BRITISH COLUMBIA JUNIOR HOCKEY LEAGUE -1970'S
League Years 1970's
The 1970's, the British Columbia Junior Hockey League's second decade of existence, began on a bad note, with the loss of two teams, the Victoria Cougars and New Westminster Royals but finished with league membership at an all-time high of thirteen clubs. In between, thirteen clubs received expansion franchises, six relocated and another seven ceased operations as the league struggled in some communities but thrived in others.
Also, following the designation of Major Junior and Junior "A" Hockey, the Junior "A" clubs were no longer eligible to compete for the Memorial Cup. Hence, a new trophy, The Manitoba Centennial Trophy was presented to the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) by the Manitoba Amateur Hockey Association to commemorate their centennial year of 1970. The Centennial Cup, as it was known was presented to Canada's Junior "A" National Champion for the 1971 Championship.
With the creation of Major Junior and Junior "A" Divisions of competition, the Victoria Cougars jumped ship from the BCJHL to join the Western Hockey League as a Major Junior franchise. Meantime, the New Westminster Royals were forced out of their home by the Estevan Bruins of the WCHL, leaving the BCJHL with just six teams for the 1971/1972 season causing an elimination of Divisions with-in the league.
However, the league rebounded for the 1972-73 season, adding the Bellingham Blazers and Nanaimo Clippers, re-establishing the Divisional system and never operating with fewer than eight teams ever again. It was also, the end of the Vancouver Villas as they folded after the '73 playoffs.
The Langley Lords were the cinderella team of the 1973-74 season, thier inaugural year. Not only did they end up tied for second, along with the Penticton Broncos with 78 points, they also had a long playoff run. The Lords, having previously defeated the Nanaimo Clippers and Bellingham Blazers, were finally stopped by the Kelowna Buckaroos who then claimed the Nat Bailey Cup.
In 1975 the first BCJHL player was selected by a team in the NHL Entry Draft. In 1974-75, Merritt Centennials forward Greg Agar put up 90 points in 52 regular-season games which undoubtedly caught the eye of scouts at the highest level. At the 1975 NHL draft in Montreal, Que., Agar was taken in the 10th round by the California Golden Seals to become the first player selected from the BCJHL.
The Vernon, B.C. native would never end up playing any NHL games, but he was the first in what became a long line of players from the league hearing their names called at the draft. Prior to that, it was common for young players to get their start in the BCJHL, then move on to the Western Canadian Hockey League (now known as the WHL) where they would eventually get drafted, but Agar was the first to be taken straight out of the BCJHL, which is common practice now days.
Agar, who is now 66-years-old, played one more year in Merritt, before embarking on a minor-league career.
Other notable players who came through the league in the decade went on to have productive and successful careers in the NHL.
Glenn Anderson, who won six Stanley Cups in his career and totaled 1,099 points, got his start with the Bellingham Blazers in 1977-78. He is one of only three former BCHL players to top 1,000 points in the NHL.
Other players like John Ogrodnick (Maple Ridge Bruins), Mel Bridgman (Nanaimo Clippers), Stan Smyl (Bellingham), Barry Pederson (Nanaimo) and Ryan Walter (Langley Lords) all came through the BCJHL in the 1970s and went on to collect over 600 NHL points.
Vernon Essos forward Ed Johnstone was another notble player. He played for Vernon for two years from 1970 to 1972 and eventually embarked on a 12-year NHL career with the New York Rangers and Detroit Red Wings.
He echoed the sentiments of many who played at the time. Back then, junior hockey was a much different game than it is now.
"There wasn't nearly as much scoring as there is today, but it was a good league," said Johnstone. "I think it was a little tougher. You had to take the body. I think there was way less stick work than there is today. If you did wield your stick around, you had to stand up for yourself. You learned how to play the game and you learned how to take a check and give a check. The number-one thing was that you learned how to protect yourself. You were a fair player. You just played the game hard."
The Nanaimo Clippers won three straight BCJHL crowns in 1976, 1977 and 1978, but only challenged once for the Centennial Cup, in 1977, when they were swept in a best-of-five Provincial Championship Series by the Richmond Sockeyes of the upstart P.A.C. (Pacific) "A" Hockey League.
A year earlier, 1976, the BCJHL chose not to enter the National Playdowns, conceding the Provincial Championship, the Mowat Cup, to the P.A.C. "A" Champions, the Nor Wes Caps. The Caps then chose not to compete in the BC vs AB regional series and the second place Richmond Soceyes of the PAC"A"HL were chosen by the BCAHA to enter the National Playdowns.
The wildest possible finish to the BCJHL season occurred during the 1977/1978 season, a year in which there were two Champions but no Championship Series. Opting to return to the Centennial Cup Playoffs, the BCJHL sent the Regular Season Champion Merritt Centennials into Inter-Provincial play. Merritt swept Richmond to win the Provincial Title, and then defeated the Calgary Cowboys, before falling to the eventual Centennial Cup Champion Prince Albert Raiders in the Abbott Cup (Western Canada) Final. Meanwhile, the rest of the BCJHL carried on its post-season without Merritt.
Coastal Division Champion Nanaimo Clippers met the Interior Champions Penticton Vees in the BCJHL, Final. However, the series ended after only three games when the Vees refused to continue, citing Nanaimo's rough play. The Clippers were awarded their third straight Championship, but according to former Nanaimo coach Larry McNabb, his team could have gained more. "It was a disaster," recalled McNabb. "We split two games in Penticton, and then we had a brawl in game three. Penticton's coach pulled his team off the ice, but they started it. We were declared the winner, but the problem was, I was getting 2,000 fans a game. We won a Championship, but lost money. We got robbed!"
Playoff revenue was how many teams balanced the budget in the 1970's. Budgets were in the neighborhood of $70,000.00 a year, with coaches pulling in a few hundred dollars a month.
The BCJHL's second decade ended with the demise of the PAC. "A" League as former members Coquitlam Comets, Nor Wes Caps, Richmond Sockeyes and Vancouver Blue Hawks joined the senior circuit over a two-year span.
With the granting of an expansion franchise to the Cowichan Valley Capitals, the league's presence on Vancouver Island had doubled. While stability was lacking and franchise shuffling became an annual event, now at 13 teams, the BCJHL offered the province's young players two choices, a route to Major Junior or College Hockey.
Source Material: 60th Anniversary Series PDF
1970's Highlights
1970's Season by Season Overview
Below you will find a brief overview of the each season in the 1970's.
» 1970-71 » 1971-72 » 1972-73 » 1973-74 » 1974-75 » 1975-76 » 1976-77 » 1977-78 » 1978-79 » 1979-80
- 1970-71
- Chilliwack Bruins added
- 60 game schedule - Coastal & Interior Divisions
- Playoffs: Best-of-seven - 1 vs
4, 2 vs 3 Divisional,
Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, Finals - Champion - Kamloops Rockets
- 1971-72
- Victoria Cougars leave
New Westminster Royals leave - 60 game schedule
- Playoffs: Best-of-seven - 1 vs 4, 2 vs 3 - Semi-Finals, Finals
- Champion - Vernon Essos
- 1972-73
- Bellingham Blazers added
Nanaimo Clippers added
Vancouver Centennials » Vancouver Villas - 62 game schedule - Coastal & Interior Divisions
- Playoffs: Best-of-seven - 1 vs
4, 2 vs 3 Divisional
Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, Finals - Champion - Penticton Broncos
- Vancouver Villas last season
- 1973-74
- Langley Lords added
Kamloops Rockets » White Rock Centennials » Merritt Centennials
Vernon Essos » Vernon Vikings
Vancouver Villas leave - 64 game schedule - Coastal & Interior Divisions
- Playoffs: Best-of-seven - 1 vs
4, 2 vs 3 Divisional
Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, Finals - Champion - Kelowna Buckaroos
- 1974-75
- 66 game schedule Coastal & Interior Divisions
- Playoffs: Best-of-seven - 1 vs
4, 2 vs 3 Divisional
Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, Finals - Champion - Bellingham Blazers
- 1975-76
- Penticton Broncos »
Penticton Vees
Bellingham Blazers » Maple Ridge Blazers - 66 game schedule
- Playoffs: All Teams - 8 point
series - 1 vs 8, 2 vs 7, 3 vs 5, 4 vs 6
Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals
Finals - 10 point series - Champion - Nanaimo Clippers
- Chilliwack Bruins last season
- 1976-77
- Abbotsford Flyers added
Bellingham Ice Hawks added
Kamloops Braves added
Maple Ridge Blazers » Bellingham Ice Hawks Langley Lords » Langley Thunder
Chilliwack Bruins » Maple Ridge Bruins - 68 game schedule - Coastal & Interior Divisions
- Playoffs: Best-of-seven - 1 vs
4, 2 vs 3 Divisional
Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, Finals - Champion - Nanaimo Clippers
- 1977-78
- Kamloops Braves » Kamloops
Chiefs
Maple Ridge Bruins » Revelstoke Bruins - 66 game schedule - Coastal & Interior Divisions
- Playoffs: Best-of-seven - 1 vs
4, 2 vs 3 Divisional
Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, Finals - Champion - Nanaimo Clippers
- 1978-79
- Chilliwack Colts added
Delta Suns added
Kamloops Chiefs » Kamloops Rockets
Vernon Vikings » Vernon Canadians - 62 game schedule - Coastal & Interior Divisions
- Playoffs: Best-of-seven - 1 vs
4, 2 vs 3 Divisional
Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, Finals - Champion - Bellingham Ice Hawks
- Delta Suns last season
Langley Thunder last season
Vernon Canadians » take leave of absence
- 1979-80
- Richmond Sockeyes added
Nor Wes Caps added
Kamloops Rockets & Revelstoke Bruins merge » Revelstoke Rockets
Penticton Vees » Penticton Knights
Delta Suns, Langley Thunder, Vernon Canadians leave - 66 game schedule - Coastal
Division
60 game schedule - Interior Division - Playoffs: Best-of-seven - 1 vs
4, 2 vs 3 Divisional
Quarter-Finals, Semi-Finals, Finals - Champion - Penticton Knights