Changes: Central Hockey League (1963-1984)

Revision as of 11:01, 19 January 2020

The Central Hockey League was a minor professional league that operated in the United States from 1963 to 1984. Initially named the Central Professional Hockey League, it was owned and operated by the National Hockey League and served as a successor to the Eastern Professional Hockey League, which had folded after the 1962-63 season. Four of the CHL's initial franchises were, in fact, relocations of the previous year's EPHL teams. Its founding president was Jack Adams, who served in the role until his death in 1968. The CHL's championship trophy was called the Adams Cup in his honor.

History

In the league's first season, all five teams were affiliated with an NHL club. The CHL initially consisted of the Indianapolis Capitals (formerly Sudbury Wolves) with the Detroit Red Wings, Minneapolis Bruins (formerly Kingston Frontenacs) with the Boston Bruins, Omaha Knights (formerly Hull-Ottawa Canadiens) with the Montreal Canadiens, St. Louis Braves with the Chicago Black Hawks) and the St. Paul Rangers with the New York Rangers. The New York Rangers had not had a farm team in the EPHL in 1962-63.

The only NHL team without a CHL affiliate that year, the Toronto Maple Leafs, joined the league through its affiliation with the Tulsa Oilers in the CHL's second season.

In that first season, 1963-64, the Capitals were forced to relocate because of a terrible accident in their arena. They became the Cincinnati Wings.

From 1964 to 1970, teams from this league played exhibition games during the season against the Canadian national team.

After Adams's death, Emory Jones served as interim president until the appointment of lawyer Joe Kane in August 1968. Kane served one year as president, retiring in June 1969. Kane was succeeded by Jones, who held the job until retiring in 1974. Max McNab served as league president from 1974 until becoming general manager of the Washington Capitals during his second season. Ray Miron was hired as president in August 1976, but resigned less than three weeks later to accept the job as general manager of the Colorado Rockies. Before the end of the month, Bud Poile became league president and would hold the job until the CHL folded in 1984.

For the 1974-75 season, the CHL absorbed three teams, the Denver Spurs, Salt Lake Golden Eagles, and Seattle Totems, from the folding Western Hockey League. Denver and Seattle would play only one season, but Salt Lake would stay in the league until the end and would continue in the International Hockey League for the 1984-85 season, after the CHL ceased operations. For 1979-80, the CHL added the Cincinnati Stingers and Birmingham Bulls, the two teams from the World Hockey Association that were not admitted to the NHL that year.

Also during the 1979-80 season, the United States Olympic hockey team played games against each team in the CHL that counted in the standings. The team went on to win the gold medal at the 1980 Winter Olympics. In the 1983-84 season, both the U.S. and Canadian Olympic hockey teams played games in the CHL.

The CHL's final champions, the Tulsa Oilers, were left without a home during their championship 1983-84 season when the team owners went into receivership. The league stepped in to keep the team operating, and the Oilers played all their games on the road from mid-February through the end of the playoffs. Their Cup-winning game on April 27, 1984 was the last game played in the CHL. The league folded the following month.

Teams

Team	Location	Arena	Tenure	Notes
Indianapolis Capitals	Indianapolis, Indiana	Pepsi Coliseum	1963-1963	relocated to Cincinnati due to arena explosion October 31, 1963; renamed
Minneapolis Bruins	Minneapolis, Minnesota	Minneapolis Arena	1963-1965	relocated to Oklahoma City; renamed Oklahoma City Blazers (1965-1977)
Omaha Knights	Omaha, Nebraska	Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum	1963-1965	relocated to Houston; renamed Houston Apollos
St. Paul Rangers	St. Paul, Minnesota	St. Paul Auditorium	1963-1965	renamed Minnesota Rangers
St. Louis Braves	St. Louis, Missouri	St. Louis Arena	1963-1967	relocated to Dallas; renamed Dallas Black Hawks when city gets NHL team
Cincinnati Wings	Cincinnati, Ohio	Cincinnati Gardens	1963-1964	relocated to Memphis; renaned Memphis Wings
Memphis Wings	Memphis, Tennessee	Mid-South Coliseum	1964-1967	relocated to Fort Worth; renamed Fort Worth Wings
Tulsa Oilers	Tulsa, Oklahoma	Tulsa Convention Center (1964-1983) Expo Square Pavilion (1983-1984)	1964-1984	fold with league after team being taken over by league
Houston Apollos	Houston, Texas	Sam Houston Coliseum	1965-1969	folded as Montreal Canadiens move farm team to Montreal
Minnesota Rangers	St. Paul, Minnesota	St. Paul Auditorium	1965-1966	relocated to Omaha; renamed Omaha Knights
Oklahoma City Blazers (1965-1977)	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	Fairgrounds Arena	1965-1972
Omaha Knights	Omaha, Nebraska	Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum	1966-1975	fold
Dallas Black Hawks	Dallas, Texas	State Fair Coliseum	1967-1982	ceased operations
Fort Worth Wings	Fort Worth, Texas	Will Rogers Coliseum	1967-1974	renamed Fort Worth Texans
Kansas City Blues	Kansas City, Missouri	American Royal Arena	1967-1972	fold
Memphis South Stars	Memphis, Tennessee	Mid-South Coliseum	1967-1969	relocated to Waterloo, Iowa; renamed Iowa Stars
Amarillo Wranglers	Amarillo, Texas	Amarillo Civic Center	1968-1969	ceased operations; return for 1970-71 season
Iowa Stars	Waterloo, Iowa	McElroy Auditorium	1969-1970	fold
Amarillo Wranglers	Amarillo, Texas	Amarillo Civic Center	1970-1971	fold
Albuquerque Six Guns	Albuquerque, New Mexico	Tingley Coliseum	1973-1974	fold
Oklahoma City Blazers (1965-1977)	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	The Myriad	1973-1977	fold
Denver Spurs	Denver, Colorado	McNichols Sports Arena	1974-1975	ownership awared World Hockey Association franchise
Fort Worth Texans	Fort Worth, Texas	Will Rogers Coliseum	1974-1982
Salt Lake Golden Eagles	Salt Lake City, Utah	Salt Palace	1974-1984
Seattle Totems	Seattle, Washington	Seattle Center Coliseum	1974-1975
Tucson Mavericks	Tucson, Arizona	Tucson Community Center	1975-1976
Kansas City Blues	Kansas City, Missouri	Kemper Arena	1976-1977	renamed Kansas City Red Wings
Kansas City Red Wings	Kansas City, Missouri	Kemper Arena	1977-1979
Phoenix Roadrunners	Phoenix, Arizona	Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum	1977-1977	withdrew December 12, 1977; join Pacific Hockey League
Oklahoma City Stars	Oklahoma City, Oklahoma	Cox Convention Center	1978-1982
Birmingham Bulls	Birmingham, Alabama	Birmingham Jefferson Convention Center	1979-1981	fold during season
Cincinnati Stingers	Cincinnati, Ohio	Riverfront Coliseum	1979-1980
Indianapolis Checkers	Indianapolis, Indiana	Pepsi Coliseum	1979-1984
Houston Apollos	Houston, Texas	Sam Houston Coliseum	1979-1981
Wichita Wind	Wichita, Kansas	Kansas Coliseum	1980-1983
Cincinnati Tigers	Cincinnati, Ohio	Riverfront Coliseum	1981-1982
Nashville South Stars	Nashville, Tennessee	Nashville Municipal Auditorium	1981-1982
Birmingham South Stars	Birmingham, Alabama	Birmingham Jefferson Convention Center	1982-1983	fold
Colorado Flames	Denver, Colorado	McNichols Sports Arena	1982-1984
Montana Magic	Billings, Montana	Yellowstone METRA	1983-1984	fold with league

Adams Cup champions

1973 — Omaha Knights
1972 — Dallas Black Hawks
1971 — Omaha Knights
1970 — Omaha Knights
1969 — Dallas Black Hawks
1968 — Tulsa Oilers
1967 — Oklahoma City Blazers
1966 — Oklahoma City Blazers
1965 — St. Paul Rangers
1964 — Omaha Knights

‡ Oilers team was left without a home after its owners in Tulsa went into receivership; played the last two months of the season and all playoff games as a road team, with salaries and expenses paid by the league.

Individual Trophies

Leading Scorer (Phil Esposito Trophy)
Most Valuable Player (Tommy Ivan Award)
Leading Defenceman (Bobby Orr Trophy)
Leading Goalie (Terry Sawchuk Trophy)
Rookie of the Year (Ken McKenzie Trophy)

This article is part of the North American Minor Professional leagues portal

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
+[[File:CHL70.gif|thumb|330px|1970's logo]]
 The '''Central Hockey League''' was a minor professional league that operated in the [[United States]] from 1963 to 1984. Initially named the '''Central Professional Hockey League''', it was owned and operated by the [[National Hockey League]] and served as a successor to the [[Eastern Professional Hockey League]], which had folded after the 1962-63 season.  Four of the CHL's initial franchises were, in fact, relocations of the previous year's [[Eastern Professional Hockey League|EPHL]] teams. Its founding president was [[Jack Adams]], who served in the role until his death in 1968. The CHL's championship trophy was called the Adams Cup in his honor.
 __TOC__
+[[File:CHLArenas1971.jpg|thumb|267px|League arenas in 1972]]
 ==History==
-In the league's first season, all five teams were affiliated with an NHL club. The CHL initially consisted of the [[Indianapolis Capitals]] (formerly [[Sudbury Wolves]] [[Detroit Red Wings]]), [[Minneapolis Bruins]] (formerly [[Kingston Frontenacs]] [[Boston Bruins]]), [[Omaha Knights]] (formerly [[Hull-Ottawa Canadiens]] [[Montreal Canadiens]]), [[St. Louis Braves]] (same team [[Chicago Black Hawks]]) and the [[St. Paul Rangers]] ([[New York Rangers]]). The [[New York Rangers]] had not had a farm team in the EPHL in 1962-63.
+In the league's first season, all five teams were affiliated with an NHL club. The CHL initially consisted of the [[Indianapolis Capitals]] (formerly [[Sudbury Wolves]]) with the [[Detroit Red Wings]], [[Minneapolis Bruins]] (formerly [[Kingston Frontenacs]]) with the [[Boston Bruins]], [[Omaha Knights]] (formerly [[Hull-Ottawa Canadiens]]) with the [[Montreal Canadiens]], [[St. Louis Braves]] with the [[Chicago Black Hawks]]) and the [[St. Paul Rangers]] with the [[New York Rangers]]. The [[New York Rangers]] had not had a farm team in the EPHL in 1962-63.
 The only NHL team without a CHL affiliate that year, the [[Toronto Maple Leafs]], joined the league through its affiliation with the [[Tulsa Oilers]] in the CHL's second season.
-In that first season, 1963-64, the Capitals were forced to relocate because of a terrible accident in their arena. They became the [[Cincinatti Wings]].
+In that first season, 1963-64, the Capitals were forced to relocate because of a terrible accident in their arena. They became the [[Cincinnati Wings]].
 From 1964 to 1970, teams from this league played exhibition games during the season against the [[Canadian national team]].
@@ Line 16: / Line 19: @@
 Also during the 1979-80 season, the [[United States Olympic hockey team]] played games against each team in the CHL that counted in the standings. The team went on to win the gold medal at the [[1980 Winter Olympics]]. In the 1983-84 season, both the U.S. and [[Canadian Olympic]] hockey teams played games in the CHL.
-The CHL's final champions, the [[Tulsa Oilers]], were left without a home during their championship 1983-84 season when the team owners went into receivership. The league stepped in to keep the team operating, and the Oilers played all their games on the road from mid-February through the end of the playoffs. Their Cup-winning game on [[April 27]], [[1984]] was the last game played in the CHL. The league folded the following month.
+The CHL's final champions, the [[Tulsa Oilers]], were left without a home during their championship 1983-84 season when the team owners went into receivership. The league stepped in to keep the team operating, and the Oilers played all their games on the road from mid-February through the end of the playoffs. Their Cup-winning game on April 27, 1984 was the last game played in the CHL. The league folded the following month.
 ==Teams==
+{| class="wikitable"
-<div style="float:left; width:48%;">
+!Team
-*[[Albuquerque Six Guns]] (1973-1974)
+!Location
-*[[Amarillo Wranglers]] (1968-1969, 1970-1971)
+!Arena
-*[[Birmingham Bulls]] (1979-1981)
+!Tenure
-*[[Birmingham South Stars]] (1982-1983)
+!Notes
-*[[Cincinnati Stingers]] (1979-1980)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Cincinnati Tigers]] (1981-1982)
+| [[Indianapolis Capitals]] || [[Indianapolis, Indiana]]  || [[Pepsi Coliseum]] || 1963-1963 ||relocated to [[Cincinnati]] due to arena explosion October 31, 1963; renamed
-*[[Cincinnati Wings]] (1963-1964)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Colorado Flames]] (1982-1984)
+| [[Minneapolis Bruins]] || [[Minneapolis, Minnesota]] || [[Minneapolis Arena]] || 1963-1965 ||relocated to [[Oklahoma City]]; renamed [[Oklahoma City Blazers (1965-1977)]]
-*[[Dallas Black Hawks]] (1967-1982)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Denver Spurs]] (1974-1975)
+| [[Omaha Knights]] || [[Omaha, Nebraska]] || [[Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum]] || 1963-1965 || relocated to [[Houston]]; renamed [[Houston Apollos]]
-*[[Fort Worth Texans]] (1974-1982)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Fort Worth Wings]] (1967-1974)
+| [[St. Paul Rangers]] || [[St. Paul, Minnesota]]  || [[St. Paul Auditorium]] || 1963-1965 ||renamed [[Minnesota Rangers]]
-*[[Houston Apollos]] (1965-1969; 1979-1981)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Indianapolis Capitals]] (1963-1964) (became [[Cincinnati Wings]] mid-season)
+| [[St. Louis Braves]] || [[St. Louis, Missouri]] || [[St. Louis Arena]] || 1963-1967 ||relocated to [[Dallas]]; renamed [[Dallas Black Hawks]] when city gets [[NHL]] team
-*[[Indianapolis Checkers]] (1979-1984)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Iowa Stars]] (1969-1970)
+| [[Cincinnati Wings]] || [[Cincinnati, Ohio]] || [[Cincinnati Gardens]] || 1963-1964 ||relocated to [[Memphis]]; renaned [[Memphis Wings]]
-*[[Kansas City Blues]] (1967-1972; 1976-1977)
-</div><div style="float:right; width:48%;">
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Memphis Wings]] || [[Memphis, Tennessee]]  || [[Mid-South Coliseum]] || 1964-1967 ||relocated to [[Fort Worth]]; renamed [[Fort Worth Wings]]
-*[[Kansas City Red Wings]] (1977-1979)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Memphis South Stars]] (1967-1969)
+| [[Tulsa Oilers]] || [[Tulsa, Oklahoma]] ||[[Tulsa Convention Center]] (1964-1983) [[Expo Square Pavilion]] (1983-1984) || 1964-1984 ||fold with league after team being taken over by league
-*[[Memphis Wings]] (1964-1967)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Minneapolis Bruins]] (1963-1965)
+| [[Houston Apollos]] || [[Houston, Texas]] || [[Sam Houston Coliseum]] ||1965-1969 ||folded as [[Montreal Canadiens]] move farm team to [[Montreal]]
-*[[Minnesota Rangers]] (1965-1966)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Montana Magic]] (1983-1984)
+| [[Minnesota Rangers]] || [[St. Paul, Minnesota]] ||  [[St. Paul Auditorium]]  || 1965-1966 ||
-*[[Nashville South Stars]] (1981-1982)
+relocated to [[Omaha]]; renamed [[Omaha Knights]]
-*[[Oklahoma City Blazers]] (1965-1972, 1973-1977)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Oklahoma City Stars]] (1978-1982)
+| [[Oklahoma City Blazers (1965-1977)]] || [[Oklahoma City, Oklahoma]] || [[Jim Norick Arena|Fairgrounds Arena]] || 1965-1972 ||
-*[[Omaha Knights]] (1963-1965, 1966-1975)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Phoenix Roadrunners (CHL)|Phoenix Roadrunners]] (1977-1978)
+| [[Omaha Knights]] || [[Omaha, Nebraska]] ||  [[Ak-Sar-Ben Coliseum]]  || 1966-1975 ||fold
-*[[St. Louis Braves]] (1963-1967)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[St. Paul Rangers]] (1963-1965)
+| [[Dallas Black Hawks]] || [[Dallas, Texas]] ||  [[State Fair Coliseum]]  || 1967-1982 ||ceased operations
-*[[Salt Lake Golden Eagles]] (1974-1984)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Seattle Totems]] (1974-1975)
+| [[Fort Worth Wings]] || [[Fort Worth, Texas]] || [[Will Rogers Memorial Center|Will Rogers Coliseum]] || 1967-1974 ||renamed [[Fort Worth Texans]]
-*[[Tucson Mavericks]] (1975-1976)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-*[[Tulsa Oilers]] (1964-1984)
+| [[Kansas City Blues]] || [[Kansas City, Missouri]] || [[American Royal Arena]] || 1967-1972 ||fold
-*[[Wichita Wind]] (1980-1983)
+|- style="text-align:center;"
-</div><br clear="all">
+| [[Memphis South Stars]] || [[Memphis, Tennessee]] || [[Mid-South Coliseum]] || 1967-1969 ||relocated to [[Waterloo, Iowa]]; renamed [[Iowa Stars]]
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Amarillo Wranglers]] || [[Amarillo, Texas]] ||  [[Amarillo Civic Center]]  || 1968-1969 ||ceased operations; return for 1970-71 season
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Iowa Stars (1969-70)|Iowa Stars]] || [[Waterloo, Iowa]] || [[McElroy Auditorium]] || 1969-1970 ||fold
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Amarillo Wranglers]] ||  [[Amarillo, Texas]]  || [[Amarillo Civic Center]] || 1970-1971 ||fold
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Albuquerque Six Guns]] || [[Albuquerque, New Mexico]] ||  [[Tingley Coliseum]]  || 1973-1974 ||fold
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Oklahoma City Blazers (1965-1977)]] || [[Oklahoma City, Oklahoma]] || [[Cox Convention Center|The Myriad]] || 1973-1977 ||fold
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Denver Spurs]] ||  [[Denver, Colorado]]  || [[McNichols Sports Arena]] || 1974-1975 ||ownership awared [[World Hockey Association]] franchise
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Fort Worth Texans]] || [[Fort Worth, Texas]] || [[Will Rogers Memorial Center|Will Rogers Coliseum]] || 1974-1982 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Salt Lake Golden Eagles]] || [[Salt Lake City, Utah]] || [[Salt Palace]] || 1974-1984 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Seattle Totems]] ||  [[Seattle, Washington]]  || [[Seattle Center Coliseum]] || 1974-1975 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Tucson Mavericks]] || [[Tucson, Arizona]] || [[Tucson Convention Center|Tucson Community Center]] || 1975-1976 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Kansas City Blues]] || [[Kansas City, Missouri]] || [[Kemper Arena]] || 1976-1977 || renamed [[Kansas City Red Wings]]
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Kansas City Red Wings]] || [[Kansas City, Missouri]] ||  [[Kemper Arena]]  || 1977-1979 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Phoenix Roadrunners]] ||  [[Phoenix, Arizona]]  || [[Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum]] || 1977-1977 ||withdrew December 12, 1977; join [[Pacific Hockey League]]
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Oklahoma City Stars]] || [[Oklahoma City, Oklahoma]] || [[Cox Convention Center]] || 1978-1982 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Birmingham Bulls]] || [[Birmingham, Alabama]] || [[Birmingham Jefferson Convention Center]] || 1979-1981 ||fold during season
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Cincinnati Stingers]] ||  [[Cincinnati, Ohio]]  || [[Riverfront Coliseum]] || 1979-1980 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Indianapolis Checkers]] || [[Indianapolis, Indiana]] || [[Pepsi Coliseum]] || 1979-1984 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Houston Apollos]] || [[Houston, Texas]] || [[Sam Houston Coliseum]] || 1979-1981 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Wichita Wind]] || [[Wichita, Kansas]] || [[Kansas Coliseum]] || 1980-1983 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Cincinnati Tigers]] || [[Cincinnati, Ohio]] || [[Riverfront Coliseum]] || 1981-1982 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Nashville South Stars]] || [[Nashville, Tennessee]] || [[Nashville Municipal Auditorium]] || 1981-1982 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Birmingham South Stars]] || [[Birmingham, Alabama]] || [[Birmingham Jefferson Convention Center]] || 1982-1983 ||fold
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Colorado Flames]] || [[Denver, Colorado]] || [[McNichols Sports Arena]] || 1982-1984 ||
+|- style="text-align:center;"
+| [[Montana Magic]] || [[Billings, Montana]] || [[Rimrock Auto Arena at MetraPark|Yellowstone METRA]] || 1983-1984 ||fold with league
+|}
 ==Adams Cup champions==
@@ Line 84: / Line 137: @@
 </div><br clear="all">
 ‡ Oilers team was left without a home after its owners in Tulsa went into receivership; played the last two months of the season and all playoff games as a road team, with salaries and expenses paid by the league.
+==Individual Trophies==
+*Leading Scorer ([[Phil Esposito Trophy]])
+*Most Valuable Player ([[Tommy Ivan Award]])
+*Leading Defenceman ([[Bobby Orr Trophy (CHL)|Bobby Orr Trophy]])
+*Leading Goalie ([[Terry Sawchuk Trophy]])
+*Rookie of the Year ([[Ken McKenzie Trophy]])
+{{CHL (1963-1984) seasons}}
+{{North American Minor Professional leagues portal}}
+[[Category:Central Hockey League (1963–1984)]]
 [[Category:Defunct ice hockey leagues]]
 [[Category:Established in 1963]]
-[[Category:Disesstablished in 1984]]
+[[Category:Disestablished in 1984]]