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Cleveland Barons (NHL)
Encyclopedia
The Cleveland Barons were a professional ice hockey
team in the National Hockey League
(NHL) from 1976–78. They were a relocation of the California Golden Seals
franchise, which had played in Oakland since 1967. After only two seasons, the team merged with the Minnesota North Stars
.
After new arena plans in San Francisco
were cancelled, the NHL dropped its objection to a relocation of the troubled California Golden Seals
franchise from Oakland
. Minority owner George Gund III persuaded owner Melvin Swig
to move the team to his hometown of Cleveland
for the 1976–77 season. The team was named Cleveland Barons after the popular American Hockey League
team that played in the city from 1937 to 1973. Although a successful minor league city, Cleveland had been turned down for an NHL expansion team on three previous occasions.
The Barons played in the suburb
an Richfield Coliseum
in Richfield, Ohio
, an arena originally built for the WHA
's Cleveland Crusaders
and the NBA
's Cleveland Cavaliers
, with the then largest seating capacity
in the NHL of 18,544.
The NHL approved the move to Cleveland on July 14, 1976, but details were not finalized until late August, and there was little time or money for promotion of the new team. The Barons would never come close to filling the arena in their two years in Cleveland. The team's home opener on October 7, 1976, only drew 8,900 fans. They only drew 10,000 or more fans in seven out of 40 home games, and attendance was actually worse than it had been in Oakland.
The Barons were also troubled by an unfavorable lease with the Coliseum, and in January 1977 Swig hinted the team might not finish the season because of payroll difficulties. The Barons actually missed payroll twice in a row in February, and with the franchise on the verge of collapse, some of the Barons' players were actively being courted by other teams. Wanting to avoid the embarrassment of a team folding at mid-season (as had happened in the rival WHA), a last-minute $
1.3 million loan from the league and the NHLPA
was arranged to allow the Barons to finish the season. After finishing last in the Adams Division yet again, Swig sold his interest in the team to Gund and his brother Gordon
.
For 1977–78, the Gunds poured money into the team, and it seemed to make a difference at first. The Barons stunned the defending Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens
on November 23 before a boisterous crowd of 12,859. After a brief slump, general manager Harry Howell pulled off several trades in an attempt to make the team tougher. It initially paid off, and the Barons knocked off three of the NHL's top teams, the Toronto Maple Leafs
, New York Islanders
and Buffalo Sabres
in consecutive games in January 1978. A few weeks later, a record crowd of 13,110 saw the Barons tie the Philadelphia Flyers
2–2. The bottom fell out in February, however, as a 15-game losing skid knocked the Barons out of playoff contention.
, under the Gunds' ownership. The merged franchise would continue as the Minnesota North Stars, but assume the Barons' place in the Adams Division. Thirteen years later, in 1991, the merger would effectively be undone as the Gunds assumed ownership of the expansion San Jose Sharks
(occupying the same market as the Seals did prior to their move to Cleveland) and the two teams split the players on the North Stars at the time. The Stars would move to Dallas as the Dallas Stars
in 1993. (Incidentally, the Barons would come full circle: the Sharks formed their own minor-league team in Cleveland, also named the Cleveland Barons, from 2001 to 2006.)
The Barons remain the last franchise in the four major North American sports leagues to cease operations, and as a result the NHL fielded only 17 teams during the 1978–79 season. The NHL would not return to Ohio for 22 years, when the Columbus Blue Jackets
began operations in the fall of 2000.
Dennis Maruk
was the last Baron (and last Golden Seal as well) to be active in the NHL, retiring from the North Stars after the 1989 season with 356 goals in 888 games.
selection made by California Golden Seals
as the move to Cleveland had not yet taken place
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
team in the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
(NHL) from 1976–78. They were a relocation of the California Golden Seals
California Golden Seals
The California Golden Seals were a team in the National Hockey League from 1967–76. Initially named California Seals, the team was renamed Oakland Seals part-way through the 1967–68 season, and then to California Golden Seals in 1970. The Seals were one of six teams added to the league as part of...
franchise, which had played in Oakland since 1967. After only two seasons, the team merged with the Minnesota North Stars
Minnesota North Stars
The Minnesota North Stars were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League for 26 seasons, from 1967 to 1993. The North Stars played their home games at the Met Center in Bloomington, and the team's colors for most of its history were green, yellow, gold and white...
.
History
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
were cancelled, the NHL dropped its objection to a relocation of the troubled California Golden Seals
California Golden Seals
The California Golden Seals were a team in the National Hockey League from 1967–76. Initially named California Seals, the team was renamed Oakland Seals part-way through the 1967–68 season, and then to California Golden Seals in 1970. The Seals were one of six teams added to the league as part of...
franchise from Oakland
Oakland, California
Oakland is a major West Coast port city on San Francisco Bay in the U.S. state of California. It is the eighth-largest city in the state with a 2010 population of 390,724...
. Minority owner George Gund III persuaded owner Melvin Swig
Melvin Swig
Melvin M. Swig was a San Francisco real estate developer and philanthropist. He was also owner of the National Hockey League's California Golden Seals and Cleveland Barons....
to move the team to his hometown of Cleveland
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Cuyahoga County, the most populous county in the state. The city is located in northeastern Ohio on the southern shore of Lake Erie, approximately west of the Pennsylvania border...
for the 1976–77 season. The team was named Cleveland Barons after the popular American Hockey League
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...
team that played in the city from 1937 to 1973. Although a successful minor league city, Cleveland had been turned down for an NHL expansion team on three previous occasions.
The Barons played in the suburb
Suburb
The word suburb mostly refers to a residential area, either existing as part of a city or as a separate residential community within commuting distance of a city . Some suburbs have a degree of administrative autonomy, and most have lower population density than inner city neighborhoods...
an Richfield Coliseum
Coliseum at Richfield
The Coliseum at Richfield was an arena located in Richfield Township in Summit County, Ohio, roughly halfway between Cleveland and Akron...
in Richfield, Ohio
Richfield, Ohio
Richfield is a village in Summit County, Ohio, United States. The population was 3,286 at the 2000 census. The village and the adjacent Richfield Township are approximately equidistant between the downtown areas of Akron and Cleveland...
, an arena originally built for the WHA
World Hockey Association
The World Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major competition for the National Hockey League since the collapse of the Western Hockey League in 1926...
's Cleveland Crusaders
Cleveland Crusaders
The Cleveland Crusaders were a professional ice hockey team from Cleveland, Ohio. The Crusaders were founded by Nick Mileti, and played in the World Hockey Association from 1972 to 1976...
and the NBA
National Basketball Association
The National Basketball Association is the pre-eminent men's professional basketball league in North America. It consists of thirty franchised member clubs, of which twenty-nine are located in the United States and one in Canada...
's Cleveland Cavaliers
Cleveland Cavaliers
The Cleveland Cavaliers are a professional basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They began playing in the National Basketball Association in 1970 as an expansion team...
, with the then largest seating capacity
Seating capacity
Seating capacity refers to the number of people who can be seated in a specific space, both in terms of the physical space available, and in terms of limitations set by law. Seating capacity can be used in the description of anything ranging from an automobile that seats two to a stadium that seats...
in the NHL of 18,544.
The NHL approved the move to Cleveland on July 14, 1976, but details were not finalized until late August, and there was little time or money for promotion of the new team. The Barons would never come close to filling the arena in their two years in Cleveland. The team's home opener on October 7, 1976, only drew 8,900 fans. They only drew 10,000 or more fans in seven out of 40 home games, and attendance was actually worse than it had been in Oakland.
The Barons were also troubled by an unfavorable lease with the Coliseum, and in January 1977 Swig hinted the team might not finish the season because of payroll difficulties. The Barons actually missed payroll twice in a row in February, and with the franchise on the verge of collapse, some of the Barons' players were actively being courted by other teams. Wanting to avoid the embarrassment of a team folding at mid-season (as had happened in the rival WHA), a last-minute $
United States dollar
The United States dollar , also referred to as the American dollar, is the official currency of the United States of America. It is divided into 100 smaller units called cents or pennies....
1.3 million loan from the league and the NHLPA
NHLPA
NHLPA is an initialism for:* The National Hockey League Players Association, a players' union* The National Historic Lighthouse Preservation Act of 2000-Video games:...
was arranged to allow the Barons to finish the season. After finishing last in the Adams Division yet again, Swig sold his interest in the team to Gund and his brother Gordon
Gordon Gund
Gordon Gund is an United States businessman and professional sports owner. He is the CEO of Gund Investment Corporation. He is the former co-owner of the San Jose Sharks and former principal owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers and is currently a minority owner of the Cavaliers...
.
For 1977–78, the Gunds poured money into the team, and it seemed to make a difference at first. The Barons stunned the defending Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
on November 23 before a boisterous crowd of 12,859. After a brief slump, general manager Harry Howell pulled off several trades in an attempt to make the team tougher. It initially paid off, and the Barons knocked off three of the NHL's top teams, the Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
, New York Islanders
New York Islanders
The New York Islanders are a professional ice hockey team based in Uniondale, New York. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
and Buffalo Sabres
Buffalo Sabres
The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League .-Founding and early success: 1970-71—1980-81:...
in consecutive games in January 1978. A few weeks later, a record crowd of 13,110 saw the Barons tie the Philadelphia Flyers
Philadelphia Flyers
The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
2–2. The bottom fell out in February, however, as a 15-game losing skid knocked the Barons out of playoff contention.
Merger and aftermath
After the season, the Gunds tried to buy the Coliseum, but failed. Fearing that two franchises were on the verge of folding, on June 14, 1978 the league granted approval for the Barons to merge with another financially troubled team, the Minnesota North StarsMinnesota North Stars
The Minnesota North Stars were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League for 26 seasons, from 1967 to 1993. The North Stars played their home games at the Met Center in Bloomington, and the team's colors for most of its history were green, yellow, gold and white...
, under the Gunds' ownership. The merged franchise would continue as the Minnesota North Stars, but assume the Barons' place in the Adams Division. Thirteen years later, in 1991, the merger would effectively be undone as the Gunds assumed ownership of the expansion San Jose Sharks
San Jose Sharks
The San Jose Sharks are a professional ice hockey team based in San Jose, California, United States. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
(occupying the same market as the Seals did prior to their move to Cleveland) and the two teams split the players on the North Stars at the time. The Stars would move to Dallas as the Dallas Stars
Dallas Stars
The Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team was founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minnesota North Stars, based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The...
in 1993. (Incidentally, the Barons would come full circle: the Sharks formed their own minor-league team in Cleveland, also named the Cleveland Barons, from 2001 to 2006.)
The Barons remain the last franchise in the four major North American sports leagues to cease operations, and as a result the NHL fielded only 17 teams during the 1978–79 season. The NHL would not return to Ohio for 22 years, when the Columbus Blue Jackets
Columbus Blue Jackets
The Columbus Blue Jackets are a professional ice hockey team based in Columbus, Ohio, United States. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League...
began operations in the fall of 2000.
Dennis Maruk
Dennis Maruk
Dennis John Maruk is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player. He played in the National Hockey League from 1975 to 1989, scoring a career high 60 goals for the Washington Capitals in 1981–82.-Career:...
was the last Baron (and last Golden Seal as well) to be active in the NHL, retiring from the North Stars after the 1989 season with 356 goals in 888 games.
Season-by-season record
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes| Season | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM | Finish | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976–77 | 80 | 25 | 42 | 13 | 63 | 240 | 292 | 1011 | fourth in Adams | Out of playoffs |
| 1977–78 | 80 | 22 | 45 | 13 | 57 | 230 | 325 | 1010 | fourth in Adams | Out of playoffs |
| TOTALS | 160 | 47 | 87 | 26 | 120 | 470 | 617 | 2021 |
Team captains
- Jim NeilsonJim NeilsonJames Anthony "Chief" Neilson was a National Hockey League defenceman for the New York Rangers, California Golden Seals and Cleveland Barons and completed his career in the World Hockey Association....
and Bob Stewart, 1976–78 (co-captains)
First round draft picks
- 19761976 NHL Amateur DraftThe 1976 NHL Amateur Draft was held at the NHL office in Montreal, Quebec on June 1, 1976. It is notable as featuring one of the weakest first rounds in draft history, as only two players played more than 450 career NHL games. In 2002, Federko was elected into the Hockey Hall-of-Fame after...
: Bjorn JohanssonBjörn JohanssonErik "Björn" Johansson, or "Nalle" as his nickname was, is a retired Swedish professional ice hockey defenceman. He was drafted in the first round of both the 1976 NHL Amateur Draft and the 1976 WHA Amateur Draft, by the California Golden Seals and Toronto Toros, respectively...
(fifth overall)
selection made by California Golden Seals
California Golden Seals
The California Golden Seals were a team in the National Hockey League from 1967–76. Initially named California Seals, the team was renamed Oakland Seals part-way through the 1967–68 season, and then to California Golden Seals in 1970. The Seals were one of six teams added to the league as part of...
as the move to Cleveland had not yet taken place
- 19771977 NHL Amateur DraftThe 1977 NHL Amateur Draft was held at the Mount Royal Hotel in Montreal, Quebec.-Selections by round:Below are listed the selections in the 1977 NHL Amateur Draft.Club teams are located in North America unless otherwise noted.-Round one:-Round two:...
: Mike CrombeenMike CrombeenMichael Joseph Crombeen is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player. His son B. J. currently plays with the St. Louis Blues.-Playing career:...
(fifth overall)
General managers
- Bill McCrearyBill McCreary, Sr.William Edward McCreary, Sr. was a National Hockey League left winger, coach and general manager.-Career:...
, 1976–77 - Harry Howell, 1977–78
See also
- List of Cleveland Barons players
- List of Cleveland Barons draft picks
- California Golden SealsCalifornia Golden SealsThe California Golden Seals were a team in the National Hockey League from 1967–76. Initially named California Seals, the team was renamed Oakland Seals part-way through the 1967–68 season, and then to California Golden Seals in 1970. The Seals were one of six teams added to the league as part of...
- Minnesota North StarsMinnesota North StarsThe Minnesota North Stars were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League for 26 seasons, from 1967 to 1993. The North Stars played their home games at the Met Center in Bloomington, and the team's colors for most of its history were green, yellow, gold and white...
- Dallas StarsDallas StarsThe Dallas Stars are a professional ice hockey team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The team was founded during the 1967 NHL expansion as the Minnesota North Stars, based in Bloomington, Minnesota. The...
- List of NHL players
- List of NHL seasons
- 1967 NHL Expansion1967 NHL expansionThe National Hockey League undertook a major expansion for the 1967–68 season, adding six new franchises to double the size of the league. This marked the first change in the composition of the league since 1942, when the Brooklyn Americans folded. Thus, the expansion ended the era of the Original...