“Holy TV! Barons end losing streak” – Mar. 1, 1977 – download here

Dennis Maruk certainly added a new dimension to the California Golden Seals when he joined the club. The franchise had had very few explosive players in its history, but when Maruk arrived on the scene, the club finally had someone capable of posting 40, even 50 goals in a season. When the team moved to Cleveland, the team’s offense fell squarely onto his shoulders. On many a night, Maruk was the spark plug who was responsible for a Barons victory, and on the night of February 28, 1977, the St. Louis Blues, one of Maruk’s favourite targets, found out first-hand just how talented the little guy was. Just reading Emile Francis’s quotes in the following day’s Elyria Chronicle-Telegram, you can practically see him drooling over the thought of Maruk wearing a St. Louis uniform.

 

“After They Melted the Ice” (by Barry Janoff) – Aug. 21, 1976 – download here

“They’ve melted the ice at the Coliseum, but they can’t melt the alliance we formed with the Seals. That will be here forever.” Those were the words of one passionate fan, and there were many more like him or her. This nice piece from the San Rafael Independent Journal was published less than two months before the Cleveland Barons began the 1976-77 regular season, and it is a lament from the long-suffering but dedicated hockey fans of the Bay Area.

“How the new Barons logo was designed” – download here

This is a short article from an old website called The Cleveland Barons Retrospective. Unfortunately, I don’t know who wrote the article. The title pretty much speaks for itself: it’s all about how the NHL Barons’ logo was designed and what is the significance of each element inside it.

“Traditional skills stressed by Barons” (by Bob Schlesinger) – download here

In 1976, goon hockey was starting to wane in the NHL thanks in part to the Montreal Canadiens, who swept the Philadelphia Flyers in the Stanley Cup Final. Just a few years later, the NHL would be free-flowing and riddled with offensive talent including Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Mike Bossy, and Steve Yzerman. The Cleveland Barons, in their two NHL seasons, never put much emphasis on toughness, but rather looked for speedsters, playmakers, and scorers, not that it helped much as the club finished near the bottom of the standings both seasons, but at least they deserved an E for effort. This 1976 Cleveland Press article (unfortunately, I don’t have the exact date it was published) is about how the Barons were trying to model themselves after the Canadiens rather than the Flyers to make an impact in the NHL.

“Cleveland’s Top Secret Scheduled For Unveiling” (by Steve Klein) – Sep 12, 1976 – download here

The arrival of NHL hockey in Cleveland should have been a big deal. The transplanted Seals were a team with potential, and Cleveland had been craving NHL hockey for decades, but for some reason the city never really took to the team. Of course, the Seals’ arrival in Cleveland was very last-minute, and the team scrambled to promote itself to its new locale, so by the time training camp rolled around, the rechristened Barons were still an unknown quantity. This article from the Akron Beacon Journal is all about the days leading up to the Barons’ first training camp, and it also includes some quotes from coach Jack Evans and an overview of the team’s top players.

“Big league hockey here as Barons tie in opener” (by Jerry Rombach) – Oct. 7, 1976 – download here

Here is a little something for fans of the Cleveland Barons era of the Seals’ franchise history… opening night in Cleveland.  Only 8,899 fans showed up to watch the Barons tie the Kings 2-2 that October night, which would definitely prove to be a sign of problems soon to arise. Interesting side note: the Stanley Cup made an appearance at the game’s opening ceremonies, and that fleeting moment would be the closest any member of the Seals or Barons would ever come to touching it.

“Somebody’s Lyin’ Here” (by Wells Twombly) – Nov. 16, 1976 – download here

Who doesn’t love a good conspiracy theory? OK, some people like them WAY more than others, so if you fall into the latter category of people, you should probably read up on how Munson Campbell went from the comfy confines of the California Golden Seals to the topsy-turvy world of the Colorado Rockies. Well, maybe not as topsy-turvy as the world the Seals were about to encounter in their new Cleveland home, but you get the idea. This editorial comes from the San Francisco Examiner, and was published just a few months after the Seals left for supposedly greener pastures in Ohio.

“Shutt, Lafleur Play it Again” (by Red Fisher) – Nov. 25, 1976 – download here

This article, from the Montreal Gazette‘s Red Fisher, perfectly illustrates how sweet it was being a Hab in the late 1970s. Most nights were a lot like this one, in which the Habs skated away with a convincing 8-1 win, and on most nights, Shutt and Lafleur were lighting it up.

“Barons’ New Goalie Blanks Buffalo, 3-0” – Jan. 24, 1977 –  download here

Gary “Scoop” Edwards had enjoyed a measure of success while backing up Hall-of-Famer Rogie Vachon in L.A., so when the Cleveland Barons acquired him for Gary Simmons they knew they were getting themselves a solid goaltender who could be depended on in the event Gilles Meloche went down with an injury. He ended up seeing much more ice time in Cleveland, and he made quite a first impression as well. His first game as a Baron was a 3-0 shutout over the mighty Buffalo Sabres. His second game was not so successful (7 goals in 40 minutes), but his third game was another shutout, a rare 0-0 game versus Pittsburgh.

“Simmons Tattoos Legend… Or Does He?” (by Rich Roberts) – Feb. 20, 1977 – download here

Gary Simmons is easily the most fascinating person to ever play for the California Golden Seals, which is saying A LOT considering the cast of zany characters that came and went through Oakland. Always great for a quote or a last-minute radio interview, Simmons always made life interesting for teammates and media members alike. All good things must come to an end, however, and that happened in January 1977 when the Cleveland Barons surprisingly traded Simmons to Los Angeles. The surprising part was that Gilles Meloche is the one who had asked to be traded. About a month after the trade, Rich Roberts of the Long Beach Independent Press-Telegram interviewed Simmons and wrote a great piece about the 2019 Seals Hall of Fame nominee.

“End of the Ride for Barons” (by Mike Harris) – Feb. 23, 1977 – download here

What is that, you say? The Barons skating to their ultimate demise in February 1977? You don’t remember the team just folding in mid-season? Well, you would be correct for being skeptical. The Barons did indeed survive the season and played one more year in Cleveland, but it just goes to show how very, very close the franchise was to closing up shop. You should read the caption under the photo of trainer Gerry Dean loading the Barons’ equipment. Sometimes, the media is spot on, and sometimes it jumps the gun…

“Barons Stay Alive For Season / Sabres Buffalo Cleveland, 5-3” – Feb. 24, 1977 – download here

Turns out, the rumours of impending doom were a bit off the mark as the Barons not only found a way to survive the 1976-77 season, but also played the next season as well. As a two-for, you can read about the 11th-hour decision that (temporarily) saved hockey in Cleveland, and also about the first game played afterwards. As a side note, I always found it funny how the team was miraculously saved, which should have been reason to celebrate: jobs saved, future secured; yet there couldn’t have been a more downtrodden group of players voicing their displeasure in the papers.

“Barons’ beards counter hockey’s ‘clean cut’ image” (by Jerry Rombach) – Mar. 10, 1977 – download here

The 1976-77 season was one of the most trying in the history of the Seals/Barons.  The club barely survived a huge financial crisis in January and February, players and management were not getting along, and by March 1977, the Barons were well out of a playoff spot for the umpteenth time in a row (actually, the seventh time). This fun article from the Elyria Chronicle-Telegram talks about a short-lived fad on the Barons: growing beards.

“Did Barons Make a Grand Finale?” (by Jerry Rombach) – Mar. 31, 1977 – download here

The 1976-77 did not go exactly how owner Mel Swig had hoped when he chose Cleveland as a landing spot for his California Golden Seals. Fans stayed away from Richfield Coliseum in droves due to its distance from where any actual human beings lived. Money dried up so fast the NHL Players Association had to step in with a financial boost early in 1977. It seemed unlikely the Barons were even going to be able to ice a team in October 1977, so anyone who had any interest in gambling would have bet some series money on Cleveland’s NHL romp coming to a swift end. Yet, the Barons actually managed to reassemble in time for another season, which would ultimately prove to be just as fruitless as the first. As the fearsome Philadelphia Flyers stormed into Cleveland, it seemed a rather cruel way for the Barons to leave their fans, but the former Seals bucked up and played one of their most spirited games of the season.