In the early 1970s, matchups with the California Golden Seals
often meant big nights for opposing scorers and January 6, 1974 was
no exception. Dennis Hull made the most of the opportunity, leading
the Chicago Blackhawks to a 9-4 win at Chicago Stadium. But
California’s Reggie Leach wasn’t about to let Hull have the
spotlight to himself.
Leach got on the board first, beating Blackhawks goalie Mike
Veisor just 2:15 into the opening period. Walt McKechnie and Brent
Meeke assisted on the early goal. Hull answered back five minutes
later with his 17th of the season, set up by Pit Martin and Bill
White.
Before the first period ended, Hull had already added his second
of the night, and the Hawks took a 3-2 lead into the intermission. He
completed the hat trick just 1:17 into the second period.
Reggie Leach wasn’t done either. He tallied his second goal of
the game at 12:07 of the second period, then notched his third at
11:11 of the third. Despite the lopsided final score, Leach’s hat
trick earned him some well-deserved respect.
Hull rounded out his stellar night with two third-period assists,
giving him five points overall. Both he and Leach led their
respective teams with six shots on goal.
In net for the Golden Seals was Bob Champoux, who played 17 games
that season. After a single NHL playoff appearance with Detroit back
in 1964, the 1973-74 campaign with California marked his only
regular-season action in the league. He finished the year with a 5.21
goals-against average and a .848 save percentage.
Dennis Hull vs. Reg Leach in 1973-74
1973-74 was the final year with the
California Golden Seals for Reg Leach. His 22 goals were one off his
previous best of 23, put up the year before. His 46 points were a
career best but these highs would change fast. On May 24, 1974, Leach
was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers for Al MacAdam and Larry
Wright. With the Flyers, Reg would see his potential and have career
highs of 61 goals and 91 points.
For Dennis Hull, 1973-74 was a decent
year with 29 goals and 68 points. However, his goal scoring had been
declining since he put up 40 in 1970-71. He would remain in the NHL
until the end of the 1977-78 campaign but he would not really have
the same scoring success he'd enjoyed.
Quiz: Reg Leach and Dennis Hull Hat Trick Showdown (1974)
The Califonia Golden Seals existed in the National Hockey League
for just a short nine year span from 1967-68 to 1975-76. Originally
dubbed the Oakland Seals, the team was one of six expansion teams to
enter the NHL for the 1967-68 season. Despite the fact that their
nine years were nothing more than dismal, several decent players
passed through the organization.
Harry Howell
Harry
Howell is the only player in the Hockey Hall of Fame that ever
dressed for the Golden Seals. Howell played just the 1969-70 season
and part of the 1970-71 season with the club after 17 years with the
New York Rangers. After 28 games in 1970-71, he was traded down the
California coast to the Los Angeles Kings. The 1966-67 Norris Trophy
winner was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1979.
Bryan Watson
Bryan
‘Bugsy’ Watson was best known for the time he spent in the
penalty box but he was also a decent defenseman. Now 41st on the
NHL’s all-time list of penalty minute leaders, he was once number
one. Watson finished his NHL career with 2212 PIM in 878 games.
Watson played one season with the Oakland Seals, 1968-69. His NHL
career spanned from 1963-64 to 1978-79, also playing for the Montreal
Canadiens, Pittsburgh Penguins, St. Louis Blues, Detroit Red Wings
and Washington Capitals.
Bobby Baun
In the final season of the ‘Original Six’era, 1966-67, Bob Baun was the hero of the Toronto Maple Leafs Stanley Cup victory. The
following season, he was on the blue line for the Oakland Seals, a
team that won just 15 games. 1967-68 was the only season Baun spent
in California during a career that started in 1956-57 and ended after
the 1972-73 season. Baun also played three seasons with the Detroit
Red Wings.
Carol Vadnais
Carol
Vadnais played sparingly for the Montreal Canadiens during the
1966-67 and 1967-68 seasons. He became a regular in the NHL with the
Seals in 1968-69. Vadnais spent two years with California before
moving on to bigger and better things with the Boston Bruins. Carol
played a total of 1087 regular season NHL games between 1966-67 and
1982-83 with the Canadiens, Golden Seals, Bruins, New York Rangers
and New Jersey Devils.
Reg Leach
Drafted third overall by the Boston
Bruins in the 1970 NHL Amateur Draft, Reggie
Leach never really caught on with the Big Bad Bruins, playing
just two partial seasons with the club in 1970-71 and part of 1971-72
and scoring just a total of nine goals. Playing with the California
Golden Seals until the end of the 1973-74 season, Leach’s goal
scoring ability began to blossom. It was with the Philadelphia Flyers
that Leach exploded. He scored 61 in 1975-76 and 50 in 1979-80. He
scored 19 in 16 playoff games in 1975-76 earning him the Conn Smythe
Trophy in a losing effort. He won two Stanley Cups with Philadelphia,
included a victory over the Bruins in 1974.
Charlie Simmer
Charlie Simmer was a third round pick of the Seals in the 1974 NHL
Draft. He was a seldom used forward by California and even by the
Cleveland Barons when the team was relocated there for the 1976-77
season. However, after being traded to the Los Angeles Kings in
1978-79 and being stuck on a line with Marcel Dionne and Dave Taylor,
Charlie showed the hockey world what he could do. Simmer scored 56
goals in each the 1979-80 and 1980-81 seasons as a member of the
Triple
Crown Line. Those goal totals were accomplished in just 64 and 65
games. Simmer played 712 NHL games with the Seals, Barons, Kings,
Boston Bruins and Pittsburgh Penguins.
Dennis Maruk
In the 1975 NHL Amateur Draft, the last for the Golden Seals, they
finally got it right. In the second round, they drafted Dennis Maruk.
Maruk scored 30 goals in his rookie season and 36 with the Barons two
years later. He topped out with 60 goals and 136 points in a
Washington Capitals uniform in 1981-82. Dennis played 888 regular
season NHL games with the Seals/Barons/North Stars and Capitals and
scored 356 goals over that time.
A Bit More About The Team
The California Golden Seals were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL) that existed from 1967 to 1976. Originally known as the California Seals, the team underwent a name change in 1970 to become the California Golden Seals. Based in Oakland, California, the Seals faced financial and on-ice challenges throughout their brief history.
The team struggled to achieve success in terms of playoff appearances and faced difficulties in building a dedicated fan base. Despite their challenges, the California Golden Seals are remembered for their distinctive green and gold jerseys and remain a unique part of NHL history.
The franchise ultimately relocated to Cleveland in 1976 and later merged with the Minnesota North Stars, ceasing to exist as an independent team.
1975-76 was an end of an era in the National Hockey League.
Phil Esposito had dominated the goal scoring landscape since 1969-70, leading
the NHL for six consecutive seasons. Esposito scored 50 or more goals for five
consecutive seasons and set the mark for most goals in a single season with 76
in 1970-71. In 1975-76, the Boston Bruins traded him mid-season to the New York
Rangers and he totalled just 35 goals, not good enough to place in the top ten.
Reggie Leach – Philadelphia Flyers
Leading the NHL in 1975-76 with 61 goals was Reggie
Leach of the Philadelphia Flyers. It was a career year for Leach with his
next highest goal total coming in 1979-80 with 50. Reggie carried on into the
1975-76 playoffs with 19 goals in 16 games as the Flyers reached the finals
before losing out to the Montreal Canadiens. Leach was awarded the Conn Smythe
Trophy in the losing cause. To date, he is one of just five players to be
awarded the Conn Smythe when not winning the Stanley Cup.
Guy Lafleur – Montreal Canadiens
Guy Lafleur of the Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens
came second with 56 goals. It was Guy’s second of six consecutive seasons with
50 or more goals and his first of three consecutive Art Ross Trophies. The 56
goals was a far cry from the 130 he scored in 62 games for the Quebec Remparts
of the QMJHL in 1970-71.
Despite finishing third in the Norris Division and making an
early opening round exit from the Stanley Cup playoffs, the Pittsburgh Penguins
provided the National Hockey League with two 50 goal scorers. Pierre Larouche
finished third with 53 and Jean Pronovost ended 1975-76 with one less than his
teammate.
Pierre Larouche – Pittsburgh Penguins
Pierre Larouche was another phenom in the QMJHL. With the Sorel
Black Hawks in 1973-74, he scored 94 goals and totalled 251 points in 67
regular season games. 1975-76 was just his second season in the NHL. He would
score 50 goals in a season one more time in his NHL career, exactly 50 as a
member of the 1979-80 Montreal Canadiens.
Jean Pronovost – Pittsburgh Penguins
Jean Pronovost had a career year with his 52 goals and 104
points. Pronovost played two games shy of 1,000 in an NHL career that spanned
from 1968-69 to 1981-82. He spent the bulk of his time with Pittsburgh but also
played for the Atlanta Flames and Washington Capitals.
Bill Barber – Philadelphia Flyers
Two players tied for fifth spot in 1975-76 with 50 goals
each. Bill Barber of the Philadelphia Flyers and Danny Gare each had 50. Barber
gets the tie breaker nod with 112 points to Gare’s 73.
Bill Barber is one of just two of these six players to have
a spot in the Hockey Hall of Fame. Barber was inducted in 1990, two years after
Guy Lafleur. 1975-76 was the only time during his twelve year NHL career, all
with the Flyers, that Barber reached the 50 goal plateau.
Danny Gare would reach the 50 goal plateau one more time in
his career. In 1979-80, he scored 56 for the Buffalo Sabres, tying Blaine
Stoughton of the Hartford Whalers and Charlie Simmer of the Los Angeles Kings
for the NHL lead. Gare played in the NHL from 1974-75 to 1986-87 with the
Sabres, Detroit Red Wings and Edmonton Oilers.
