* The World Hockey Association was launched in 1972 by Californians Dennis Murphy and Gary Davidson to be a rival to the NHL.
* The first major star to join the league was Bobby Hull, who was a star with the Chicago Black Hawks. He agreed to a contract worth around $250,000 annually in addition to a $1 million signing bonus, something unheard of in the game up to that point.
* Gordie Howe came out of retirement to play with his two sons for the Houston Aeros and later the New England Whalers.
More
Articles of Interest
The next one: many scouts believe top draft pick Alexander Ovechkin is the...
Hockey Digest's predicted order of finish: once the season finally begins, we...
The stat sheet: collective bargaining
A golden move
Northeast
* The WHA was an innovative league, but not everything worked. In its first season, the league used red pucks, but the paint chipped off quickly. The following season, the league went to blue pucks, but they eventually softened during the course of a game. The WHA also inserted electronic chips into pucks so they would show up on television, long before Fox Sports attempted to do with the NHL in the 1990s. It failed to draw viewers either time.
* The WHA featured uniforms bright in color and design, and the referee sweaters featured red and white stripes.
* There were no restrictions on stick curvatures, with high-scoring games a result.
* The WHA also opened the player market with a form of free agency. A player could sign with any team that offered a contract, whereas players in the NHL were often bound to one team.
* The league was a proponent of rough play. In fact, it didn't have a roughing rule, and bring the third-man into a fight was merely a two-minute penalty rather than the NHL's game misconduct.
* Edmonton, Winnipeg (now Phoenix), and Quebec (now Colorado) originally played in the WHA.
* When teams from the WHA played NHL clubs in exhibition games between 1974 and 1978, the WHA organizations were 33-27-7.
* The new WHA is expected to have eight teams, playing in Dallas; Detroit; Florida; Halifax, Nova Scotia; Hamilton, Ontario; Quebec; and Toronto. There also is a Founders' franchise.
* A 76-game schedule is expected to begin October 29, 2004. Each franchise will operate with a $15 million salary cap.
* Free agent Philadelphia Flyer Simon Gagne was the top selection in the WHA free-agent draft. Sidney Crosby, a center in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, was the top amateur player selected.
Bibliography for: "World Hockey Association"
Chris Dolack "World Hockey Association". Hockey Digest. FindArticles.com. 14 Dec, 2009. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m0FCM/is_1_33/ai_n6355241/
COPYRIGHT 2004 Century Publishing Co.
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning
สมัครสมาชิก:
ส่งความคิดเห็น (Atom)
ไม่มีความคิดเห็น:
แสดงความคิดเห็น