Indianapolis Racers 1974-75 to 1978-79 (partial)

Owners

Dick Weissert

Paul Deneau

Nelson Skalbania

Rinks

Market Square Arena

Seasons & Leaders

1974-75 Record 18-57-3, 39 pts Coach Gerry Moore Goals 31, Bobby Whitlock 22, Kerry Bond Assists 34, Bob Sicinski 28, Dick Proceviat 28, Jim Wiste Points 57, Bobby Whitlock 53, Bob Sicinski Penalty Min. 96, Bob Fitchner 68, Ken Desjardine Wins 15, Andy Brown Goals Against 4.15, Andy Brown Shutouts 2, Andy Brown

1975-76 Record 35-39-6, 76 pts Coach Gerry Moore Jacques Demers Goals 23, Nick Harbaruk 23, Reg Thomas Assists 40, Pat Stapleton 34, Bob Sicinski Points 45, Pat Stapleton 44, Al Karlander Penalty Min. 351, Kim Clackson 112, Bob Fitchner Wins 14, Michel Dion Goals Against 2.41, Jim Park Shutouts 1, Andy Brown

1976-77 Record 36-37-8, 80 pts Coach Jacques Demers Goals 34, Blair MacDonald 25, Rene Leclerc 25, Reg Thomas Assists 55, Darryl Maggs 45, Pat Stapleton Points 71, Darryl Maggs 64, Blair MacDonald Penalty Min. 168, Kim Clackson 114, Darryl Maggs Wins 17, Michel Dion Goals Against 3.36, Michel Dion Shutouts 1, Michel Dion 1, Jim Park

1977-78 Record 24-51-5, 53 pts Coach Ron Ingram Bill Goldsworthy Goals 36, Claude St. Sauveur 25, Peter Driscoll Assists 42, Claude St. Sauveur 40, Kevin Morrison Points 78, Claude St. Sauveur 57, Kevin Morrison Penalty Min. 141, Kevin Devine 130, Peter Driscoll Wins 14, Gary Inness Goals Against 4.21, Gary Inness 4.21, Jim Park Shutouts none

1978-79 Record 5-18-2, 12 pt Coach Pat Stapleton Goals 9, Blaine Stoughton 8, Don Larway 8, Gary MacGregor Assists 11, Al McLeod 10, Don Larway 10, Dave Morrow Points 18, Don Larway 18, Blaine Stoughton Penalty Min. 124, Glen Irwin 64, Bruce Greig Wins 3, Gary Inness Goals Against 3.22, Ed Mio Shutouts 1, Ed Mio

Complete Roster & Regular Season Scoring Totals

Player (G: Goaltender)	Games	Goals	Assists	Points	Penalty Min.
Parizeau, Michel	190	48	88	136	110
Leclerc, Rene	190	60	73	133	138
Sicinski, Bob	207	40	92	132	30
Thomas, Reg	208	63	63	126	101
Maggs, Darryl	168	27	86	113	184
Harris, Hugh	106	34	70	104	50
Stapleton, Pat	161	13	85	98	77
MacDonald, Blair	137	53	41	94	42
McDonald, Brian	160	45	45	90	125
Karlander, Al	144	33	56	89	59
Harbaruk, Nick	181	45	44	89	80
Block, Ken	267	7	80	87	115
St. Sauveur, Claude	89	40	44	84	36
Whitlock, Bobby	103	38	41	79	72
Paiement, Rosaire	128	24	49	73	172
Proceviat, Dick	180	10	53	63	115
Fitchner, Bob	130	26	35	61	206
Morrison, Kevin	80	17	42	59	49
Driscoll, Peter	64	28	22	50	147
Peacosh, Gene	64	22	26	48	21
Stoughton, Blaine	72	22	22	44	44
Larose, Claude	41	19	24	43	12
Wiste, Jim	82	13	30	43	30
Buchanan, Ron	55	20	22	42	20
Patenaude, Rusty	73	23	19	42	71
Devine, Kevin	76	19	23	42	141
Leduc, Richie	41	15	24	39	52
Bond, Kerry	86	24	15	39	32
Baltimore, Bryon	116	3	33	36	142
Inkpen, Dave	81	6	29	35	66
Coates, Brian	75	12	21	33	28
Sheridan, John	69	18	13	31	20
Rochon, Francois	86	21	10	31	39
Heatley, Murray	63	17	13	30	32
Wyrozub, Randy	55	11	14	25	8
Burgess, Don	82	12	13	25	2
Clackson, Kim	145	4	20	24	519
Wilkins, Barry	79	2	21	23	79
Johnson, Jim	42	7	15	22	12
Lomenda, Mark	58	9	12	21	14
Scharf, Ted	74	7	13	20	56
Hardy, Joe	32	2	17	19	36
Larway, Don	25	8	10	18	39
Goldsworthy, Bill	32	8	10	18	10
MacGregor, Gary	33	8	9	17	4
French, John	74	9	8	17	6
Fortier, Dave	54	1	15	16	86
Woytowich, Bob	84	1	15	16	42
Sheehan, Bobby	29	8	7	15	6
Marotte, Gilles	44	2	13	15	18
Ash, Bob	64	1	14	15	19
Morrow, Dave	10	2	10	12	29
Pumple, Rich	34	4	8	12	29
Sacharuk, Larry	15	2	9	11	25
McLeod, Al	25	0	11	11	22
Horton, Bill	59	2	9	11	30
Keon, Dave	12	3	7	10	2
Powis, Lynn	14	4	6	10	2
Greig, Bruce	21	3	7	10	64
Nugent, Kevin	25	2	8	10	20
Hopiavuori, Ralph	28	2	8	10	21
Robertson, Joe	18	4	4	8	23
Desjardine, Ken	46	0	8	8	68
Prentice, Bill	109	5	3	8	120
Smith, Ross	15	1	6	7	19
Zuke, Mike	15	3	4	7	2
Hughes, John	22	3	4	7	48
Hargreaves, Jim	37	2	5	7	30
Gretzky, Wayne	8	3	3	6	0
George, Wes	9	4	2	6	23
Rhiness, Brad	12	3	3	6	12
Spring, Frank	13	2	4	6	2
Andrascik, Steve	20	2	4	6	16
Cote, Roger	36	0	6	6	24
Kannegiesser, Gord	4	1	4	5	4
Campbell, Bryan	8	1	4	5	6
Bredin, Gary	10	3	2	5	8
Richardson, Steve	19	1	4	5	16
Mavety, Larry	10	2	2	4	8
Moretto, Angelo	18	3	1	4	2
Kennett, Murray	28	1	3	4	8
Dubois, Michel	34	2	2	4	104
Brown, Andy (G)	86	0	4	4	92
Constantin, Charles	6	2	1	3	0
Smedsmo, Dale	6	0	3	3	7
Adduono, Ray	8	1	2	3	0
Leroux, Gerry	10	0	3	3	2
Walters, Ron	17	2	1	3	9
Park, Jim (G)	54	0	2	2	14
Dornseif, Dave	3	0	1	1	0
Burchell, Randy (G)	5	0	1	1	0
Magee, Dean	5	0	1	1	10
Rollins, Jerry	7	0	1	1	7
McKenzie, Brian	9	1	0	1	6
Locas, Jacques	11	0	1	1	2
Mio, Ed (G)	22	0	1	1	2
Hanmer, Craig	27	1	0	1	15
Irwin, Glen	44	0	1	1	196
Roselle, Bob	1	0	0	0	0
Jones, Bob	2	0	0	0	0
Blackwood, Bill	3	0	0	0	0
Critch, Glen	3	0	0	0	0
Fraser, Rick	4	0	0	0	2
Messier, Mark	5	0	0	0	0
Hoganson, Paul (G)	11	0	0	0	2
Smith, Gary (G)	11	0	0	0	0
McDuffe, Pete (G)	12	0	0	0	0
Holmquist, Leif (G)	19	0	0	0	4
Dyck, Ed (G)	32	0	0	0	6
Inness, Gary (G)	62	0	0	0	51
Dion, Michel (G)	74	0	0	0	2

Complete Playoff Scoring Totals

Player (G: Goaltender)	Games	Goals	Assists	Points	Penalty Min.
Parizeau, Michel	15	7	10	17	14
Thomas, Reg	16	8	9	17	8
MacDonald, Blair	16	7	8	15	4
Stapleton, Pat	16	2	8	10	2
Leclerc, Rene	16	3	6	9	11
McDonald, Brian	16	3	5	8	45
Harris, Hugh	9	2	5	7	8
Peacosh, Gene	9	3	3	6	2
Maggs, Darryl	16	2	4	6	24
Paiement, Rosaire	9	0	5	5	15
Keon, Dave	7	2	2	4	2
Lomenda, Mark	9	3	1	4	17
Harbaruk, Nick	13	3	1	4	10
Karlander, Al	9	2	1	3	4
Sicinski, Bob	16	0	3	3	6
Block, Ken	9	0	2	2	6
Inkpen, Dave	9	0	2	2	8
Rochon, Francois	5	0	1	1	0
Bond, Kerry	7	1	0	1	11
Clackson, Kim	15	0	1	1	49
Baltimore, Bryon	16	0	1	1	9
Coates, Brian	4	0	0	0	6
Hoganson, Paul (G)	5	0	0	0	0
Park, Jim (G)	6	0	0	0	0
Proceviat, Dick	7	0	0	0	2
Scharf, Ted	7	0	0	0	5
Dion, Michel (G)	7	0	0	0	0

Complete Regular Season Goaltending

Goaltender	Games	Minutes	Goals	Shutouts	Record	Average
Dion, Michel	74	4205	217	1	31-35-4	3.10
Brown, Andy	86	4777	314	3	25-50-3	3.94
Park, Jim	54	2888	178	1	23-23-4	3.70
Inness, Gary	62	3459	251	0	17-36-5	4.35
Mio, Ed	22	1142	77	1	8-10-0	4.05
Holmquist, Leif	19	1079	54	0	6-9-3	3.00
Dyck, Ed	32	1692	123	0	3-21-3	4.36
Hoganson, Paul	11	395	24	0	3-2-0	3.64
Burchell, Randy	5	136	8	0	1-0-0	3.53
McDuffe, Peter	12	539	39	0	1-6-1	4.34
Smith, Gary	11	664	61	0	0-10-1	5.51

Complete Playoff Goaltending

Goaltender	Games	Minutes	Goals	Shutouts	Record	Average
Hoganson, Paul	5	348	17	1	3-2	2.93
Park, Jim	6	293	12	2	3-2	2.46
Dion, Michel	7	371	22	0	2-4	3.56

History

The Indianapolis Racers came into being on September 14, 1973, one of two expansion teams (along with Phoenix) set to begin play in 1974-75. A third team, Cincinnati, had been granted its charter in May 1973 and would have also started play in 1974-75, but delays in the construction of its arena forced them to wait a year. The Indianapolis team would be housed in the new Market Square Arena, which was under construction at the time and would be completed mere weeks before the team's first game. The original owners were John Weissert and Dick Tinkham, owners of the Indiana Pacers of the American Basketball Association, but they sold out quickly, to former Aeros' owner Paul Deneau, in December 1974. Heading the operation at first was John Wilson, a former NHL player and briefly a coach in the NHL, but he then accepted the coaching job in Detroit with the WHA's Michigan Stags. Gerry Moore, formerly the coach of Dallas in the CHL, and winners of that league's Adams Cup in 1974, took over as bench boss for the Racers. Talent was hard to come by in 1974, with the NHL also expanding by two teams and straining an already-thin talent pool. The Racers selected a couple of dependable goal scorers in the expansion draft, Jim Wiste (formerly of Cleveland) and Bobby Whitlock (formerly of Chicago and Los Angeles), and signed forward Nick Harbaruk and goaltender Andy Brown, the last of the maskless netminders, from the NHL's Pittsburgh Penguins. The rest of the team was a collection of minor leaguers and fringe major leaguers, featuring no one of distinction. The new team stumbled out of the gate, losing 13 in a row at one point, and winning just 6 of their first 39 games. Turnover was high, and league executive Jim Browitt, who had developed a reputation for handling league disasters, came on in mid-year to make trades and raise the level of competency of the brand-new team. The Racers did not win for two reasons: they could not score goals (second-to-last in the league with 216) and let in too many by the opponents (338 by the enemy). Andy Brown's nightly acts of bravery, facing 30 to 40 quality shots without a mask, earned him 35 losses, but also the honor of being the team's lone all-star. Bobby Whitlock scored 31 goals to lead the team. Nick Harbarauk had 20, and minor-leaguer Kerry Bond, playing his lone full season in the bigs, had 22 goals. The defense was inadequate and in flux. Only Bob Ash played in more than 60 games on the blue line. Dick Proceviat and Ken Block came aboard mid-year and would anchor the defense in seasons to come. Not one defenseman had more than two goals for the season. After a hot streak in February and March in which the Racers went on a 7-6-0 tear, the team lost its final 10 games to finish out the year with an 18-57-3 mark, the worst in WHA history. The second-year team won its first game of the 1975-76 season, then lost four in a row, and it seemed like another long year for Indianapolis. Gerry Moore was fired, replaced by former Cougars' bench coach Jacques Demers, who would be a full-fledged head coach for the first time in what would be a 30+ year run as a coach in the WHA and the NHL. The young Demers realized the Racers did not have the horses to keep up with the rest of the league, so he developed a tight-checking brand of hockey that, while not terribly entertaining, kept the Racers in most games. His fellow ex-Cougar, star defenseman Pat Stapleton, joined the team and immediately gave the blue line respect around the league. The offense now featured players like Al Karlander, Bob Fitchner, Michel Parizeau and Rene Leclerc, adept at fore-checking and not afraid to break a sweat in the corners. The Racers still could not score goals, but they weren't allowing many either, The result was many low-scoring games in which the Racers won about half. The Racers received considerable help after two teams — Ottawa and Minnesota — folded mid-year. Bryon Baltimore and Darryl Maggs gave the defense even more depth, while venerable star Dave Keon wore the red, white and blue crest of the Racers for the latter half of the season. Suddenly, the offense packed some punch, and result was a late-season 12-4-3 finish, including a ten-game unbeaten streak. Surprisingly, the Racers finished atop the Eastern Division with a 35-39-6 mark. The team allowed just 247 goals against, best in the league. Goaltender Andy Brown played part of the season while coping with injuries. He was backed by Swede Leif Holmquist. But it was a rookie, Michel Dion, who assumed the starter's role with a 2.74 goals-against average and 14 wins. Backing him was another rookie, Jim Park, who sported a 2.41 average in 11 games. In the playoffs, the Racers took New England to a full seven games, with Park recording two shutouts, before bowing out. Still, their 1975-76 showing was a remarkable improvement from the previous year. Indianapolis stumbled again at the start of the 1976-77 season, winning just 4 of 15 games, before righting itself with a 12-1-0 run during November and December. Thereafter, the team won and lost about equally often, the offense improved but the defense not as sharp as the previous year. Center Hugh Harris was having a career-year, with 56 points in 46 games, before he was hobbled by a knee-on-knee check by Quebec's Paul Baxter in January. Blair MacDonald led the team with 34 goals. Rene Leclerc and Reg Thomas were second, with 25 each, while defenseman Darryl Maggs led in points with 71. The Racers squared off against rival Cincinnati in the 1977 playoffs, the first game a three-overtime, five-hour thriller in which Cincinnati blew three one-goal leads, the Racers tying late in the third period, and Gene Peacosh finally winning the battle with a goal 8:40 into the third overtime. The win lifted the Racers, who swept Cincinnati in four straight. Unfortunately, the magic ran out fast, as Quebec dismissed the Racers in the following round in five games. Meanwhile, the WHA and NHL were discussing merger seriously for the first time. The ambitious plan would have six WHA teams join the NHL in 1977-78 — but not Indianapolis. No one would ever accuse Racers fans of not supporting their team, but there simply weren't enough of them, and the team was always in precarious financial shape. The NHL was not interested in Indianapolis, and should the merger happen, the Racers would fold. For a time in the summer of 1977, it seemed likely that a merger would be approved. So much so that players and executives alike left the Racers for teams more likely to enter the NHL. Loyalties went out the window, as many Racers, including Coach Demers, joined their nemeses in Cincinnati, who were deemed likely to be part of the merger. But merger failed. The vote in August 1977 was close, but not sufficient for approval. Suddenly, the WHA needed to re-assemble for its sixth season, and the Racers, already a financially weak team and now having lost its core of players, cobbled itself together to play another season. The team had been the wards of a bank, who were eager to unload it if someone would assume the debts. Nelson Skalbania, still a minority-owner of the Edmonton Oilers, took control of the Racers and set about resurrecting the team. He hired Ron Ingram, formerly of the San Diego Mariners which had folded that summer, to coach. Ingram brought over about half a dozen of his Mariner players including Kevin Devine and Kevin Morrison. Claude St. Sauveur also returned to the WHA and led the team with 38 goals, but the Racers were a shell of their former selves, never in the hunt for the playoffs and finishing last with a 24-51-5 record. Ingram lasted just half the year, with players Bill Goldsworthy and Rosaire Paiement assuming the coaching roles. By now, the team was moribund and should have ceased existence. Then Wayne Gretzky happened. The seventeen-year old child was a budding superstar, already showing tremendous skill and clearly ready for better competition than what he was facing in the Juniors. Both the NHL and WHA wanted him, but the NHL would not sign a seventeen-year old player under any circumstances. Neither would the WHA, had their very survival not been at stake. Merger discussions in 1978 had led nowhere, and the WHA was readying itself for a seventh — and likely final — season. The league was down to seven teams, and it desperately needed leverage. Wayne Gretzky, still in high school, was that leverage. Signing Gretzky took some creative thinking. The WHA teams with money, and thus most likely to enter the NHL, shied from directly signing him for fear of upsetting future negotiations with the NHL. Nelson Skalbania (who, it should be reminded, continued to hold a minority stake in the Edmonton Oilers) signed Wayne Gretzky in June 1978 to a personal-services contract, meaning Gretzky was his property — not the Racers', not the WHA's. Suddenly, the game's next greatest superstar was a member of the Indianapolis Racers, but more importantly, of the World Hockey Association, even if he was ostensibly Skalbania's personal employee. Regardless, the WHA now had Gretzky. Gretzky was billed as the "savior" who would help rebuild and lead the Indianapolis Racers to future glory. But the WHA was banking on a merger with the National Hockey League; there would be no future for the Racers under this scenario. As of the start of the 1978-79 season, merger in 1979 was by no means a guarantee. Should the Racers survive the full season and the two leagues agree to a merger/expansion, then Skalbania would be paid to fold his team. Otherwise, he could sell Gretzky as a personal transaction, and recoup his costs that way. In either instance, Skalbania had the proverbial ace up his sleeve with the young Gretzky. With the Racers, Gretzky played eight games, scoring three goals and assisting on three others. Praise was universal for the young man, who showed his skill from the outset. But Gretzky's tenure in Indianapolis lasted just three weeks. On November 2, 1978, he was sold (along with Peter Driscoll and Ed Mio) to the Edmonton Oilers for $850,000. Gretzky was now on a solid team backed by an owner with money, and the league now had Gretzky safely within its hold. Coached by fan-favorite Pat Stapleton, the Racers lingered for six more weeks, winning just 5 of 25 games and on pace to give up over 400 goals. Blaine Stoughton and Don Larway led the team with 18 points apiece, and Ed Mio registered the team's lone shutout. In late November, another seventeen-year old kid with potential, Mark Messier, skated in five games on a try-out basis, registering no points. Skalbania finally pulled the plug on the Racers in mid-December, 1978. After four-and-a-half years, the Indianapolis Racers were finished. Gretzky and Messier later teamed together in Edmonton, winning four Stanley Cups with the Oilers during the 1980s. Messier won a fifth in Edmonton, and a sixth with the Rangers, before retiring in 2004, the last former WHA player to remain active. Gretzky later played in Los Angeles, St. Louis and with the Rangers before retiring in 1999, the NHL's all-time leading scorer. Few remember them as kids playing in a men's league for a few weeks in Indianapolis, yet the Racers' legacy survives through them, and for the cast of hard workers that formed the core of the team during its short run of glory.

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Reviews, Podcasts and Media

• Article: Color of Hockey: Alton White (The Hockey News), by William Douglas — March 8, 2020
• Review: US Sports History, by Rick Macales — Feb 6, 2021
• Podcast: Good Seats Still Available, by Tim Hanlon — Feb 28, 2021
• Podcast: Digital to Dice (Youtube), by Dave Gardner — July 3, 2022

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