins Edmonton Oilers (WHA) free agency
Pete Laframboise Edmonton Oilers (WHA) free agency (1976-05)
Simon Nolet Colorado Rockies compensation for signing of Denis Herron (1976-08-07)
Michel Plasse Colorado Rockies compensation for signing of Denis Herron (1976-08-07)
Colin Campbell Colorado Rockies compensation for signing of Denis Herron (1976-09-01)

Colin Campbell was loaned to the Rockies for one season. He was returned to the Penguins in 1977.

References[]

Pittsburgh Penguins
Team FranchisePlayersCoachesGMsSeasonsRecordsDraft PicksMellon ArenaPPG Paints Arena
Coaches Sullivan • Kelly • Schinkel • Boileau • WilsonJohnston • Angotti • Berry • Creamer • Ubriaco • Patrick • Johnson • Bowman • Constantine • Brooks • Hlinka • Kehoe • Olczyk • Therrien
Seasons 1967-681968-691969-701970-711971-721972-731973-741974-751975-761976-771977-781978-791979-801980-811981-821982-831983-841984-851985-861986-871987-881988-891989-901990-911991-921992-931993-941994-951995-961996-971997-981998-991999-002000-012001-022002-032003-042004-052005-062006-072007-082008-092009-102010-112011-122012-132013-142014-152015-162016-172017-182018-19
Affiliates Wilkes-Barre/Scranton Penguins (AHL), Wheeling Nailers (ECHL)
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