1976-77 • Franchise

1976-77 Winnipeg Jets

Record: 46-32-2, 94 pts
Finish: 2nd, West
Playoffs: Lost in final round to Quebec
Coach: Bobby Kromm

Jets Preview, 1976-77 • by Barry Wilner • The Hockey News 1977 Yearbook The West belongs to Winnipeg ... if. That is a very big if because Bobby Hull may not return to play another season with the Jets. Hull is disappointed with the development of the WHA on all levels, especially in the image area, where he thinks violence has taken over. With Hull in uniform, the Jets will lap the field. They finished with 106 points last year, the same total as Houston and only two more than Quebec. This season it won't be that close. Joining Hull up front to form one of hockey's most foremost lines, are Ulf Nilsson and Anders Hedberg. Nilsson was fourth in league scoring in 1975-76 with 114 points. Hedberg was seventh with 105 points while Hull was runner up to Tardif with 123 points. Peter Sullivan got 71 points, Veli-Pekka Ketola 68, Willy Lindstrom 59, and Mike Ford, a defenseman, 56. Defensively, the Jets will miss Larry Hornung, a steady sort who moved the puck and kept the slot free of pesky opponents. Ted Green and Larry Hillman are over the hill — they've been so ever since they left the NHL — but Mike Ford, Hexi Riihiranta, Thommie Bergman and Lars-Erik Sjoberg can handle the defensive chores. Ford is a good point man. Maskless Joe Daley has been the Jets intrepid goal stopper since their inception in the WHA. He returns to guard the cords along with Curt Larsson, a duo that was second in goals allowed for last season. It is reasonable to assume the Jets tandem will top the league goaltenders this year. But anything the Jets do is dependent on Hull. If Bobby wants to play again, Nilsson and Hedberg have a top gunner ... If he quits or goes back to the NHL, Winnipeg and the WHA are in trouble. Many observers feel that the WHA is on its last legs. Once Hull and Gordie Howe retire, the league will lose whatever charm it has. The Golden Jet gambled on the new loop back in 1972, but it has fallen far short of his expectations. Winnipeg isn't exactly the hub of the media and Hull's accomplishments, especially have his 77-goal binge in 1974-75 have been overlooked. Bobby was instrumental in adding the European look to professional hockey and the Jets roster is loaded with talented Scandinavians like Hedberg, Nilsson, Bergman and Sjoberg. They expect newcomer Dan Labraaten of Leksand in Sweden to join the starry Swedes. Many experts overlook the work of coach Bobby Kromm, long in the Chicago Blackhawks system. Kromm won in 1975-76 with the same players Hull couldn't win with in the past.

Game Log ... (@ away game, * overtime)

no.	Date	Opponent	Score		w-l-t	pts	gf-ga	no.	Date	Opponent	Score		w-l-t	pts	gf-ga
1.	Oct 8	Calgary	4-1	W	1-0-0	2	4-1	41.	Jan 21	Cincinnati	*6-5	W	24-16-1	49	189-147
2.	Oct 10	New England	5-2	W	2-0-0	4	9-3	42.	Jan 23	Calgary	10-5	W	25-16-1	51	199-152
3.	Oct 15	@ Edmonton	6-1	W	3-0-0	6	15-4	43.	Jan 25	@ Houston	2-5	L	25-17-1	51	201-157
4.	Oct 16	@ Phoenix	4-6	L	3-1-0	6	19-10	44.	Jan 27	@ Birmingham	0-3	L	25-18-1	51	201-160
5.	Oct 17	@ San Diego	1-3	L	3-2-0	6	20-13	45.	Jan 29	@ San Diego	3-5	L	25-19-1	51	204-165
6.	Oct 19	Indianapolis	6-1	W	4-2-0	8	26-14	46.	Jan 30	@ Phoenix	5-8	L	25-20-1	51	209-173
7.	Oct 22	Phoenix	3-4	L	4-3-0	8	29-18	47.	Feb 1	@ Edmonton	11-1	W	26-20-1	53	220-174
8.	Oct 24	Birmingham	7-1	W	5-3-0	10	36-19	48.	Feb 4	San Diego	8-2	W	27-20-1	55	228-176
9.	Oct 29	Edmonton	11-3	W	6-3-0	12	47-22	49.	Feb 6	Calgary	6-4	W	28-20-1	57	234-180
10.	Oct 31	San Diego	6-4	W	7-3-0	14	53-26	50.	Feb 8	@ Quebec	7-2	W	29-20-1	59	241-182
11.	Nov 2	Houston	1-3	L	7-4-0	14	54-29	51.	Feb 10	@ New England	3-6	L	29-21-1	59	244-188
12.	Nov 5	Minnesota	9-2	W	8-4-0	16	63-31	52.	Feb 11	@ Cincinnati	0-4	L	29-22-1	59	244-192
13.	Nov 6	@ Cincinnati	3-7	L	8-5-0	16	66-38	53.	Feb 13	@ Indianapolis	7-5	W	30-22-1	61	251-197
14.	Nov 7	Edmonton	5-2	W	9-5-0	18	71-40	54.	Feb 15	Calgary	2-2	T	30-22-2	62	253-199
15.	Nov 9	New England	*5-4	W	10-5-0	20	76-44	55.	Feb 17	Indianapolis	4-2	W	31-22-2	64	257-201
16.	Nov 11	@ Calgary	5-7	L	10-6-0	20	81-51	56.	Feb 18	@ Edmonton	2-3	L	31-23-2	64	259-204
17.	Nov 14	@ Calgary	2-0	W	11-6-0	22	83-51	57.	Feb 20	Edmonton	4-2	W	32-23-2	66	263-206
18.	Nov 16	Quebec	8-4	W	12-6-0	24	91-55	58.	Feb 22	Houston	3-2	W	33-23-2	68	266-208
19.	Nov 19	@ New England	7-3	W	13-6-0	26	98-58	59.	Feb 23	@ Phoenix	3-6	L	33-24-2	68	269-214
20.	Nov 20	@ Indianapolis	4-8	L	13-7-0	26	102-66	60.	Feb 26	@ Cincinnati	8-6	W	34-24-2	70	277-220
21.	Nov 21	Cincinnati	2-4	L	13-8-0	26	104-70	61.	Feb 27	New England	2-3	L	34-25-2	70	279-223
22.	Nov 23	@ Quebec	4-7	L	13-9-0	26	108-77	62.	Mar 1	@ Calgary	1-6	L	34-26-2	70	280-229
23.	Nov 26	@ Houston	1-1	T	13-9-1	27	109-78	63.	Mar 2	Quebec	*4-3	W	35-26-2	72	284-232
24.	Nov 28	Phoenix	3-5	L	13-10-1	27	112-83	64.	Mar 3	@ Edmonton	4-5	L	35-27-2	72	288-237
25.	Nov 30	San Diego	8-2	W	14-10-1	29	120-85	65.	Mar 5	@ Phoenix	1-4	L	35-28-2	72	289-241
26.	Dec 3	@ Minnesota	4-3	W	15-10-1	31	124-88	66.	Mar 8	San Diego	5-0	W	36-28-2	74	294-241
27.	Dec 4	@ New England	6-2	W	16-10-1	33	130-90	67.	Mar 11	Calgary	4-1	W	37-28-2	76	298-242
28.	Dec 5	@ Quebec	4-6	L	16-11-1	33	134-96	68.	Mar 13	Edmonton	9-3	W	38-28-2	78	307-245
29.	Dec 7	Phoenix	4-2	W	17-11-1	35	138-98	69.	Mar 15	Edmonton	7-0	W	39-28-2	80	314-245
30.	Dec 8	@ Calgary	4-2	W	18-11-1	37	142-100	70.	Mar 17	@ Edmonton	3-4	L	39-29-2	80	317-249
31.	Dec 10	Birmingham	3-5	L	18-12-1	37	145-105	71.	Mar 18	@ Indianapolis	7-5	W	40-29-2	82	324-254
32.	Dec 26	Quebec	3-12	L	18-13-1	37	148-117	72.	Mar 20	@ Birmingham	4-3	W	41-29-2	84	328-257
33.	Dec 28	@ Houston	3-6	L	18-14-1	37	151-123	73.	Mar 22	Edmonton	8-3	W	42-29-2	86	336-260
34.	Dec 30	@ San Diego	3-4	L	18-15-1	37	154-127	74.	Mar 27	@ Houston	5-3	W	43-29-2	88	341-263
35.	Jan 2	Houston	5-2	W	19-15-1	39	159-129	75.	Mar 29	Houston	2-5	L	43-30-2	88	343-268
36.	Jan 4	Indianapolis	2-1	W	20-15-1	41	161-130	76.	Mar 31	@ San Diego	3-4	L	43-31-2	88	346-272
37.	Jan 9	Birmingham	4-1	W	21-15-1	43	165-131	77.	Apr 2	@ Birmingham	6-5	W	44-31-2	90	352-277
38.	Jan 11	Phoenix	9-2	W	22-15-1	45	174-133	78.	Apr 3	Calgary	6-4	W	45-31-2	92	358-281
39.	Jan 14	@ Calgary	5-3	W	23-15-1	47	179-136	79.	Apr 4	@ Edmonton	2-6	L	45-32-2	92	360-287
40.	Jan 16	Cincinnati	4-6	L	23-16-1	47	183-142	80.	Apr 7	@ Calgary	6-4	W	46-32-2	94	366-291

Player Scoring

pos.	#	Player	gp	g	a	pts	pim	+/-	ppg	shg	sog	sc%	gp	g	a	pts	pim
D	2	Bergman, Thommie	42	2	24	26	37	+3	0	0	74	0.027	-	-	-	-	-
LW	21	Cole, Jim	2	0	1	1	0	-1	0	0	5	0.000	-	-	-	-	-
G	1	Daley, Joe	65	0	4	4	6	-	0	0	0	-	20	0	0	0	0
D	8	Dunn, Dave	40	3	11	14	129	-1	0	0	30	0.100	20	4	4	8	23
D	5	Ford, Mike	22	3	14	17	20	+14	0	0	57	0.053	20	3	13	16	12
D	6	Green, Ted	70	4	21	25	45	+12	2	0	59	0.068	20	1	3	4	12
LW	18	Guindon, Robert	69	10	17	27	19	-12	3	0	75	0.133	20	4	4	8	9
RW	15	Hedberg, Anders	68	70	61	131	48	+48	22	0	313	0.224	20	13	16	29	13
C	7	Huck, Fran	12	2	2	4	10	-1	0	0	15	0.133	7	0	2	2	6
LW	9	Hull, Bobby	34	21	32	53	14	+16	7	0	102	0.206	20	13	9	22	2
C	12	Ketola, Veli-Pekka	64	25	29	54	59	-13	6	0	210	0.119	-	-	-	-	-
LW	21	Labraaten, Dan	64	24	27	51	21	-11	8	0	134	0.179	20	7	17	24	15
G	30	Larsson, Curt	19	0	1	1	4	-	0	0	0	-	1	0	0	0	0
RW	11	Lawson, Danny	14	6	7	13	2	0	2	2	46	0.130	13	2	4	6	6
LW	17	Lesuk, Bill	78	14	27	41	85	+23	2	0	90	0.156	18	2	1	3	22
D	19	Lindh, Mats	73	14	17	31	2	-13	1	2	101	0.139	20	2	7	9	2
RW	20	Lindstrom, Willy	79	44	36	80	37	-2	11	0	235	0.187	20	9	6	15	22
D	3	Long, Barry	71	9	38	47	54	-1	4	0	178	0.051	20	1	5	6	10
D	25	Miller, Perry	74	14	31	45	124	+27	5	1	154	0.091	20	4	6	10	27
LW	22	Moffat, Lyle	74	13	11	24	90	-7	2	0	86	0.151	17	2	0	2	6
RW	11	Mott, Morris	2	0	1	1	5	+1	0	0	1	0.000	-	-	-	-	-
C	14	Nilsson, Ulf	71	39	85	124	89	+57	8	3	193	0.202	20	6	21	27	33
D	5	Riihiranta, Heikki	53	1	16	17	28	-1	0	0	49	0.020	-	-	-	-	-
RW	23	Ruhnke, Kent	51	11	11	22	2	-12	0	0	87	0.126	-	-	-	-	-
D	4	Sjoberg, Lars-Erik	52	2	38	40	31	+9	1	1	77	0.026	20	0	5	5	12
D	10	Sullivan, Peter	78	31	52	83	18	+11	6	0	176	0.176	20	7	12	19	2
C	11	Ward, Ron	14	4	7	11	2	-2	2	0	24	0.167	-	-	-	-	-

Goaltending

Goaltender	gp	min	ga	en	so	w-l-t	gaa	sog	sv%	gp	min	ga	w-l	gaa
Daley, Joe	65	3818	206	1	3	39-23-2	3.24	1907	0.892	20	1186	71	11-9	3.59
Larsson, Curt	19	1019	82	2	0	7-9-0	4.83	547	0.850	1	20	1	0-0	3.00

Transactions

• Fran Huck signed to contract, Jun 1976
• Dave Dunn signed to contract, Sep 1976
• Mike Ford traded to Calgary for draft picks, Oct 1976
• Barry Long acquired for future considerations from Edmonton, Nov 1976
• Morris Mott and Jim Cole signed to contracts, Jan 1977
• Ron Ward and Veli-Pekka Ketola traded to Calgary for Mike Ford and Danny Lawson, Mar 1977 (Heikki Riihiranta was originally to be traded, but he refused to report and Ron Ward was sent to Calgary to complete the trade)

Splits versus opposing teams, home and away, and by month

opponent	overall	gf-ga	home	gf-ga	away	gf-ga
Birmingham	4-2-0	24-18	2-1-0	14-7	2-1-0	10-11
Calgary	9-2-1	55-39	5-0-1	32-17	4-2-0	23-22
Cincinnati	2-4-0	23-32	1-2-0	12-15	1-2-0	11-17
Edmonton	8-4-0	72-33	6-0-0	44-13	2-4-0	28-20
Houston	3-4-1	22-27	2-2-0	11-12	1-2-1	11-15
Indianapolis	5-1-0	30-22	3-0-0	12-4	2-1-0	18-18
Minnesota	2-0-0	13-5	1-0-0	9-2	1-0-0	4-3
New England	4-2-0	28-20	2-1-0	12-9	2-1-0	16-11
Phoenix	2-6-0	32-37	2-2-0	19-13	0-4-0	13-24
Quebec	3-3-0	30-34	2-1-0	15-19	1-2-0	15-15
San Diego	4-4-0	37-24	4-0-0	27-8	0-4-0	10-16
October	7-3-0	33-26	6-1-0	42-16	1-2-0	11-10
November	7-7-1	67-59	5-3-0	41-26	2-4-1	26-33
December	4-5-0	34-42	1-2-0	10-19	3-3-0	24-23
January	7-5-0	55-46	6-1-0	40-22	1-4-0	15-24
February	9-5-1	70-50	5-1-1	29-17	4-4-0	41-33
March	9-6-0	67-49	6-1-0	39-15	3-5-0	28-34
April	3-1-0	20-19	1-0-0	6-4	2-1-0	14-15

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