OT: - Hartford Whalers memories... | The Boneyard

OT: Hartford Whalers memories...

Mazhude

Mazhude

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Not often we see the Whalers mentioned anymore. So, congratulations to Panthers Coach Paul Maurice. Last year’s Championship came in Maurice’s 26th season as an NHL head coach, the most years behind the bench for a first-time champion. Now the much-traveled 58-year-old — who began coaching the mid-1990s Hartford Whalers at age 28 before moving on to stints with the Carolina Hurricanes (twice), Toronto Maple Leafs and Winnipeg Jets — is the 20th coach in league history with multiple championships.
 
$19 tickets while at UConn to see the Whalers win enough to make the playoffs in the Adams division (didn't like all but the last place team make the playoffs?) only to lose early in the playoffs and increase ticket prices.

Other memories were Carvel making 3-4 different cakes based on the whale (pucky, santa, etc, etc).
 
Deepster said:
Slightly off topic. I'm not one of these guys who thinks the Whalers will ever be back....but how the heck is a garbage sports city like Atlanta getting a 3rd crack at an NHL franchise?
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It's the only way Quebec city will get a team.


All kidding aside, is this real? I cannot see anyone trying Atlanta for the NHL again.
 
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FfldCntyFan said:
It's the only way Quebec city will get a team.


All kidding aside, is this real? I cannot see anyone trying Atlanta for the NHL again.
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Hawks, Falcons, Braves - they got NBA, NFL, MLB - NHL is likely never to go to such a hot city as Hotlanta.
 
Memories of the Whalers, it was the first pro sports team I ever saw in person. Went to a lot of games with my dad. Loved Gordie, Mark and Marty playing together. Francis, Dineen, tremendous players. Saw Gretzky play against them as a rookie. Away from the ice, lived near Rosaire Paiement and Marty Howe lived about 5 houses away.

My favorite memory remains of going to Marty's house on Halloween, with my friend Danny in a Gordie Howe jersey, pants, helmet etc. Gordie opened the door when we knocked and asked Dan who he was supposed to be, with the reply being "you!" Pretty exciting stuff.
 
Lafayette said:
Hawks, Falcons, Braves - they got NBA, NFL, MLB - NHL is likely never to go to such a hot city as Hotlanta.
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Dallas and Miami may disagree (Tampa doesn't have NBA).

Putting a franchise (as Deep pointed out; for the third time) in Atlanta makes zero sense.

For starters, as the league is already at 32 teams, growing the number of franchises would not be a positive.

Add to that the fact that there are already a handful of teams in the western conference who have been clamoring to get moved to the eastern conference (the main reason the NHL wouldn't let the Coyotes look anywhere east if the Rockies), it is very unlikely that any franchise move would bring a team to Atlanta. I imagine the only move the NHL would consider would be an eastern team relocating west of the Mississippi.
 
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FfldCntyFan said:
It's the only way Quebec city will get a team.


All kidding aside, is this real? I cannot see anyone trying Atlanta for the NHL again.
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They’re making the mistake of thinking Yankee transplants will go to games instead of enjoying the weather
 
I was there the night Mark Howe got skewed by the goalies net. In those days a sharp piece of medal halfed the net. Not very pretty, he could have been paralysed or killed. It led to a redesign and the nets you see today.
 
Palatine said:
I was there the night Mark Howe got skewed by the goalies net. In those days a sharp piece of medal halfed the net. Not very pretty, he could have been paralysed or killed. It led to a redesign and the nets you see today.
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That was a brutal injury with blood all over the ice. Mark was very lucky.

I had season tickets for much of their time in Hartford and they were pretty cheap. We had good seats behind one of the goals on the temporary seating. The funniest thing we witnessed was a Flyer's fan losing his mind. He was always at the games, so we didn't realize he was a Flyer's fan until Philly came to town. He got so upset at another fan that he tried to strangle the guy until he realized he went too far and left the game. I remember a few people taking headers down the stairs before the roof fell when there were no railings and steeper stairs.

And Paul Maurice was the second youngest head coach at the time when he replaced Paul Holmgren. Congratulations to Paul.

Another favorite memory was Danny Bolduc who rented a house behind ours in Hartford. Good dude.
 
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HCCForever said:
That was a brutal injury with blood all over the ice. Mark was very lucky.

I had season tickets for much of their time in Hartford and they were pretty cheap. We had good seats behind one of the goals on the temporary seating. The funniest thing we witnessed was a Flyer's fan losing his mind. He was always at the games, so we didn't realize he was a Flyer's fan until Philly came to town. He got so upset at another fan that he tried to strangle the guy until he realized he went too far and left the game. I remember a few people taking headers down the stairs before the roof fell when there were no railings and steeper stairs.

And Paul Maurice was the second youngest head coach at the time when he replaced Paul Holmgren. Congratulations to Paul.

Another favorite memory was Danny Bolduc who rented a house behind ours in Hartford. Good dude.
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Used to go regularly to Whalers games, my dad's company had seats in the lower level for many many years, and later on sky box seats, which they then changed to coliseum club seats right before the Whalers left (hated those high-up seats, completely removed from the action and crowd). The most epic fan fights I’ve ever witnessed were at Whaler games. The only fan fight that comes close is a fight I saw at MSG at the Big East Tournament in the 80s, two drunk guys in dress shirts and ties just wailing on each other a few rows in front of us.
 
Deepster said:
Slightly off topic. I'm not one of these guys who thinks the Whalers will ever be back....but how the heck is a garbage sports city like Atlanta getting a 3rd crack at an NHL franchise?
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Have you driven through Atlanta recently constant construction for businesses that are expanding and businesses moving to the Atlanta area. The Whalers came to Hartford because of the Insurance companies and manufacturing that's gone now.
 
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Atlanta is growing ecomically, low taxes and energy compared to northeastern cities.
 
Palatine said:
Atlanta is growing ecomically, low taxes and energy compared to northeastern cities.
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It’s the 7th largest sports media market in the country. Whether it will support hockey, I don’t know. But I certainly understand why it would get a team.
 
I loved the Whalers, went to about 10 games a year including the last game in which I shed more than a few tears. My favorite game was game 6 vs Montreal in the 1986 conference semi's. Seemed like the entire crowd stood the entire game and went totally ballistic when Kevin Dineen scored in OT. Lost game 7 in Montreal despite out playing The Canadiens.
But my favorite memory is meeting the players. My son played for The Connecticut Chasers (hockey for those with special needs) in the 1990's and several Whalers were at every practice. Just the greatest guys you could imagine, hockey players are a different breed. At that time Stu Grimson may have been the toughest guy in the league but at these practices he was wonderful with the athletes. Just the kindest person. He became my favorite player. Broke my heart when they moved.
 
I also remember that the Whalers won one NHL playoff series in their entire tenure in Hartford. One! In their final five years in Hartford they missed the missed the playoffs every year.
 
I was in middle school when I started going to New England Whalers games in 1975.... A family friend worked for CBT and would get us nice lower bowl tix. I loved watching the warmups... Larry Pleau, Tom Webster, Al Smith, the Abrahamson brothers and especially our enforcer Nick Fotiu. He'd stick around after warm ups and throw pucks over the glass to the outstretched arms of the kids. He won the "favorite Whaler" contest mutltiple times.
Later on, the "old" guys would come on board, Keon, McKenzie and Gordie Howe.
Years later, I remember sneaking out of wedding reception at the Newington CC with my Heineken to sit in my car and listen to us sweep Quebec from the playoffs.
 
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Palatine said:
I also remember that the Whalers won one NHL playoff series in their entire tenure in Hartford. One! In their final five years in Hartford they missed the missed the playoffs every year.
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Glass is half empty kind of guy. I know they were not the most successful franchise but it was sure fun to have a professional franchise in Hartford. I worked for a beer distributer and believe me things were hopping in downtown Hartford when the Whalers had a game. They left and the downtown business went into the gutter. In those days the Whale drew 13,000 -14,000 a game and UConn was selling out every game from 1990 - 1996. Hartford was hot.
 
Palatine said:
I was there the night Mark Howe got skewed by the goalies net. In those days a sharp piece of medal halfed the net. Not very pretty, he could have been paralysed or killed. It led to a redesign and the nets you see today.
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I was at that game too
 
ucp990411 said:
Glass is half empty kind of guy. I know they were not the most successful franchise but it was sure fun to have a professional franchise in Hartford. I worked for a beer distributer and believe me things were hopping in downtown Hartford when the Whalers had a game. They left and the downtown business went into the gutter. In those days the Whale drew 13,000 -14,000 a game and UConn was selling out every game from 1990 - 1996. Hartford was hot.
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A good friend’s father has season tickets and we often went to games. Downtown was hopping. There is more to the equation than the good ole Smith College professor who is constantly quoted. Now I walk around during lunch and it is a ghost town despite all the apartments being built
 
  • Carving a plaque in woodshop of the whale, in middle school
  • Watching the Whalers practice at the Glastonbury Arena
  • Admiring the Howe's house as it was being built
  • Going to some games, although not a hockey fanatic, and still am not - lived across the street from the Caps' practice facility in Arlington VA when they won ... and now, the Panthers play ~20 miles away, and are partying up & down these FTL streets all this week, like last year - what a sight!
 
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Ha Who said:
There is more to the equation than the good ole Smith College professor who is constantly quoted. Now I walk around during lunch and it is a ghost town despite all the apartments being built
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Yeah, the only people who ever listened to that quack were from CT.
 
HooperScooper said:
I always wondered what that word meant in that song. I just looked it up and it's a fake word. Now I know.
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Love is not a made up word. It's a word that means an emotion of bonding and supernatural healing. Its in all of us. Some just never know it. Love. Its really good to love.
 
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