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For other teams named Cleveland Barons, please see Cleveland Barons.

Cleveland Barons
ClevelandBarons
Information
Conference Prince of Wales
Division Adams
Founded 1976
History California Seals
1967
Oakland Seals
1967–1970
California Golden Seals
1970–1976
Cleveland Barons
1976–1978
Arena Richfield Coliseum
City Richfield, Ohio
Team Colors Red, black and white
Media
Owner(s)
General Manager Bill McCreary & Harry Howell
Head Coach Jack Evans
Captain Jim Neilson & Bob Stewart
Minor League affiliates
Championships
Stanley Cups none
Presidents' Trophies none
Conferences none
Divisions none
Other
Official Website www.nhl.com
Uniforms
Home ice

The Cleveland Barons were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1976–78.

History[]

Cleveland Barons

1976–77 Cleveland Barons home jersey at the Hockey Hall of Fame.

After new arena plans in San Francisco were cancelled, minority owner George Gund persuaded owner Mel Swig to move the California Golden Seals franchise from Oakland to his hometown of Cleveland for the 1976–77 season. The team was named Cleveland Barons after the popular American Hockey League team that played in the city from 1937 to 1973. Although a successful minor league city, Cleveland had been turned down for an NHL expansion team on three previous occasions.

The Barons played in the suburban Richfield Coliseum in Richfield, Ohio, an arena originally built for the WHA's Cleveland Crusaders and the NBA's Cleveland Cavaliers, with the then largest seating capacity in the NHL of 18,544. However, the Barons would never come close to filling the arena in their two years in Cleveland. The team's home opener on October 7, 1976, only drew 8,900 fans. They only drew 10,000 or more fans in seven out of 40 home games. The Barons were also troubled by an unfavorable lease with the Coliseum, and in January 1977 Swig hinted the team might not finish the season because of payroll difficulties. The Barons actually missed payroll twice in a row in February, and only a $1.3 million loan allowed the Barons to finish the season. After finishing last in the Adams Division yet again, Swig sold his interest in the team to Gund and his brother Gordon.

For 1977–78, the Gunds poured money into the team, and it seemed to make a difference at first. The Barons stunned the defending Stanley Cup champion Montreal Canadiens on November 23 before a boisterous crowd of 12,859. After a brief slump, general manager Harry Howell pulled off several trades in an attempt to make the team tougher. It initially paid off, and the Barons knocked off three of the NHL's top teams, the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Islanders and Buffalo Sabres in consecutive games in January 1978. A few weeks later, a record crowd of 13,110 saw the Barons tie the Philadelphia Flyers 2–2. The bottom fell out in February, however, as a 15-game losing skid knocked the Barons out of playoff contention.

Merger and Aftermath[]

After the season, the Gunds tried to buy the Coliseum, but failed. On June 14, 1978, the league granted approval for the Barons to merge with another financially troubled team, the Minnesota North Stars, under the Gunds' ownership. The merged franchise would retain the Minnesota North Stars name, but assume the Barons' place in the Adams Division. The Barons remain the last franchise in the four major North American sports leagues to cease operations, and as a result the NHL fielded only 17 teams during the 1978–79 season. The NHL would not return to Ohio for 22 years, when the Columbus Blue Jackets began operations in the fall of 2000.

Dennis Maruk was the last Baron (and last California Seals member as well) to be active in the NHL, retiring from the North Stars after the 1989 season.

Season-by-Season Record[]

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes

Season GP W L T Pts GF GA PIM Finish Playoffs
1976–77 80 25 42 13 63 240 292 1011 fourth in Adams Out of playoffs
1977–78 80 22 45 13 57 230 325 1010 fourth in Adams Out of playoffs
TOTALS 160 47 87 26 120 470 617 2021

Notable Players[]

Team Captains[]

First Round Draft Picks[]

selection made by California Golden Seals as the move to Cleveland had not yet taken place

Head Coach[]

General Managers[]

Relocated and Defunct NHL Teams
Relocated Atlanta Flames · Atlanta Thrashers · Colorado Rockies · Hartford Whalers · Kansas City Scouts · Minnesota North Stars · Quebec Nordiques · Winnipeg Jets
Defunct Oakland / California (Golden) Seals · Cleveland Barons · Hamilton Tigers · Montreal Maroons · Montreal Wanderers · New York/Brooklyn Americans · Ottawa Senators (original) · Philadelphia Quakers · Pittsburgh Pirates · Quebec Bulldogs · St. Louis Eagles
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