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Minnesota Fighting Saints

Frank Fleming
Author: 
Frank Fleming
7 mins
November 1st, 2023
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Minnesota Fighting Saints
  • First Game Played October 13, 1972

  • Last Game Played February 25, 1976

  • Folded in 1976

Historical Moments

1972/73:Minnesota long has been a hotbed for hockey, as children grew up playing pond hockey on any one of the states 10,000 lakes. In Minneapolis, the NHL had a team that was not very good in the North Stars, so the World Hockey Association put a team in St. Paul called the Minnesota Fighting Saints. If the new league was to have a break through Minnesota was perhaps their best chance. To help draw fans the team built its roster on American Born players, particularly those from the Land of 1,000 Lakes. The name Saints was from an old Central Hockey League team known as the St. Paul Saints, while Fighting was added to enforce what the team had hope would be their spirit. General Manager Glen Sonmor was also the team’s coach as they faced the Winnipeg Jets in their first game on October 13th. The Saints would lose that game 4-3, before beating the Chicago Cougars two nights later 3-2 for their first win. Late in the season, the Saints moved into a new arena as the St. Paul Civic Center opened, while GM Sonmor turned over the coaching reigns to Harry Neale. Under Neal the Saints played well down the stretch, finishing in a fourth place tie with the Alberta Oilers with a record of 38-37-3. The Saints would go on to beat the Oilers 4-2 to earn the last playoff spot in the Western Division. The Saints would go on to lose to the Winnipeg Jets in five games in the first round of the WHA playoffs.

1973/74:Heading into their second season, the Fighting Saints added some punch as they acquired Fran Huck from the Winnipeg Jets, while they signed Mike Walton away from the NHL’s Boston Bruins. The Saints also addressed their goaltending problems by signing Rookie John Garrett, who several NHL teams were interested in. Walton would the WHA in scoring with 117 points, along with 57 goals as Wayne Connelly and George Morrison each reached the 40 goal plateau. The Saints would go on to finish the season in second place with a solid record of 44-32-2. In the playoffs the Saints would waste little time in getting past the Edmonton Oilers, as they won their first round series in five games to set up a showdown with the Houston Aeros in the WHA Semifinals. Looking for extra toughness the Saints signed notorious enforcer Bill “Goldie” Goldthorpe. Goldthorpe was widely regarded as one of the most infamous hockey goons in minor league hockey, a man once dubbed him the “wildest, meanest, most unpredictable player in hockey.” Goldthorpe racked up an amazing 1,132 penalty minutes in just 194 professional games, and was the inspiration for Ogie Ogilthorpe from the 1977 film “Slap Shot.” Bill Goldthrope would rack up 25 penalty minutes over three games against the Aeros, but it would not help the Saints win the series, as the Aeros won the Western Division Championship in six games on the way to winning the AVCO Cup.

1974/75:The Fighting Saints would have another solid season, as they finished with a record of 42-33-3. In the playoffs the Fighting Saints would defeat the New England Whalers in six games to reach the WHA Finals for the second straight season. Against the Quebec Nordiques the Saints would put up a strong fight as the series was even after four games. However, a 6-3 loss on the road would be their undoing as the Nordiques would take the series in six games.

1975/76:On the outside things looked great for the Minnesota Fighting Saints as they had made the playoff s and had a winning record in all three seasons, making the semifinals two straight seasons. However, in a sign of the WHA’s coming demise they could barely pay their bills, as they could not complete against the North Stars, who had a strong television contract. Hoping to break through the Saints attempted to sign Bobby Orr, but a deal could not be reached as he remained in the NHL. they signed Dave Keon off the NHL’s Toronto Maple Leafs. Keon had a solid season while providing leadership for the Saints, scoring 26 goals with 38 assists in 57 games, while Mike Walton, Wayne Connelly and George Morrison all scored over 30 goals. Also on the Saints roster were the Carlson brothers Jack, Steve and Jeff who were the inspiration for the Hanson Brothers in “Slap Shot.” Steve and Jeff Carlson portrayed the two of the Hanson Brothers in the cult classic, while David Hanson who was the third Hanson brother in the movie would also play for the new Fighting Saints in the 1976/77 season. The Saints would again be one the WHA’s strongest teams, posting a record 25-16-5 through the end of January as they battled the Houston Aeros for the division lead. However, the team’s finiancial woes would become too heavy burden for Owner Wayne Belisle, and before February was over the Saints were forced to fold, playing their last game on February 25th, with a 2-1 loss in overtime to the San Diego Mariners. The Saints would sit in second place a 30-25-4, with 19 games left in the season. John Garrett was among the top goalies and Mike Walton and Wayne Connelly were both on their way to 30 goal seasons again, but it was all gone they would become free agents. The WHA would return with a new team also called the Fighting Saints the following season, but that team too would fold in the middle of the season, as the WHA began its tailspin into oblivion.

1976/77:After the stunning collapse of the Minnesota Fighting Saints, the WHA returned to St. Paul, as the Cleveland Crusaders forced out by the arrival of the NHL’s Cleveland Barons too up the Fighting Saints moniker, while changing the colors from blue and gold to red and gold. The new Saints coached by Glen Sonmor would lose game 7-2 on October 7th against the Cincinnati Stingers. After losing their first two on the road, the Saints would win their first game at home against the Indianapolis Racers 4-1. Early on the Fighting Saints struggled, as they held a record of 9-11-4 through the first two months. However, they began to pick up their play in December and inched towards .500. The momentum continued into January, as they won three of five and climbed above .500 with a 9-5 win over the Racers on January 14th. That would be the final game played for the Fighting Saints who had a record of 19-18-5, as the same financial woes that forced the first Saints team to fold a year earlier doomed the new incarnation as the WHA continued to lose teams and lose money. grow as much as expected, as they lost their first game at their new arena 4-2 to the Edmonton Oilers on November 2nd. Despite three 30 goal scores in Rich Leduc, Al McDonough and Ron Ward the Crusaders posted a disappointing record of 35-40-3, as Jack Vivian took over as coach in the middle of the season. Despite the struggles, the Crusaders still managed to earn a playoff spot, losing to the eventual AVCO Cup Champion Houston Aeros in five games.

Saints Arenas

Sensational Saints

Keith Christiansen

1972-1974

Bill Klatt

1972-1974

Bill Goldthorpe

1973/74

Terry Ball

1972-1975

Jim Johnson

1972-1975

Jack McCartan

1972-1975

Mike McMahon

1972-1975

George Morrison

1972-1975

Gord Gallant

1973-1975

Murray Heatley

1973-1975

Mike Antonovich

1972-1976

John Arbour

1972-1975, 1975/76

Wayne Connelly

1972-1976

Mike Curran

1972-1976

Ted Hampson

1972-1976

John Garrett

1973-1976

Rick Smith

1973-1976

Mike Walton

1973-1976

Jack Carlson

1974-1976

Fran Huck

1974-1976

Henry Boucha

1975/76

Jeff Carlson

1975/76

Steve Carlson

1975/76

Paul Holmgren

1975/76

Dave Keon

1975/76

John McKenzie

1975/76

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Author

Frank Fleming
Frank Fleming founded the Sports Ecyclopedia in 2001 & is a passionate Devils fan.