Greensboro Generals (1959–1977)

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Greensboro Generals
CityGreensboro, North Carolina
LeagueEHL (1959–1973)
SHL (1973–1977)
Operated1959–1977
Home arenaGreensboro Coliseum (1959–1975)
Piedmont Arena (1975–1977)
ColorsGreen, gold, white, orange
       
AffiliatesNHL (1967–1977)
WHA (1972–1975)
Franchise history
1951–1959Troy Bruins
1959–1977Greensboro Generals
Championships
Playoff championships1963 EHL

The Greensboro Generals were a minor league ice hockey team based in Greensboro, North Carolina. Greensboro was part of the Eastern Hockey League from 1959 to 1973, and then played in the Southern Hockey League from 1973 to 1977. The team was founded when the Troy Bruins of the International Hockey League were relocated by owner Ken Wilson and admitted to the EHL, to play in the recently built Greensboro Coliseum.[1][2]

History[edit]

The team was owned by a group of local investors led by Carson Bain, who brought in Roland McLenahan as the team's first coach.[2][3] The Eastern Hockey League was classified as amateur, although Generals players were recruited and paid.[2] The Generals debut game at the coliseum was a 4–1 victory versus Washington, played on November 11, 1959, in front of a crowd of 3,014.[3] Goaltender Norm Defelice won the George Davis Trophy for the lowest goals against average in the 1959–60 season.[4]

Ronnie Spong took charge of the Generals as player-coach in 1960, and remained in that role until 1971, leading the Generals to a winning record in all but one of those seasons.[2] The Generals reached the championship finals three years in a row from 1962 to 1964, and won the league title in 1963. Centerman Don Davidson won the John Carlin Trophy in the 1963–64 season as the league's scoring champion.[4] The Generals had solid goaltending in the late 1960s with Peter McDuffe winning the EHL Rookie of the Year in 1967–68, and Ernie Miller winning the George Davis Trophy in 1969–70 for the lowest GAA in the EHL.[4] Greensboro returned to the league finals in 1970, but finished as runners-up.

In the spring of 1971, Bain and his partners sold the Generals to Tedd Munchak, owner of the Carolina Cougars of the American Basketball Association.[3] Don Carter became player-coach in 1972, then was replaced by Bob Smith as goaltender and coach in 1973.[2] At the end of the season, the Generals along with three other teams, announced that they would leave the EHL to form the Southern Hockey League.

Ted Lanyon became head coach for the 1973–74 season, but struggled in the new league dropping to third place.[5] The Generals moved to the smaller Piedmont Arena in 1975 due to financial difficulty,[3] and Ronnie Spong returned as head coach.[5] The Generals finished last place in each of the final three seasons of play. On January 4, 1977, the Generals folded mid-season due to continued financial problems. Three other SHL clubs folded the same week, and the league folded on January 31.[3]

Major league affiliations[edit]

The Generals were primarily affiliated with the World Hockey Association from 1972 to 1975, but also had secondary National Hockey League affiliations from 1967 to 1977.[6][7]

Years Affiliations
1967–71 Chicago Blackhawks
1971–72 Toronto Maple Leafs
1972–74 Los Angeles Sharks
1974–75 Michigan Stags, Baltimore Blades, New York Islanders
1975–76 Detroit Red Wings, Washington Capitals
1976–77 Atlanta Flames, Cleveland Barons, Colorado Rockies

Notable players[edit]

Notable Greensboro Generals players that also played in the National Hockey League or World Hockey Association:[8][9][10]

Results[edit]

Season-by-season results in the EHL and SHL.[2][5]

Season Lge GP W L T Pts Pct GF GA PIM Standing Playoffs
1959–60 EHL 64 26 33 5 57 0.445 236 253 841 3rd, southern Lost in round 1
1960–61 EHL 64 40 22 2 82 0.641 339 257 753 1st, southern Lost in round 1
1961–62 EHL 68 36 30 2 74 0.544 284 258 505 1st, southern Lost in finals
1962–63 EHL 68 40 26 2 82 0.603 305 263 588 1st, southern Won championship
1963–64 EHL 72 41 29 2 84 0.583 294 257 877 1st, southern Lost in finals
1964–65 EHL 72 37 33 2 76 0.528 333 301 619 2nd, southern Lost in round 1
1965–66 EHL 72 37 31 4 78 0.542 291 263 785 3rd, southern Lost in round 1
1966–67 EHL 72 35 37 0 70 0.486 265 279 997 3rd, southern Lost in round 1
1967–68 EHL 72 46 20 6 98 0.681 364 248 906 1st, southern Lost in round 2
1968–69 EHL 72 41 22 9 91 0.632 350 279 681 1st, southern Lost in round 2
1969–70 EHL 74 45 22 7 97 0.655 333 241 1123 1st, southern Lost in finals
1970–71 EHL 73 44 21 8 96 0.658 340 234 1132 2nd, southern Lost in round 2
1971–72 EHL 73 34 27 12 80 0.548 284 252 1229 2nd, southern Lost in round 2
1972–73 EHL 76 40 28 8 88 0.579 391 315 1382 2nd, southern Lost in round 1
1973–74 SHL 71 33 37 1 67 0.472 285 310 1168 3rd, SHL Lost in round 1
1974–75 SHL 72 23 47 2 48 0.333 262 384 1280 5th, SHL Out of playoffs
1975–76 SHL 72 18 42 12 48 0.333 221 317 1212 6th, SHL Out of playoffs
1976–77 SHL 40 15 24 1 31 0.388 140 173 798 6th, SHL folded
TOTALS EHL 992 542 381 69 1153 0.581 4409 3700 12418 7 division titles 1 championship
TOTALS SHL 255 89 150 16 194 0.380 908 1184 4458    

References[edit]

  1. ^ Telaar, Tom (2014). "EHL Franchise History". theehl.com. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d e f "Greensboro Generals hockey team [EHL] statistics and history at hockeydb.com". hockeydb.com. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  3. ^ a b c d e Crossley, Drew (August 30, 2014). "Southern Hockey League 1973 Archives". Fun While It Lasted. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  4. ^ a b c Telaar, Tom (2014). "EHL All Star Teams and Awards". theehl.com. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  5. ^ a b c "Greensboro Generals hockey team [SHL] statistics and history". hockeydb.com. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  6. ^ "Greensboro Generals [SHL] Parent Team affiliate history". hockeydb.com. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  7. ^ "Greensboro Generals [EHL] Parent Team affiliate history". hockeydb.com. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  8. ^ "NHL Player Search -- Players by Team -- Greensboro Generals". Legends of Hockey. Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  9. ^ "Greensboro Generals [EHL] all-time player list". hockeydb.com. Retrieved January 31, 2018.
  10. ^ "Greensboro Generals [SHL] all-time player list". hockeydb.com. Retrieved January 31, 2018.

External links[edit]

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