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CINCINNATI MOHAWKS (1949-1958) |
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• The 1951-52 Mohawks had three Hockey Hall of
Famers on the club. Buddy O'Connor & Clinton
Smith who were at the end of their careers and
Harry Howell, who was at the beginning of his
career. |
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• Defenseman Fred Shero went on to be an
incredibly successful head coach and is one of
the very few head coaches to win Cups in four
different leagues. Two Turner Cups (St. Paul
Saints), one Calder Cup (Buffalo Bisons),
one Adams Cup (Omaha Knights) and two Stanley
Cups (Philadelphia Flyers). His Flyers were the
infamous "Broad Street Bullies". |
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• The legacy of the Mohawks
were recognized in 1965, when the Muskegon
Zephyrs of the International Hockey League
changed their nickname to the Mohawks. The
nickname change was based upon the success of
the Cincinnati Mohawks franchise. The change of
name worked for the team. They had winning
records in 10 of 11 seasons from 1965-66 through
1975-76 including the 1967-68 Turner Cup.
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CINCINNATI WINGS (1963-64) |
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Doug Messier's son, Mark Messier, played for the
Cincinnati Stingers during the 1978-79 season. |
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Center Bryan Campbell also played for the
Cincinnati Stingers during the 1975-76 season. |
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During the hockey off season Wings' center Ray
Ross worked as a carpenter. |
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During the hockey off season Wings' left winger
Dennis Kassian worked as a tinsmith. |
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When the CHL first moved the Indianapolis
franchise to Cincinnati, the club was called the
Cincinnati Capitals but days before the club's
first game in Cincinnati they changed their name
to the Wings. |
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Former Cincinnati Mohawk Bun Smith refereed the
Wings first game on November 14th. |
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Head coach Tony Leswick's nephew, Lenny Dykstra,
was a major league ballplayer with the Mets and
Phillies. |
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On November 4th 1979 the Cincinnati Wings made
their triumphant return to Queen City when the
club, now known as the Fort Worth Texans, played
the CHL Cincinnati Stingers at Riverfront
Coliseum.
Following the 1963-64 season the Wings relocated
to Memphis. After three seasons in Tennessee
they moved to Fort Worth Texas where they
remained until 1982. |
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CINCINNATI SWORDS (1971-74) |
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• Cincinnati Swords head coach Floyd Smith went
on to coach the Cincinnati Stingers during the
1978-79 season. Floyd also sat in as head coach
of the Tigers for two games. When Tigers' head
coach Doug Carpenter's father was taken ill,
Floyd stepped in and coached the February 17th
and 19th games. |
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• The first regular season Swords goal was
scored by Tom Miller with the assist by Reggie
Fleming. |
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• Swords broadcaster Dom Valentino was also the
radio broadcaster for the Cincinnati Royals of
the NBA. The Royals are now the Sacramento
Kings. |
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• Swords left wing John Gould signed a contract
to play with the Cincinnati Stingers for the
1975-76 season but backed out of the contract
before the season and resigned with the
Vancouver Canucks. |
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• Swords net minder Ray Reeson was an avid
fisherman and during his stint in Cincinnati had
a camper nicknamed the "Wabash Cannonball". |
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CINCINNATI STINGERS I (1975-79) |
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• The Stingers played in three exhibition games
against NHL teams, winning two out of three
times. Cincinnati lost to the Washington
Capitals 3-2 in 1976. Defeated the Capitals in
1977 by a score of 4-2 and defeating the
Pittsburgh Penguins 6-4 in 1978. |
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• Center Dave Debol played for three different
Cincinnati hockey teams. The Cincinnati Stingers
of the WHA, the Cincinnati Stingers of the CHL
and the Cincinnati Tigers. |
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• February 19th 1978, during a game played
between Birmingham and Cincinnati, Bulls goon
and former Stinger was arrested by six police
officers at Riverfront Coliseum for a
two-year-old bench warrant. Allegedly Beaton
assaulting a Carthage service station operator
in 1976 while he was a Stinger. Beaton's Bulls
team bolted town without him so Cincinnati's
coach Jacques Demers posted a $200 dollar bond
to have him released. |
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• On December 12th 1978 at Riverfront Coliseum,
Stingers goalie Mike Liut gave up three goals to
rookie Wayne Gretzky. It was the first hat-trick
for Gretzky as a major league player. |
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• Former Cincinnati Sword left winger John Gould
signed a contract to play for the Cincinnati
Stingers in their first season but backed out of
the contract and resigned with the Vancouver
Canucks. |
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• Mark Messier's father (Doug Messier) played
for the Cincinnati Wings of the CHL in 1963-64. |
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• Stingers' defenseman Barry Melrose went on to
become a commentator and hockey analyst for
ESPN. |
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• Forward Robbie Ftorek's son (Sam Ftorek)
played for the 2006-07 Cincinnati Cyclones of
the ECHL. |
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• On April 22nd 1979, the Stingers captured
their first and only playoff victory as they
beat the Whalers by a score of 6-3. The victory
turned out to be the last home game played by
the Stingers. Only 5,137 fans showed up. |
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• Paul Stewart's grandfather was a major league
umpire for the National League from 1933 to
1954. Bill Stewart umpired in five World Series
and four All-Star games. In 1938, Bill was
behind the plate in Brooklyn when Reds' pitcher
Johnny Vander Meer twirled his second
consecutive no-hitter.
Bill Stewart was also the bench boss for the
Chicago Black Hawks in 1938 and part of 1939.
His '38 club finished in third place with a
dismal 14-24-9 record. However, his Hawks
managed to win in the post season and captured
the Stanley Cup. Stewart became the first
American-trained coach to capture the Cup. |
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• The Stingers final game was played on April 26
1979 in Springfield Massachusetts against the
Whalers where they lost by a score of 2-1. The
franchise ending goal came off the stick of
former Stinger Blaine Stoughton. His goal in the
second period broke a 1-1 tie and Cincinnati
never answered. |
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• On February 2nd 1978 Stinger Paul Stewart
received a threatening phone call. It was a male
voice that said "I wouldn't leave the game (Feb'
4) the same way I arrived." Stewart notified the
police and the nothing came of the threat. |
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• Rick Dudley, Butch Deadmarsh and Terry Ball
also played for the Cincinnati Swords of the
AHL. |
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• Stingers' front office staffer Jim McVay's
father (John McVay) was the head coach of the
New York football Giants from 1976 to 1978. Jim
worked in sales and promotion. |
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• Robbie Ftorek and Claude Larose both wore the
number 8 simultaneously during the 1977-78
season. The remedy to this confusion was the
official scorekeeper listing them as 8F and 8L. |
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• Stingers' left winger Pierre Guite's son (Ben
Guite) played for the Cincinnati Mighty Ducks
from 2001 - 2003. |
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• Stingers' center Mark Messier went on to play
in the NHL for 25 seasons. When he retired,
following the 2003-04 season, he was the last
former WHA player still active on the ice as a
player. |
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• Center Bryan Campbell also played for the
Cincinnati Wings of the Central Hockey League
during their only season (1963-64). |
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• Stingers' head coach Floyd Smith was also the
bench-boss for the Cincinnati Swords. His
1972-73 Swords club won the Calder Cup. Smith
also sat in for two games as the head coach for
the 1981-82 Cincinnati Tigers. |
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• During the 1977-78 season, Paul Hoganson had a
bout with German measles. Or as the Enquirer
referred to it as the "kiddie disease". The
Coliseum's director of operations Richard Morgan
also was hit with the measles. Morgan frequently
played ping pong with the Stingers in their
dressing room. |
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• The 1976-77 Stingers club racked up 354 goals
which is the second most for any professional
Cincinnati hockey club. The 1981-82 Cincinnati
Tigers has the most with 375. |
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• The Stingers trained in Prague Czechoslovakia
before the 1977-78 season, playing in a number
of exhibition games against Soviet clubs. |
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• On November 10th 2007 the ECHL Cincinnati
Cyclones honored the Cincinnati Stingers in a
game against the Augusta Lynx by wearing
throwback Stinger jerseys. |
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• On April 7th 1979, in what appeared to be the
final home game of the Stingers franchise, the
final few minutes of the game was disrupted when
fans showed the ice with debris, including a
live chicken. Former Stinger coach Jacques
Demers was doused with beer as well. |
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• Rick Dudley was the only player to play for
the Stingers in all four seasons. |
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• Blaine Stoughton is one of only two players to
have a 50-goal season in both the WHA and NHL.
The other player being Bobby Hull. Stoughton
scored 52 goals during the 1976-77 season. With
the NHL Whalers he scored 56 in 1979-80 and 52
in 1981-82. |
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• Stingers' forward Willie Trognitz was banned
from playing in the International Hockey League
for hitting Archie Henderson in the head with
his hockey stick outside of his locker room
prior to a game. Oddly enough, both players
would become teammates on the 1979-80 Fort Worth
Texans of the Central Hockey League. |
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• Stingers' center Jacques Locas's father,
Jacques Sr., played for the AHL's Cincinnati
Mohawks during the 1949-50 season. |
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• Stingers' head coach Jacques Demers was
functionally illiterate. Something he concealed
for 20 years. |
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• Wayne Gretzky's first professional game was
against the Stingers. The game was an exhibition
match and was played in Dayton Ohio's Hara Arena
on September 27th 1978. |
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• Dale Smedso's stepson is NHLer Duston
Byfuglien. Byfuglien played on the championship
2009-10 Blackhawks club. |
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• On April 24th 1979, Jamie Hislop scored the
final WHA Stinger goal. The goal was unassisted
and scored during Game 3 of the WHA
Quarterfinals at Springfield Civic Center. |
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