Wikipedia

1977–78 Chicago Black Hawks season

The 1977–78 Chicago Black Hawks season was the Hawks' 52nd season in the NHL, and the club was coming off a 26–43–11 record, earning 63 points, which was their lowest total since the 1957–58 season. The Hawks managed to qualify for the playoffs, as they finished in third place in the Smythe Division. In the playoffs, the Black Hawks were quickly swept out in two games by the Boston Bruins in the NHL preliminary round.[1]

1977–78 Chicago Black Hawks
Smythe Division champions
Division1st Smythe
Conference4th Campbell
1977–78 record32–29–19
Home record20–9–11
Road record12–20–8
Goals for230
Goals against220
Team information
General managerBob Pulford
CoachBob Pulford
CaptainKeith Magnuson
Alternate captainsNone
ArenaChicago Stadium
Team leaders
GoalsIvan Boldirev (35)
AssistsIvan Boldirev (45)
PointsIvan Boldirev (80)
Penalty minutesKeith Magnuson (145)
Plus/minusJohn Marks (+27)
WinsTony Esposito (28)
Goals against averageTony Esposito (2.63)

Offseason

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During the off-season, Hawks general manager Tommy Ivan announced his retirement, and the club decided to not bring interim head coach Bill White back, so the club hired former Los Angeles Kings head coach Bob Pulford to take over both the head coach and general manager position. Pulford had been the head coach of the Kings from 1972 to 1977, winning the 1975 Jack Adams Trophy. The team also named Keith Magnuson as the only team captain, as in the 1976–77 season, the Hawks used Magnuson, Stan Mikita and Pit Martin as tri-captains.

Regular season

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The Black Hawks started off the season in a slump, as the team had a 6–10–8 record in their first 24 games. Chicago eventually snapped out of their funk, and found themselves a season high five games over .500 with a 24–18–16 record late in February. The Hawks, who were comfortably in first place in the Smythe Division, finished the season with a 32–29–19 record, earning 83 points, which was their highest total since 1973–74, and their sixth division title in the past nine seasons.[2]

Offensively, the Black Hawks were led by Ivan Boldirev, who scored a team high 35 goals and 45 assists for 80 points. Thirty-seven-year-old Stan Mikita earned 59 points in 76 games to finish second in team scoring, while 22-year-old Ted Bulley had a very solid rookie season, scoring 23 goals and 51 points in 79 games. Another rookie, Doug Wilson, led the defense, scoring 14 goals and 34 points, while Bob Murray also scored 14 goals, along with 17 assists from the blueline. Keith Magnuson had a team high 145 penalty minutes, while John Marks led Chicago with a +27 rating.

In goal, Tony Esposito once again had the majority of playing time, winning 28 games, along with 5 shutouts and a 2.63 GAA.[3]

Final standings

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Smythe Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Chicago Black Hawks 80 32 29 19 230 220 83
Colorado Rockies 80 19 40 21 257 305 59
Vancouver Canucks 80 20 43 17 239 320 57
St. Louis Blues 80 20 47 13 195 304 53
Minnesota North Stars 80 18 53 9 218 325 45

[4]Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Record vs. opponents

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Smythe Division record vs. opponents


Game log

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# Date Visitor Score Home Record Pts
1 October 13 Chicago Black Hawks 1–5 Philadelphia Flyers 0–1–0 0
2 October 15 Colorado Rockies 3–3 Chicago Black Hawks 0–1–1 1
3 October 16 Chicago Black Hawks 2–0 Buffalo Sabres 1–1–1 3
4 October 19 Buffalo Sabres 2–2 Chicago Black Hawks 1–1–2 4
5 October 22 Chicago Black Hawks 0–3 Colorado Rockies 1–2–2 4
6 October 23 St. Louis Blues 0–2 Chicago Black Hawks 2–2–2 6
7 October 26 Philadelphia Flyers 2–2 Chicago Black Hawks 2–2–3 7
8 October 28 Chicago Black Hawks 4–2 Cleveland Barons 3–2–3 9
9 October 30 Cleveland Barons 1–6 Chicago Black Hawks 4–2–3 11
10 November 2 Chicago Black Hawks 2–2 Washington Capitals 4–2–4 12
11 November 5 Chicago Black Hawks 5–2 Minnesota North Stars 5–2–4 14
12 November 6 Atlanta Flames 3–3 Chicago Black Hawks 5–2–5 15
13 November 9 Minnesota North Stars 2–2 Chicago Black Hawks 5–2–6 16
14 November 12 Chicago Black Hawks 4–7 Pittsburgh Penguins 5–3–6 16
15 November 13 Montreal Canadiens 3–2 Chicago Black Hawks 5–4–6 16
16 November 15 Chicago Black Hawks 1–1 New York Islanders 5–4–7 17
17 November 16 Chicago Black Hawks 2–5 New York Rangers 5–5–7 17
18 November 20 Chicago Black Hawks 0–1 Boston Bruins 5–6–7 17
19 November 23 Chicago Black Hawks 3–8 Los Angeles Kings 5–7–7 17
20 November 25 Chicago Black Hawks 5–1 Colorado Rockies 6–7–7 19
21 November 26 Chicago Black Hawks 2–2 Vancouver Canucks 6–7–8 20
22 November 30 Buffalo Sabres 3–2 Chicago Black Hawks 6–8–8 20
23 December 3 Chicago Black Hawks 2–3 Montreal Canadiens 6–9–8 20
24 December 4 Vancouver Canucks 6–2 Chicago Black Hawks 6–10–8 20
25 December 6 Chicago Black Hawks 2–1 Detroit Red Wings 7–10–8 22
26 December 7 New York Islanders 4–0 Chicago Black Hawks 7–11–8 22
27 December 10 Chicago Black Hawks 2–4 Philadelphia Flyers 7–12–8 22
28 December 11 Minnesota North Stars 3–8 Chicago Black Hawks 8–12–8 24
29 December 13 Chicago Black Hawks 2–2 New York Islanders 8–12–9 25
30 December 14 New York Rangers 2–2 Chicago Black Hawks 8–12–10 26
31 December 17 Chicago Black Hawks 1–7 Toronto Maple Leafs 8–13–10 26
32 December 18 Atlanta Flames 0–3 Chicago Black Hawks 9–13–10 28
33 December 21 Chicago Black Hawks 6–2 St. Louis Blues 10–13–10 30
34 December 22 Los Angeles Kings 4–0 Chicago Black Hawks 10–14–10 30
35 December 27 Chicago Black Hawks 4–2 Atlanta Flames 11–14–10 32
36 December 28 Toronto Maple Leafs 0–4 Chicago Black Hawks 12–14–10 34
37 January 1 Vancouver Canucks 3–2 Chicago Black Hawks 12–15–10 34
38 January 4 Boston Bruins 3–0 Chicago Black Hawks 12–16–10 34
39 January 7 Chicago Black Hawks 0–0 St. Louis Blues 12–16–11 35
40 January 8 Washington Capitals 1–3 Chicago Black Hawks 13–16–11 37
41 January 11 Philadelphia Flyers 4–5 Chicago Black Hawks 14–16–11 39
42 January 14 Chicago Black Hawks 3–3 Toronto Maple Leafs 14–16–12 40
43 January 18 Washington Capitals 2–5 Chicago Black Hawks 15–16–12 42
44 January 19 Chicago Black Hawks 2–4 Detroit Red Wings 15–17–12 42
45 January 21 Chicago Black Hawks 4–1 Minnesota North Stars 16–17–12 44
46 January 22 St. Louis Blues 1–3 Chicago Black Hawks 17–17–12 46
47 January 26 Cleveland Barons 0–5 Chicago Black Hawks 18–17–12 48
48 January 28 Detroit Red Wings 1–6 Chicago Black Hawks 19–17–12 50
49 February 1 Philadelphia Flyers 1–3 Chicago Black Hawks 20–17–12 52
50 February 4 Chicago Black Hawks 5–1 Vancouver Canucks 21–17–12 54
51 February 8 New York Islanders 4–5 Chicago Black Hawks 22–17–12 56
52 February 9 Chicago Black Hawks 3–3 Montreal Canadiens 22–17–13 57
53 February 12 Atlanta Flames 2–2 Chicago Black Hawks 22–17–14 58
54 February 14 Chicago Black Hawks 1–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 22–18–14 58
55 February 15 Colorado Rockies 2–2 Chicago Black Hawks 22–18–15 59
56 February 18 Boston Bruins 2–4 Chicago Black Hawks 23–18–15 61
57 February 19 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–2 Chicago Black Hawks 23–18–16 62
58 February 22 New York Rangers 2–3 Chicago Black Hawks 24–18–16 64
59 February 23 Chicago Black Hawks 2–6 New York Rangers 24–19–16 64
60 February 25 Chicago Black Hawks 1–7 New York Islanders 24–20–16 64
61 February 26 Toronto Maple Leafs 5–3 Chicago Black Hawks 24–21–16 64
62 March 1 Chicago Black Hawks 2–3 Vancouver Canucks 24–22–16 64
63 March 4 Chicago Black Hawks 6–3 Los Angeles Kings 25–22–16 66
64 March 5 Chicago Black Hawks 2–2 Colorado Rockies 25–22–17 67
65 March 8 Chicago Black Hawks 4–3 Minnesota North Stars 26–22–17 69
66 March 11 Chicago Black Hawks 1–4 Atlanta Flames 26–23–17 69
67 March 12 Chicago Black Hawks 2–5 Buffalo Sabres 26–24–17 69
68 March 15 Montreal Canadiens 6–2 Chicago Black Hawks 26–25–17 69
69 March 18 Chicago Black Hawks 4–5 St. Louis Blues 26–26–17 69
70 March 19 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–9 Chicago Black Hawks 27–26–17 71
71 March 22 Chicago Black Hawks 6–2 Washington Capitals 28–26–17 73
72 March 23 Chicago Black Hawks 0–7 Boston Bruins 28–27–17 73
73 March 25 St. Louis Blues 2–2 Chicago Black Hawks 28–27–18 74
74 March 26 Vancouver Canucks 3–4 Chicago Black Hawks 29–27–18 76
75 March 29 Los Angeles Kings 1–5 Chicago Black Hawks 30–27–18 78
76 April 1 Detroit Red Wings 0–2 Chicago Black Hawks 31–27–18 80
77 April 2 Chicago Black Hawks 2–4 Cleveland Barons 31–28–18 80
78 April 5 Colorado Rockies 4–4 Chicago Black Hawks 31–28–19 81
79 April 8 Minnesota North Stars 2–4 Chicago Black Hawks 32–28–19 83
80 April 9 Chicago Black Hawks 2–3 New York Rangers 32–29–19 83

Playoffs

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Since the Hawks won their division, they were given a bye in the NHL preliminary round, and advanced straight to the NHL quarter-finals. Their first round opponent was the Boston Bruins, who finished in first place in the Adams Division with 113 points. The series opened at the Boston Garden, and the Bruins struck first, easily winning the first game by a 6–1 score. Chicago forced the second game into overtime, however, the Bruins would be victorious once again, this time winning 4–3 to take a 2–0 series lead. The series moved to Chicago Stadium for the next two games, but it was Boston who stayed hot, as they defeated the Hawks 4–3 in overtime once again in the third game. The Bruins dominated the fourth game, winning 5–2, to sweep the series. This was the third straight season that the Black Hawks were swept out of their first playoff round, as the team saw their playoff losing streak reach twelve games.

Boston Bruins 4, Chicago Black Hawks 0

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# Date Visitor Score Home Record
1 April 17 Chicago Black Hawks 1–6 Boston Bruins 0–1
2 April 19 Chicago Black Hawks 3–4 Boston Bruins 0–2
3 April 21 Boston Bruins 4–3 Chicago Black Hawks 0–3
4 April 23 Boston Bruins 5–2 Chicago Black Hawks 0–4

Player stats

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Regular season

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Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Ivan Boldirev C 80 35 45 80 34 −3 10 0 2
Stan Mikita C/RW 76 18 41 59 35 18 6 0 2
Ted Bulley LW 79 23 28 51 141 4 6 0 5
J.P. Bordeleau RW 76 15 25 40 32 9 0 2 3
Grant Mulvey RW 78 14 24 38 135 −1 3 0 0
Darcy Rota LW 78 17 20 37 67 5 3 0 1
John Marks LW 80 15 22 37 26 27 0 0 1
Doug Wilson D 77 14 20 34 72 11 5 0 2
Cliff Koroll RW 73 16 15 31 19 8 1 0 4
Bob Murray D 70 14 17 31 41 11 2 0 3
Pierre Plante RW 77 10 18 28 59 −2 0 0 2
Phil Russell D 57 6 20 26 139 19 0 1 1
Dale Tallon D 75 4 20 24 66 3 2 1 2
Bob Kelly LW 75 7 11 18 95 −26 0 0 2
Jean Savard C 31 7 11 18 20 6 2 0 2
Alain Daigle RW 53 6 6 12 13 −12 1 0 0
Jim Harrison C 26 2 8 10 31 −3 1 0 0
Doug Hicks D 13 1 7 8 2 5 0 0 0
Keith Magnuson D 67 2 4 6 145 0 0 0 0
Dave Logan D 54 1 5 6 77 −14 1 0 0
Kirk Bowman LW 33 1 4 5 13 0 0 0 0
Tony Esposito G 64 0 4 4 0 0 0 0 0
Pit Martin C 7 1 1 2 0 −1 0 0 0
Mike O'Connell D 6 1 1 2 2 0 0 0 0
Reg Kerr LW 2 0 2 2 0 2 0 0 0
Bob Hoffmeyer D 5 0 1 1 12 −2 0 0 0
Randy Holt D 6 0 0 0 20 −4 0 0 0
Eddie Johnston G 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Mike Veisor G 12 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T GA GAA SO
Tony Esposito 3840 64 28 22 14 168 2.63 5
Mike Veisor 720 12 3 4 5 31 2.58 2
Eddie Johnston 240 4 1 3 0 17 4.25 0
Team: 4800 80 32 29 19 216 2.70 7

Playoffs

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Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM PPG SHG GWG
Bob Murray D 4 1 4 5 2 0 0 0
Grant Mulvey RW 4 2 2 4 0 1 0 0
Stan Mikita C/RW 4 3 0 3 0 2 0 0
Ted Bulley LW 4 1 1 2 2 0 0 0
Ivan Boldirev C 4 0 2 2 2 0 0 0
Dale Tallon D 4 0 2 2 0 0 0 0
Doug Hicks D 4 1 0 1 2 1 0 0
Cliff Koroll RW 4 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
J.P. Bordeleau RW 4 0 1 1 0 0 0 0
Alain Daigle RW 4 0 1 1 0 0 0 0
John Marks LW 4 0 1 1 0 0 0 0
Kirk Bowman LW 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Tony Esposito G 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Bob Kelly LW 4 0 0 0 8 0 0 0
Dave Logan D 4 0 0 0 8 0 0 0
Keith Magnuson D 4 0 0 0 7 0 0 0
Pierre Plante RW 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Darcy Rota LW 4 0 0 0 2 0 0 0
Doug Wilson D 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO
Tony Esposito 252 4 0 4 19 4.52 0
Team: 252 4 0 4 19 4.52 0

[6]

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
      MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts;

Playoff stats

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Scoring leaders

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Player GP G A Pts PIM
Bob Murray 4 1 4 5 2
Grant Mulvey 4 2 2 4 0
Stan Mikita 4 3 0 3 0
Ted Bulley 4 1 1 2 2
Dale Tallon 4 0 2 2 0

Goaltending

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Player GP TOI W L GA SO GAA
Tony Esposito 4 252 0 4 19 0 4.52

Draft picks

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Chicago's draft picks at the 1977 NHL amateur draft at the Mount Royal Hotel in Montreal.

Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)
1 6 Doug Wilson   Canada Ottawa 67's (OMJHL)
2 19 Jean Savard   Canada Quebec Remparts (QMJHL)
4 60 Randy Ireland   Canada Portland Winter Hawks (WCHL)
5 78 Gary Platt   Canada Sorel Black Hawks (QMJHL)
6 96 Jack O'Callahan   United States Boston University (NCAA)
7 114 Floyd Lahache   Canada Sherbrooke Castors (QMJHL)
8 129 Jeff Geiger   Canada Ottawa 67's (OMJHL)
9 144 Steve Ough   Canada Laval National (QMJHL)

References

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  1. ^ 1976–77 NHL Season Summary – Hockey-Reference.com
  2. ^ 1977–78 Chicago Black Hawks Games – Hockey-Reference.com
  3. ^ "Chicago Blackhawks goaltending history : Tony Esposito". Archived from the original on February 17, 2008. Retrieved July 25, 2008.
  4. ^ Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 151. ISBN 9781894801225.
  5. ^ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  6. ^ "1977-78 Chicago Black Hawks Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved June 16, 2009.

Sources

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