The sad saga of the NHL Cleveland Barons

[Fenway]

I think the most startling fact from the Barons 2 years in Richfield, Ohio was their largest crowd came in year 2 - 13,110

The Barons disaster and merger with the North Stars started the process of the NHL ending the war with the WHA and taking on 4 teams in 1979.

Peter Gammons ( yes that Peter Gammons ) wrote about the Barons plight.

http://www.si.com/vault/1977/03/07/616417/clevelands-not-barren

The forgotten story of ... the Barons, Cleveland's ill-fated NHL team

Click to read more...

 

[SealsFan]

Bad enough I had my heart ripped out by losing the Seals, then to see the Barons not doing any better and then folding, those were dark days for this hockey fan.

Speaking of attendance, in that second season they had a home game snowed out against Buffalo and it was rescheduled between a Monday and Wednesday home game in January... meaning that they played 3 home games in 3 nights! Incredibly they won all three, against the Islanders, Sabres and Leafs but the attendance for those games was 2,074, 2,110 and 4,527!! Under 9,000 combined for 3 games! They then played on the road in Pittsburgh on Thursday and lost.

 

[Big Phil]

Back in the days when the NHL realized their errors and corrected them when it came to relocating. Now, we do the opposite. We cling to a desert team (Arizona) and promise to build another desert franchise (Las Vegas). One thing the NHL actually has done right is not think that somehow 30 years later Cleveland has turned into a hockey hotbed.

 

[Killion]

Back in the days when the NHL realized their errors and corrected them when it came to relocating. Now, we do the opposite. We cling to a desert team (Arizona) and promise to build another desert franchise (Las Vegas). One thing the NHL actually has done right is not think that somehow 30 years later Cleveland has turned into a hockey hotbed.

Cleveland was quite the hockey hotbed from the late 30's (even before, dawn of the professional game) right on through the 60's, one of the founding members of the AHL. The franchise one of the most successful in minor-pro of all-time, and one with its own farm system. So successful in fact that Big Jim Norris invited Al Suphtin, owner of the Cleveland team to join the NHL (had a new arena in 1938, farm sys etc, winners, packed building) as the NHL was in desperate need of some stability at the time in the waning yrs of WW2, the kind of stability Cleveland was proven to be providing. Suphtin however turned him down, concerned that if he withdrew from the AHL the league wouldnt survive... Lots more to the story thereafter, through the 50's. Cleveland actually awarded a spot in the NHL conditionally & announced by Clarence Campbell however Norris never forgot a slight, unhappy with being rejected earlier, instructed Campbell to start moving the goalposts all over the ice with respect to financing. Got real nasty. Cleveland threatening anti-trust lawsuits, even challenged the NHL to a series for the Stanley Cup vs the League Champions. NHL refused. Those 50's teams, early 60's in Cleveland, they were so good it was said of them they couldve easily played in the NHL & been at minimum a mid-range team, given the Habs and everyone else a run for their money.

 

[Big Phil]

Cleveland was quite the hockey hotbed from the late 30's (even before, dawn of the professional game) right on through the 60's, one of the founding members of the AHL. The franchise one of the most successful in minor-pro of all-time, and one with its own farm system. So successful in fact that Big Jim Norris invited Al Suphtin, owner of the Cleveland team to join the NHL (had a new arena in 1938, farm sys etc, winners, packed building) as the NHL was in desperate need of some stability at the time in the waning yrs of WW2, the kind of stability Cleveland was proven to be providing. Suphtin however turned him down, concerned that if he withdrew from the AHL the league wouldnt survive... Lots more to the story thereafter, through the 50's. Cleveland actually awarded a spot in the NHL conditionally & announced by Clarence Campbell however Norris never forgot a slight, unhappy with being rejected earlier, instructed Campbell to start moving the goalposts all over the ice with respect to financing. Got real nasty. Cleveland threatening anti-trust lawsuits, even challenged the NHL to a series for the Stanley Cup vs the League Champions. NHL refused. Those 50's teams, early 60's in Cleveland, they were so good it was said of them they couldve easily played in the NHL & been at minimum a mid-range team, given the Habs and everyone else a run for their money.

That's all well and good but Ohio in general is not known for hockey. We saw what Cleveland did in the best league in the world in the 1970s and I think that trumps what they may have done in the 1950s. Would it have been any different? When you think about Cleveland do you think about hockey? I think immediately about Football when I think of Ohio. The Pro Football Hall of Fame is in Canton.

 

[Killion]

That's all well and good but Ohio in general is not known for hockey. We saw what Cleveland did in the best league in the world in the 1970s and I think that trumps what they may have done in the 1950s. Would it have been any different? When you think about Cleveland do you think about hockey? I think immediately about Football when I think of Ohio. The Pro Football Hall of Fame is in Canton.

While your of course entirely entitled to your opinion in casting doubt based on what went down in the 70's, I consider that period an anomaly, extenuating circumstances. Never had a chance, not a good measure by any means nor reflective of the viability (or not) of the market. Location of Richfield, the site returned since to its totally rural origins, now a bird sanctuary in the middle of nowhere... Start-up league & team in the WHA... Mel Swig arriving from California very nearly flat out broke... wasnt gunna work. Location of the arena & lack of money at the ownership level is what killed the WHA & the NHL in Cleveland.

 

[Big Phil]

While your of course entirely entitled to your opinion in casting doubt based on what went down in the 70's, I consider that period an anomaly, extenuating circumstances. Never had a chance, not a good measure by any means nor reflective of the viability (or not) of the market. Location of Richfield, the site returned since to its totally rural origins, now a bird sanctuary in the middle of nowhere... Start-up league & team in the WHA... Mel Swig arriving from California very nearly flat out broke... wasnt gunna work. Location of the arena & lack of money at the ownership level is what killed the WHA & the NHL in Cleveland.

Okay, we'll agree to disagree on this. I've just seen so many mistakes the NHL has made with being in the wrong market.

 

[Killion]

Okay, we'll agree to disagree on this. I've just seen so many mistakes the NHL has made with being in the wrong market.

Yeah, no worries Phil... I see it all the time on BOH... Its my belief its not the markets that fail the NHL but that its the NHL itself & intransigent ownership that does that. Cleveland a good example. Atlanta. Colorado Rockies etc.

 

[SealsFan]

The AHL Cleveland Barons were popular and successful. Ironically the NHL Barons faced the same problem as the Seals when it came to arena location. The gripe about the Richfield Coliseum was that it was out in the middle of nowhere, too far away from the main population in Cleveland, and with the Seals I remember reading that the majority of their fans were in San Francisco and it was a bit of a trek to get to the Oakland Alameda County Coliseum Arena across the bridge.

 

[ytsur*]

The logical nightmare that was entering/exiting Richfield played a bigger role than folks want to admit.

Putting arenas in the 'burbs is so ****ing stupid.

 

[tarheelhockey]

Cleveland was quite the hockey hotbed from the late 30's (even before, dawn of the professional game) right on through the 60's, one of the founding members of the AHL.

Yeah, Cleveland's history with the game goes way back. They were one of the first American cities to pick up the game on a competitive level, predating for example Chicago. Canadian all-star amateur and university teams used to go down to Cleveland to play the locals on their barnstorming tours, as it was right there with the New Yorks and Bostons and St. Pauls as far as American hockey was concerned.

 

[Hawksfan2828]

Back in the days when the NHL realized their errors and corrected them when it came to relocating. Now, we do the opposite. We cling to a desert team (Arizona) and promise to build another desert franchise (Las Vegas). One thing the NHL actually has done right is not think that somehow 30 years later Cleveland has turned into a hockey hotbed.

Neither is Columbus, I have no clue as to how or even why they have a franchise. It's basically Green Bay....

I'm from Chicago and have been to both cities and it's like WOW, really this is it?... Both look like a suburb of Chicago.

As far as Vegas - that is a good place to put a team.

 

[Buck Aki Berg]

The logical nightmare that was entering/exiting Richfield played a bigger role than folks want to admit.

Putting arenas in the 'burbs is so ****ing stupid.

Richfield Coliseum was worse than the suburbs. People from Ottawa complain about our arena being in the middle of nowhere - RC was almost twice as far from Cleveland's downtown as the CTC is from Ottawa's downtown.

The idea was to try to pull in more attendees from Akron, but it just made the commute suck equally for everyone and backfired spectacularly.

 

[Frank Booth]

The Richfield Coliseum was torn down in 1999, just 25 years after it opened. The land is now marsh land. There is noting, and I mean nothing, in the vicinity as you drive either north or south down I-271. I think most people who never went there do not realize how difficult it was to get to the building. Not only do you deal with weather, and tons of lake-effect snow, but there was only one entrance to the facility, off of the Route 303 exit of I-271, which was only 2 lanes. When there was a big crowd, just getting in and especially out could take hours.

 

[Hawksfan2828]

The Richfield Coliseum was torn down in 1999, just 25 years after it opened. The land is now marsh land. There is noting, and I mean nothing, in the vicinity as you drive either north or south down I-271. I think most people who never went there do not realize how difficult it was to get to the building. Not only do you deal with weather, and tons of lake-effect snow, but there was only one entrance to the facility, off of the Route 303 exit of I-271, which was only 2 lanes. When there was a big crowd, just getting in and especially out could take hours.

Why did they kill the building when it was only 25 years old? I suppose I will have to wiki it... Were they that angry about the Barons leaving?

 

[Buck Aki Berg]

Why did they kill the building when it was only 25 years old? I suppose I will have to wiki it... Were they that angry about the Barons leaving?

Quicken Loans Arena was opened in downtown Cleveland in the 90s, turning RC into a white elephant.

 

[double5son10]

Yeah, Cleveland's history with the game goes way back. They were one of the first American cities to pick up the game on a competitive level, predating for example Chicago. Canadian all-star amateur and university teams used to go down to Cleveland to play the locals on their barnstorming tours, as it was right there with the New Yorks and Bostons and St. Pauls as far as American hockey was concerned.

Canadiens almost relocated to Cleveland in 1935. I can't imagine ownership wanting to make that move if they didn't believe there was a market for the team. Of course, these are NHL owners...

 

[Hawksfan2828]

Quicken Loans Arena was opened in downtown Cleveland in the 90s, turning RC into a white elephant.

I read all about it....

Still, why turn a perfectly good building into dust?

It was pretty ugly tho.

 

[ytsur*]

It was pretty ugly tho.

Reminds me of the Met Center in Bloomington (old North Stars barn), right down to its barren surroundings.

 

[HisIceness]

I remember watching something regarding the Cavaliers of the 1970's and 80's. Someone mentioned that the Cavaliers could never become a championship contender despite having some good teams because no one wanted to make the drive to and from that arena every day. They said that during time-outs opposing players would ask the Cavalier players "How do you guys tolerate playing here?".

Someone in the BoH forum I think posted a picture of the place shortly before it was demolished. Think driving in the middle of nowhere with no big city or even decent sized town nearby, just passing through the fields of Ohio on the interstate and all of a sudden here's this large sports arena. That had to be what playing and attending events there felt like.

 

[ytsur*]

I remember watching something regarding the Cavaliers of the 1970's and 80's. Someone mentioned that the Cavaliers could never become a championship contender despite having some good teams because no one wanted to make the drive to and from that arena every day. They said that during time-outs opposing players would ask the Cavalier players "How do you guys tolerate playing here?".

Someone in the BoH forum I think posted a picture of the place shortly before it was demolished. Think driving in the middle of nowhere with no big city or even decent sized town nearby, just passing through the fields of Ohio on the interstate and all of a sudden here's this large sports arena. That had to be what playing and attending events there felt like.

 

[GindyDraws]

Not to dust off an old thread, but I am still disappointed Believeland did not mention the Cleveland Barons once in the documentary, aside from a vague photo of the Gunds sitting in front of the Minnesota North Stars logo. I mean, I can understand not doing them, but you could devote 30 seconds to the fact that Cleveland, at one point, had a powerful hockey team that was so good they were blackballed from joining the NHL, and then 30 years later, they get the saddest team in the league moving in and proceeding to do absolutely nothing, like during their Oakland period, before being absorbed by Minnesota.

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

All time Seals/Barons team...

L1: Joey Johnston - Dennis Maruk - Al MacAdam
L2: Rick Hampton - Ted Hampson - Bill Hicke
L3: Gary Jarrett - Walt McKechnie - Norm Ferguson
L4: Gary Croteau - Dave Gardner - Bob Murdoch

D1: Carol Vadnais - Bob Stewart
D2: Mike Christie - Jim Neilson
D3: Bert Marshall - Dick Redman

G1: Gilles Meloche
G2: Gary Smith

Coach: Fred Glover

 

[Jasonthegreat]

All time Seals/Barons team...

L1: Joey Johnston - Dennis Maruk - Al MacAdam
L2: Rick Hampton - Ted Hampson - Bill Hicke
L3: Gary Jarrett - Walt McKechnie - Norm Ferguson
L4: Gary Croteau - Dave Gardner - Bob Murdoch

D1: Carol Vadnais - Bob Stewart
D2: Mike Christie - Jim Neilson
D3: Bert Marshall - Dick Redman

G1: Gilles Meloche
G2: Gary Smith

Coach: Fred Glover

Didn't Dennis Maruk have a 50-goal season with the Barons?

 

[DoobeeDoobeeDoo]

Didn't Dennis Maruk have a 50-goal season with the Barons?

No, that was with the Washington Capitals.