1979 WHA playoffs
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | April 21 – May 20, 1979 |
| Season | 1978–79 |
| Teams | 5 |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Winnipeg Jets (3rd title) |
| Runners-up | Edmonton Oilers |
| Semifinalists | |
The 1979 WHA playoffs was the postseason tournament of the World Hockey Association's 1978–79 season. The seventh and final tournament concluded with five of the surviving six teams competing for the Avco World Trophy; the merger between the WHA and the National Hockey League loomed ahead after the announcement of a merger in late March, with the four teams to move to the NHL already selected.[1] The playoffs were threatened to not be played entirely due to a dispute over the playoff pool in which the league wanted to cut the pool to $88,000 less than last year due to less games being played. It was noted at the time that the original WHA playoff pool was at one point $740,000 but now was considerably less than that; the dispute was tabled to after the playoffs.[2][3] The playoff teams and seeding were not fully determined until nearly the final game of the regular season, as Peter Sullivan's overtime goal gave the Winnipeg Jets the victory Birmingham Bulls on April 15, 1979 that clinched the third seed for Winnipeg and also eliminated the Bulls from having the final seed in the playoffs in favor of the Cincinnati Stingers; the Jets win made the outcome of the game played the following day with the fourth-place New England Whalers moot.[4]
Among the notable events, phenom Wayne Gretzky made his first playoff appearance as a professional player as the Edmonton Oilers raced all the way to the Avco Cup Final. Winnipeg lost the entire "Hot Line" of Bobby Hull (who played four games before retiring), Anders Hedberg & Ulf Nilsson (who each left for the NHL), which had scored 146 combined goals the previous season and even replaced their Avco Cup champion coach (Larry Hillman) after 61 games for Tom McVie. Team captain Lars-Erik Sjoberg played just nine games due to a torn Achilles tendon that he suffered in the preseason. The Jets were bolstered by the acquisition of several players from the liquidated Houston Aeros such as Rich Preston, Morris Lukowich, and Terry Ruskowski. Gary Smith was a late addition to the team, having gone from going winless in eleven starts with the extinct Indianapolis Racers to playing 11 games to end the season for the Jets on his way to being tabbed as the goaltender for their playoff run.[5] The New England Whalers, still without the services of the Hartford Civic Center, played their last games as "New England" at the Springfield Civic Center while the Cincinnati Stingers played their last games as a franchise.
For only the second time in WHA history and first since 1976, the team with the best regular season record failed to win the championship. The Winnipeg Jets completed their WHA dynasty with their third championship in four seasons, doing so over the regular season champion Edmonton Oilers in the Avco Cup Final. Rookie Wayne Gretzky led the playoffs in points with 20 on the strength of ten goals for the Oilers, which was only matched by Willy Lindstrom of the Jets, who had ten goals in ten games. In Game 5 of the Avco Cup Final, Ron Chipperfield scored five goals to set the new WHA record for goals scored in a postseason game as the Oilers forced a Game 6 with a 10–2 victory.[6][7] In Game 6, the Jets scored five goals in the first two periods and dominated their way to a 7–3 win on home ice to complete the WHA. Dave Semenko of the Oilers scored the final goal in WHA history, doing so with twelve seconds left in the third period.[8][9][10]
Rich Preston of the Jets was the final person awarded the WHA Playoff MVP.
Playoff seeds
[edit]- Edmonton Oilers, regular season champions – 98 points
- Quebec Nordiques – 87 points
- Winnipeg Jets – 84 points
- New England Whalers – 83 points
- Cincinnati Stingers – 72 points
Bracket
[edit]| Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Edmonton Oilers | 4 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | New England Whalers | 3 | ||||||||||||
| 4 | New England Whalers | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 5 | Cincinnati Stingers | 1 | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Edmonton Oilers | 2 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Winnipeg Jets | 4 | ||||||||||||
| 2 | Quebec Nordiques | 0 | ||||||||||||
| 3 | Winnipeg Jets | 4 | ||||||||||||
Quarterfinals
[edit]In the regular season, Cincinnati had gone 7–6–2 against New England.[11] In Game 1, Mark Howe led the way for the Whalers with two goals, with his late third-period goal giving New England the go-ahead win. In Game 2, Jamie Hislop tied a WHA playoff record with four assists as the Stingers scored five goals before the second period was even half over, with three of them being from Robbie Ftorek. The Whalers took out John Garrett in the third period for Al Smith and got a few goals in the third.[12]
In Game 3, the two teams traded goals in the first period before Blaine Stoughton gave New England the lead with 17 seconds to play in the second period on his goal. The two teams held firm for a scorless third period as New England eliminated Cincinnati.[13][14]
| April 21 | Cincinnati Stingers | 3–5 (1–0, 0-2, 2–3) | New England Whalers | Springfield Civic Center Attendance: 5,922 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Liut | Goalies | John Garrett | |||
| |||||
| 26 (8–9–9) | Shots | 39 (13–15–11) | |||
| April 22 | New England Whalers | 3–6 (0–3, 1–2, 2–1) | Cincinnati Stingers | Riverfront Coliseum Attendance: 5,131 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Garrett / Al Smith | Goalies | Mike Liut | |||
| |||||
| 32 (7–9–16) | Shots | 28 (13–7–8) | |||
| April 24 | Cincinnati Stingers | 1–2 (1–1, 0–1, 0–0) | New England Whalers | Springfield Civic Center Attendance: 5,492 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mike Liut | Goalies | Al Smith | |||
| |||||
| 33 (10–11–12) | Shots | 34 (7–18–9) | |||
Semifinals
[edit](2) Winnipeg Jets vs. (3) Quebec Nordiques
[edit]In the fourteen regular season contests, the teams went 6–6–2 against each other.[15]
In Game 1, each team scored in the final three minutes of the period, with Lyle Moffat's tip-in goal for Winnipeg being followed by Marc Tardif scoring 29 seconds later for Quebec. But Winnipeg scored five goals in the second period (with Bobby Guindon scoring two of them) before Quebec could even get one on the board. Quebec scored a goal in the third period but were stymied in the third period to just five shots as Jets goaltender Gary Smith stopped 28 of 31 shots. The last couple of minutes saw a commotion as Gilles Bilodeau (nicknamed "Bad News") was deployed on the ice and quickly went out on the ice and put his stick onto Winnipeg players, even hitting Scott Campbell in the mouth that saw the latter lose his temper. Nordiques head coach Jacques Demers stated that he didn't send Bilodeau out there to hit players but merely because he was missing three forwards, citing a sore back for Real Cloutier, an aggravated knee for Serge Bernier and a hurt shoulder for Paulin Bordeleau.[16]
With 7:09 remaining in the third period, Willy Lindström scored to close out the scoring for Winnipeg and also set a record for most points in a four-game series, having collected six goals and four assists (the previous record was shared by Gordie Howe, Ulf Nilsson, and Reg Thomas. The Jets also set a record for most goals in a four-game sweep with 30.[17]
| April 23 | Winnipeg Jets | 6–3 (1–1, 5–1, 0–1) | Quebec Nordiques | Colisée de Québec Attendance: 8,539 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gary Smith | Goalies | Richard Brodeur / Jim Corsi | |||
| |||||
| 30 (8–12–10) | Shots | 31 (14–12–5) | |||
| April 25 | Winnipeg Jets | 9–2 (3–0, 3–1, 3–1) | Quebec Nordiques | Colisée de Québec Attendance: 9,125 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gary Smith / Joe Daley | Goalies | Jim Corsi / Richard Brodeur | |||
| |||||
| 32 (14–9–9) | Shots | 23 (3–8–12) | |||
| April 27 | Quebec Nordiques | 5–9 (1–2, 3–2, 1–5) | Winnipeg Jets | Winnipeg Arena Attendance: 8,209 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jean-Louis Levasseur | Goalies | Gary Smith | |||
| |||||
| 30 (9–11–10) | Shots | 39 (17–11–11) | |||
| April 29 | Quebec Nordiques | 2–6 (1–1, 0–3, 1–2) | Winnipeg Jets | Winnipeg Arena Attendance: 10,168 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Richard Brodeur | Goalies | Gary Smith | |||
| |||||
| 14 (4–4–6) | Shots | 50 (17–16–17) | |||
(1) Edmonton Oilers vs. (4) New England Whalers
[edit]The favored Oilers had gone 9–4–1 against the Whalers in the regular season (while winning eight of the last nine).[18] However, the home team wound up winning each game in a tight series that went the distance. Wayne Gretzky had 15 points in the series, a record for a seven-game playoff and the most for a WHA semifinal in history. Edmonton scored 34 goals in the series and New England scored 30 to combine for 64, also a record for a seven-game series that topped the previous mark of the 1974 Semifinal.[19]
| April 26 | New England Whalers | 2–6 (1–0, 0-3, 1-3) | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum Attendance: 11,102 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al Smith | Goalies | Dave Dryden | |||
| |||||
| 21 (5–7–9) | Shots | 29 (9–11–9) | |||
| April 27 | New England Whalers | 5–9 (2–4, 1–2, 2–3) | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum Attendance: 13,349 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al Smith / John Garrett | Goalies | Dave Dryden | |||
| |||||
| 27 (9–11–7) | Shots | 39 (15–11–13) | |||
| April 29 | Edmonton Oilers | 1–4 (1–2, 0–0, 0–2) | New England Whalers | Springfield Civic Center Attendance: 5,571 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dave Dryden | Goalies | John Garrett | |||
| |||||
| 23 (10–7–6) | Shots | 17 (10–0–7) | |||
| May 1 | Edmonton Oilers | 4–5 (1–0, 1–4, 2–1) | New England Whalers | Springfield Civic Center Attendance: 5,492 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dave Dryden | Goalies | John Garrett | |||
| |||||
| 27 (3–14–10) | Shots | 30 (13–10–7) | |||
| May 3 | New England Whalers | 2–5 (0–2, 0–1, 2–2) | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum Attendance: 11,401 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Garrett | Goalies | Dave Dryden | |||
| |||||
| 21 (3–8–10) | Shots | 30 (8–10–12) | |||
| May 6 | Edmonton Oilers | 4–8 (0–4, 2–2, 2–2) | New England Whalers | Springfield Civic Center Attendance: 7,320 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Dave Dryden / Eddie Mio | Goalies | John Garrett | |||
| |||||
| 32 (9–12–11) | Shots | 35 (13–13–9) | |||
| May 8 | New England Whalers | 3–6 (1–2, 0–4, 2–0) | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum Attendance: 13,385 |
| Box score | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Garrett | Goalies | Dave Dryden | |||
| |||||
| 25 (8–3–14) | Shots | 29 (11–14–4) | |||
Avco Cup Final
[edit](1) Edmonton Oilers vs. (3) Winnipeg Jets
[edit]The series matched the Edmonton Oilers, as coached by Glen Sather against the Winnipeg Jets, as coached by Tom McVie. In fourteen regular season matchups, each team won seven times.[20]
Winnipeg prevailed in the first two games in Edmonton with tight battles. 11,871 fans watched the first Avco Cup championship game in Edmonton. In Game 1, Rich Preston gave them the lead three minutes into Game 1 on his goal before Bill Lesuk gave the Jets a 2–0 lead on his goal eleven minutes later. Bill Flett scored for Edmonton with 2:12 remaining in the first period on a shot from the corner that bounced of the heel of Gary Smith's stick and into the net. Preston added in a second goal with 3:36 remaining in the third period.[21] In Game 2 (with 11,405 attending fans), the Oilers led in the second period on a Dennis Sobchuk goal, but the Jets scored three goals, with Willy Lindström breaking the 2–2 tie with 4:36 remaining in regulation.[22] For the next two games in Winnipeg, the two teams split victories. The road team won again with Game 3, now in Winnipeg (with 9,130 attending fans) that saw eight different players score for the Oilers in an 8–3 victory; it was the first time Winnipeg had lost a playoff game since Game 3 of the 1978 WHA Quarterfinals, a streak of 12 games.[23] On the day of Game 4, Oilers goaltender Dave Dryden was named the final recipient of the Gordie Howe Trophy for most valuable player in the season. Also announced was the First and Second Team honors, which saw the Jets have one player receive honors with Morris Lukowich as Second Team for left wing while Edmonton had Dryden for First Team and four players on the Second Team with Paul Shmyr (D), Dave Langevin (D), Wayne Gretzky (C), and Blair MacDonald (RW). Later that day to 10,295 fans in Winnipeg, the two teams each scored a goal in the first period before Oilers took a 2–1 lead into the third period on a goal by Brett Callighen. Morris Lukowich tied the game for the Jets nine minutes into the third period on a power-play goal before Lyle Moffat scored the go-ahead goal with 6:26 remaining in the game. [24] Now trailing 3–1 in the series, the Oilers returned to Edmonton to a crowd of 13,308 and rocked the Jets early with four goals in the first period on their way to a 10–2 victory, which notably saw Ron Chipperfield score five goals. Winnipeg took out goaltender Gary Smith 10:45 into the second period for Joe Daley. 32 total penalties (26 minors) were issued during the game.[25] 10,195 people saw what would end up being the final WHA game when the Jets played the Oilers in Game 6 on May 20, 1979. The Oilers would miss the services of Dennis Sobchuk, who contracted food poisoning when eating a steak sandwich at a Winnipeg restaurant, while Terry Ruskowski returned from his one-game absence with a less sore shoulder for Winnipeg. The Jets held court from the get-go, with Willy Lindstrom giving the Jets an early lead two minutes into the game on a goal. After being up 2–0 in the first period, the Jets then scored three goals in the span of four minutes to rocket up to a 5–0 lead, with Lyle Moffat having the series-clinching goal at 6:35 in the period. Three players led the Jets in goals for the series with four by Rich Preston, Morris Lukowich, and Willy Lindström. This was the first and only time that the Avco World Trophy was won by a team that did not finish first or second for points in the league.[26] A parade was held on May 22 in downtown Winnipeg.[27][28][29]
| May 11 | Winnipeg Jets | 3–1 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| 3:29 – Rich Preston (Sullivan) 15:23 – Bill Lesuk (Eriksson, Moffat) |
First period | 17:48 – Bill Flett (Shmyr) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| 16:24 – Rich Preston (Nilsson) | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Gary Smith 23 saves / 24 shots | Goalie stats | Dave Dryden 25 saves / 28 shots | ||||||
| May 13 | Winnipeg Jets | 3–2 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 6:12 – Dennis Sobchuk (Driscoll) | ||||||
| 1:17 – Peter Sullivan (Terbenche) 11:53 – Morris Lukowich (Campbell, Ruskowski) 15:24 – Willy Lindström (Long, Lukowich) |
Third period | 4:10 – Al Hamilton | ||||||
| Gary Smith 19 saves / 21 shots | Goalie stats | Dave Dryden 24 saves / 27 shots | ||||||
| May 15 | Edmonton Oilers | 8–3 | Winnipeg Jets | Winnipeg Arena | Recap | |||
| 9:03 – Al Hamilton (Gretzky) 9:44 – Peter Driscoll (Goldsworthy) 12:45 – Ron Chipperfield (Shymr, Driscoll) 16:01 – Bill Goldsworthy (Hamilton, Chipperfield) |
First period | 4:54 – Morris Lukowich (Ruskowski, Nilsson) 15:53 – Willy Lindström | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 11:56 – Morris Lukowich (MacKinnon, Eriksson) | ||||||
| 1:42 – Blair MacDonald (Risto Siltanen) 4:14 – Brett Callighen (MacDonald, Gretzky) 9:52 – Bengt Gustafsson (Hunter, Weir) 11:00 – Dave Hunter (Gustafsson, Hamilton) |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Dave Dryden 23 saves / 26 shots | Goalie stats | Gary Smith 17 saves / 25 shots Joe Daley 2 saves / 2 shots | ||||||
| May 16 | Edmonton Oilers | 2–3 | Winnipeg Jets | Winnipeg Arena | Recap | |||
| 7:41 – Wayne Gretzky (MacDonald, Callighen) | First period | 12:54 – Rich Preston (Sullivan) | ||||||
| 13:42 – Brett Callighen (Gretzky, Gustafsson) | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 9:24 – pp – Morris Lukowich (Nilsson, Lindstrom) 13:34 – Lyle Moffat (Lesuk, Eriksson) | ||||||
| Dave Dryden 24 saves / 27 shots | Goalie stats | Gary Smith 20 saves / 22 shots | ||||||
| May 18 | Winnipeg Jets | 2–10 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 4:23 – Dennis Sobchuk (Chipperfield, Shmyr) 16:28 – Wayne Gretzky (Callighen, Chipperfield) 17:29 – Stan Weir (Micheletti, Sobchuk) 18:01 – Ron Chipperfield (Dave Langevin) | ||||||
| 0:22 - Rich Preston (Lukowich, Nilsson) | Second period | 2:58 – Dennis Sobchuk (Shmyr, Weir) 4:51 – Ron Chipperfield (Siltanen, Micheletti) 10:45 – Ron Chipperfield (Driscoll, Semenko) 14:23 - John Hughes (Sobchuk) | ||||||
| 3:14 – Kent Nilsson | Third period | 7:45 – Ron Chipperfield (Semenko) 14:31 – Ron Chipperfield (Micheletti, Siltanen) | ||||||
| Gary Smith / Joe Daley 32 saves / 42 shots | Goalie stats | Dave Dryden / Eddie Mio 19 saves / 21 shots | ||||||
| May 20 | Edmonton Oilers | 3–7 | Winnipeg Jets | Winnipeg Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 2:14 – pp – Willy Lindström (Ruskowski, Lukowich) 15:42 – Barry Long (Ruskowski, Lukowich) | ||||||
| 18:45 – Ron Chipperfield (Driscoll, Siltanen) | Second period | 5:22 – pp – Paul MacKinnon (Sullivan, Hicks) 6:35 – Lyle Moffat (Eriksson, Lukowich) 9:23 – Barry Long (Ruskowski, MacKinnon) | ||||||
| 1:48 – Bill Flett (Hamilton) 19:48 – pp – Dave Semenko (Chipperfield, Siltanen) |
Third period | 2:09 – Kent Nilsson (Sullivan) 13:38 – Willy Lindström (Ruskowski) | ||||||
| Dave Dryden 13 saves / 18 shots Eddie Mio 14 saves / 16 shots |
Goalie stats | Gary Smith 27 saves / 30 shots | ||||||
| Winnipeg won series 4–2 | |
Player statistics
[edit]These were the top ten skaters based on points.[30]
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | +/– | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne Gretzky | Edmonton Oilers | 13 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 6 | 2 |
| Ron Chipperfield | Edmonton Oilers | 13 | 9 | 10 | 19 | 1 | 8 |
| Blair MacDonald | Edmonton Oilers | 13 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 1 | 6 |
| Brett Callighen | Edmonton Oilers | 13 | 5 | 10 | 15 | 5 | 15 |
| Willy Lindstrom | Winnipeg Jets | 10 | 10 | 5 | 15 | 7 | 9 |
| Morris Lukowich | Winnipeg Jets | 10 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 9 | 21 |
| Kent Nilsson | Winnipeg Jets | 10 | 3 | 11 | 14 | -1 | 4 |
| Peter Sullivan | Winnipeg Jets | 10 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 2 | 2 |
| Rich Preston | Winnipeg Jets | 10 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 3 | 15 |
| Terry Ruskowski | Winnipeg Jets | 8 | 1 | 12 | 13 | 10 | 23 |
Championship roster
[edit]1978–79 Winnipeg Jets
Players
- Scott Campbell
- Paul Terbenche
- Lars-Erik Sjöberg
- Kim Clackson
- Barry Long
- Paul MacKinnon
- Mike Amodeo (did not play in playoffs)
- Gary Smith
- Joe Daley
- Markus Mattsson (did not play in playoffs)
Coaching and administrative staff
References
[edit]- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/winnipeg-free-press-mar-23-1979-p-80/
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/lethbridge-herald-apr-21-1979-p-36/
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/fairbanks-daily-news-miner-apr-21-1979-p-13/
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/winnipeg-free-press-apr-16-1979-p-76/
- ^ Ates, Murat (June 7, 2019). "Foundations of a championship: The unique story of how the '79 Avco Cup-winning Jets came to be". The New York Times. Retrieved February 15, 2025.
- ^ Surgent, Scott (1990). The Complete World Hockey Association 11th Edition. Surgent. p. 377. ISBN 978-1727753424.
- ^ "The Complete World Hockey Association - 1972-73 Playoff Results".
- ^ Matheson, Jim (May 21, 1979). "Jets beat Oilers to win final WHA Avco Cup title". Retrieved February 15, 2025.
- ^ Surgent, Scott (1990). The Complete World Hockey Association 11th Edition. Surgent. p. 374-375, 387. ISBN 978-1727753424.
- ^ "The Complete World Hockey Association - 1978-79 Playoff Results".
- ^ https://www.hockey-reference.com/playoffs/1979-cincinnati-stingers-vs-new-england-whalers-preliminary-round.html
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/medicine-hat-news-apr-23-1979-p-12/
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/european-stars-and-stripes-apr-26-1979-p-24/
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/brandon-sun-apr-25-1979-p-11/
- ^ https://www.hockey-reference.com/playoffs/1979-quebec-nordiques-vs-winnipeg-jets-semi-finals.html
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/winnipeg-free-press-apr-24-1979-p-74/
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/winnipeg-free-press-apr-30-1979-p-73/
- ^ https://www.hockey-reference.com/playoffs/1979-edmonton-oilers-vs-new-england-whalers-semi-finals.html
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/brandon-sun-may-09-1979-p-20/
- ^ https://www.hockey-reference.com/playoffs/1979-edmonton-oilers-vs-winnipeg-jets-stanley-cup-final.html
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/winnipeg-free-press-may-12-1979-p-102/
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/winnipeg-free-press-may-14-1979-p-74/
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/winnipeg-free-press-may-16-1979-p-99/
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/winnipeg-free-press-may-17-1979-p-93/
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/winnipeg-free-press-may-19-1979-p-103/
- ^ "Jets Win Final W.H.A. Series". The New York Times. May 22, 1979.
- ^ https://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/2020/03/22/forever-champions
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/winnipeg-free-press-may-22-1979-p-71/
- ^ https://newspaperarchive.com/winnipeg-free-press-may-23-1979-p-99/
- ^ "1979 WHA Playoffs Skater Statistics".