The 1973 Playoff Run



   The Whalers had an interesting championship run in 1973.  A player came out of traction to lead them to victory, opposition fans stormed their locker room looking for Rick Ley and a loyal hockey following in Boston verbally assaulted a television station after the plug was pulled during one game.  It was the crazy 70's and you couldn't expect anything different.
   The Whalers began their one and only championship campaign on April 7 1973 against the "Ottawa-Toronto-Whatever Nationals" (Boston Globe) at the Boston Garden.
   Nationals goalie Les Binkley would be Ottawa's best player that night as he staved off many Whaler onslaughts on his net.
    The Whalers ended the first period with 19 shots.  Binkley made 18 saves, only allowing one goal from Larry Pleau who had to fight through players in front of the net to push home a Brad Selwood shot that had initially been saved by Binkley.  The Whalers ended up putting 58 shots on Binkley, who made 52 saves.  The Whalers subsequently won game one 6-3 in front of 9400 at the Garden.
   For game 2, the Nationals threw Giles Gratton in front of the Whaler firing squad.  Gratton had won all three games he played in against the Whalers during the 1972/73 season.
   Nationals' Brian Conacher and Rick Sentes scored first period goals for Ottawa to stake them to a 2-0 lead over the Whale going into the first intermission.  The Whalers stormed back though by firing 37 shots in the final two periods.  Tom Webster scored two goals in the second period to tie it and Brad Selwood scored the go-ahead goal in the third to put the Whalers out in front 3-2.
   But then Al Smith, who was probably getting restless in third because of inactivity, strolled out of the net.

"I went behind the net to stop a rolling puck," said Smitty, "but
it slowed down and I missed it.  Then my skates went out from
under me, and I had a great view of the net.  It was wide open
when Climie scored."  "They got Jacques Plante hung in effigy down
at Daisy Buchanan's (Derek Sanderson's ginmill) and I figured I was going up right
beside him after this one," said Smith.

   Ron Climie scored the tying goal with only 54 seconds left in the third to force overtime.  But just as quickly as a little Smitty doll was being sewn and a tiny hangman's noose tied, Brit Selby forced a change in plans.
   Less than two minutes after Smitty made a lightening save on what the Globe called a "slapshot that was travelling about 900 miles an hour", Selby swept in on a rebound off of a shot by Rick Ley and fired it past Gratton for the game winner at 3:37 of OT to give the Whale a 4-3 victory.  Gratton faced 56 shots in the game and said, "I was so tired I couldn't move.  I could hardly hold my hands up.  I didn't have a chance on the last goal."  



Tommy Williams Deflects One Past Binkley in Game One

   Game three was back in Ottawa, I mean Toronto.  The Ottawa Nationals were now the Ontario Nationals and Binkley was back in net for the weary Giles Gratton.  Besides the superficial, the Nationals also changed their style of play to try and keep the Whalers under fifty shots for the first time in the playoffs.  The Nationals defense stepped it up, the forecheck got aggressive and Binkley was able to stay relatively rested throughout the game.  Despite being outshot 30-25, the Nationals took the game 4-2.
   The Whalers could be faulted for playing tight.  Many of them had played in the Toronto system and going back home seemed to unleash a small case of the jitters.
   Despite failing in game 3, the Whalers would quickly refocus on the WHA championship during game four.  Tommy Williams picked game four to set all kinds of personal records for himself.  He scored three goals and assisted on three others to help the Whalers take the game 7-3.
   Tom Webster got three of the first four Whaler goals in game five to help the team to a 4-1 lead midway through the second period.  But the Nationals would battle back by scoring three goals, including the last one with only about six minutes left to play, to force overtime in front of over 12,000 Whaler fans at the Garden.  Once again the Whalers would prevail in overtime on a goal by Mike Byers.  The Whalers got the victory 5-4 and a second-round berth against Gerry Cheevers and the Cleveland Crusaders.
   Things are a little strange in hockey sometimes.  During game one against the Crusaders a little of the rough stuff broke out.  Crusader Jim Wiste ran John French in the boards, leaving him a little unsure of himself.  A little later Wiste speared Rick Ley in the mouth.  Two hits that would knock most people out were labeled wake up calls by Whaler coach Jack Kelley.  "I think that (the hit on Ley) woke us up," Kelley said in the Boston Globe.
   Despite only getting five shots on net in the first period, the Whale held a 1-0 lead.  The lead held until early in the third when Ron Buchanan scored to deadlock the game at one.  Ten minutes later, Dick Pumple put a shot on net that deflected off of Ley's skate and past Smitty to put the Crusaders ahead.
This couple of collages is prepared with the help of digital scrapbook software.    But the Whalers would begin picking it up.  After only having 13 shots on net in the first two periods, the Whalers began cranking it up in the third.  Larry Pleau scored with just over four minutes remaining to tie it at two-a-piece.  Then with 25 seconds remaining, Pleau took the puck behind the net, followed diligently by three Crusaders.  Somehow he managed to get the biscuit to the front of the basket and Sheehy was there to stick it between Cheever's pads for the game winner.



SHEEHY!!!SHEEHY!!!SHEEHY SCORES!!!

   Sheehy didn't think the goal counted.

"For some reason I thought the game was over before the goal
went in.  When I turned around I started to skate
toward center ice to get ready for the overtime.  Then the guys
started skating (happily) over to me and I looked at the clock."

    Game two was another nail biter with both goalies playing on top of their game.  Cleveland took an early lead on goals by Wayne Muloin and Ron Buchanan.  But the Whalers were able to cut the lead in half before the first intermission on a goal by Tom Webster.
   Then in the span of just over three minutes, Larry Pleau scored two goals.  Sheehy assisted on both and John French had the first assist on the first Pleau goal.  What was bigger though was that two of the Whalers' three goals came on the power play.  In game one the Whalers went 0-for-8 with the man advantage.  Things were also livened up by Jim Dorey and Skip Krake of the Crusaders.  The Globe noted that Dorey got the unanimous decision in the bout "by landing first with the most."
   After the game, Cheevers was singing Smitty's praises and Smitty was praising Cheevers and the sweet musical tones of his goal posts.

"Looking back at the game, we played well enough to win
on the road, but Smitty in the other goal was outstanding.  
You have to give that guy credit.  He has played very
well against us all season," Cheevers said in the Boston Globe

    In the other locker room, Smith was saying pretty much the same thing.

"They hit the post three times.  I must have had those
things tuned up right before the game," Smith said.  "I think
when you're playing against a goalie as good as Cheevers you play up to him," Smith said.
"It must be like going out to play a round of golf with a guy like Trevino.  He
plays so well it makes you play a little better."

   Game three was marked with bad officiating and many Whalers in the penalty box.
   Guy Smith was to score the first goal for the Whalers.  Smith was in the game because of an injury to John Danby.  On his first shift, he was boarded by Gary Jarrett, who picked up what would be an infrequent penalty for the Crusaders in the game.  On the ensuing power play, Smith cleaned up garbage Cheevers left in front of the net after a shoulder save and deposited it in the cage behind the Crusader goalie.
   Despite being shorthanded for 30 minutes in the first two periods, including a five-on -three, the Whalers managed to hang tough and win the game in the third period on a goal by Sheehy.
   After the hard fought game three, Whalers were injured.  Ley and Sheehy were both carrying extra bags, ice bags, on the bus with them.  Sheehy ended up spending the night in the hospital in traction.  "It wasn't very comfortable trying to sleep when they kept the heat coming every 45 minutes," Sheehy said of his stay in the hospital.  But Sheehy would get out of traction and into a rehabilitation center before game five.  He took some treatment and made in time for warm-ups.  Sheehy scored the game tying goal on the power play with 12 seconds left in the second period.
   While Sheehy received the iron-man award, Al Smith also had good words heaped upon him by his teammates for his play in the series clinching game five.

"Al out-Cheevered Gerry Cheevers.  Every
time we needed a big save he came up with it," coach Jack Kelley said.


Tom Webster Scores in Game 2

   While the Whalers were sewing up their series 3-1 in game 5, the Winnipeg Jets were sweeping the Houston Aeros in the Western Conference.
   Winnipeg started quick out of the gate.  Beaudin scored for the Jets just over 10 minutes into the first period to start the scoring.  However, as it was against the Crusaders, it was Al Smith keeping the Whalers in the game.  The Jets outshot the Whalers 14-7 in the first period, but thanks to Smith's superb goaltending and Joe Daley's shaky performance, the Whalers went into the first period leading 4-1.
   It was clear that the Jets' superstar Bobby Hull wasn't playing at 100%.  Besides Brad Selwood running him and inflicting damage with good body checks, the bone chips that were floating around in his elbow gave him significant reason not be playing at his normal top form.
   Despite winning the game 7-2, Jack Kelley and the Whalers weren't a happy bunch.  They considered themselves lucky to have won and attributed the victory to a bad game by the Jets and Daley in particular and lots of good fortune.



Tom Earl Scores in Game One Against the Jets


   Game two was the kind of game that usually decides a close series.
   The Jets were ahead going into the final frame 4-2.  The Whalers stormed back to score five goals on only six shots.  The number one star of the game was Tommy Williams who had a goal in the first period and three assists.  "I said more prayers that we'd win this game when we got even early in the final period," admitted Williams.  "This could be my only chance to be on a winner as a professional hockey player." (Quote from the Boston Globe).    Williams made two key assists on the first two Whaler goals of the third period.  The goals were a back breaker for the Jets as they came only 49 seconds apart.  Seventeen minutes later, the Whalers skated off the ice in Winnipeg 7-4 victors and up 2-0 in the series.
   Game three was a Jets victory.  It was also an example of the kind a game that can turn a series.
   The Jets came out running and took a 3-0 lead.  While the Jets were running, the Whalers were standing still.  A late second period goal kept by Rick Ley kept the Whalers in it going into the third.  The Whalers' Ted Green then cut the lead to 3-2 with only about five minutes gone in the final frame.  Tim Sheehy then put in the game-tying goal with only 1:41 remaining.  Bobby Hull then took a rebound offf of a Bob Ash shot and flipped it calmly over Al Smith's shoulder with 1:04 remaining to give the Jets the lead, one they would hold on to this time.
   After the game, the Winnipeg fans were angry.  Usually if your team wins, jubilation is the operative feeling, but the Jets' fans had other emotions.
   Ted Green fought with an unruly fan who punched him as Green stood along the boards.  After the fight many of the Jets' faithful stormed the Whalers locker room looking for Rick Ley.  Ley was chosen the number two star of the game and was supposed to accept an award from a handicapped youngster.  The only problem was that nobody told Ley so the fans went looking for him.  A fight ensued in the Whalers locker room as several Whalers fought with the rabid Winnipeg fans.  Whaler Bill Bergland broke his thumb on the face of a Jets fanatic.  There were no police in the area so it took the game officials and spare referees to break up the melee.
   The Whalers came out in game four back in Boston and beat the Jets 4-2 in front of over 13,000 Whaler fans.  Mike Byers had two goals and Larry Pleau and Tim Sheehy each had one.
   Firewagon hockey was the name of the game for game five.  The Whalers rushed out and had 4-1 and 6-4 leads through the first and second periods respectively.  However, Winnipeg wouldn't go away quietly.  They scored an early one in the third to cut the lead to 6-5.  But it was the Whalers year and Larry Pleau's game.  Pleau would answer Winnipeg's fifth goal with two of his own, which gave him the hat trick, to ice the game for the Whalers.  They went on to win 9-6 and took the series in five games.



Pleau Scores One of His Three Goals Past Daley



"Immediately after the game, Howard L. Baldwin,
the president of the New England club issued a challenge
to the eventual National Hockey League champion to meet in a
one-game playoff on neutral ice for the Stanley Cup.  The
trophy is considered symbolic of wold hockey supremacy by the NHL."

---New York Times



Ted Green Cartoon in the Boston Globe

   After the game, the switchboards at Channel 7 in Boston were lit up with very angry Bostonians.  With a few minutes left in the game, Channel 7 switched from hockey to tennis enraging loyal Whaler fans.     : To anybody who has seen the Whalers' first season highlight video, Green was swarmed with kids as he attempted to skate around the rink with the Eastern Conference Championship Cup. (The AVCO Cup was unavailable).  It was the first and only championship for the Whalers/Canes franchise.



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All information taken from the Boston Globe incontri agrigento April 8-May 7, 1973 unless specifically noted.

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