Spokane Flyers
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Spokane Flyers | |
|---|---|
 |
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| City: | Spokane, Washington |
| League: | Western Hockey League |
| Operated: | 1980–81 |
| Home Arena: | Spokane Coliseum |
| Franchise history | |
| 1967–78: | Flin Flon Bombers |
| 1978–79: | Edmonton Oil Kings |
| 1979–80: | Great Falls Americans |
| 1980–82: | Spokane Flyers |
The Spokane Flyers were a junior ice hockey team that played one and a half seasons in the Western Hockey League from 1980–1982. They played in Spokane, Washington, United States.
Contents |
[edit] History
The Spokane Flyers entered the WHL on May 15, 1980 when Bob Cooper, owner of the dormant Great Falls Americans franchise, resurrected his team and relocated it to Spokane for the 1980–81 WHL season. Like the Americans, the Flyers would cease operations, as the franchise folded on December 2, 1981 just 26 games into its second season.
It was widely believed that the failure of the Flyers was due to management, and Spokane would gain a second chance the WHL four years later when the Spokane Chiefs moved into town.
The Flyers franchise first joined the WHL in 1967 as the Flin Flon Bombers. The franchise had a great deal of stability in Flin Flon, Manitoba and lasted eleven seasons in the Manitoba community before the WHL outgrew it. The Bombers relocated to Edmonton, Alberta for one season in 1978 before being sold and relocating again to Great Falls, Montana. The Great Falls Americans failed to last even one season as they ceased operations in December 1979 before Cooper resurrected them again in 1980 as the Flyers.
The Flyers were posthumously involved in one of the most bizarre trades in hockey history. After ceasing operations, the Flyers team bus was sold to the Victoria Cougars. The Cougars owners were not willing to pay the duties and taxes required to bring the vehicle into Canada, so on December 19, 1983, the Cougars traded the bus to the Seattle Breakers for holdout Tom Martin.
[edit] Season-by-season Record
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
| Season | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Points | Finish | Playoffs |
| 1980–81 | 72 | 17 | 54 | 1 | 288 | 488 | 35 | 4th West | Lost West semi-final |
| 1981–82 | 26 | 3 | 22 | 1 | 102 | 196 | 7 | 5th West | Folded |
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- whl.ca
- logoserver.com
- 2005–06 WHL Guide
