An international sports magazine suggested the 1971-72 Nova Scotia Voyageurs were good enough to hold their own in the NHL. Another observer wrote that they were a “perfect blend” of experience and youth. Hyperbole aside, there was no denying one clear fact: This was a superb hockey machine. When Montreal Canadiens’ boss, Sam Pollock, decided to place his American Hockey League farm team in Halifax he intended to present a strong contingent designed to win over fickle Metro fans who were getting their first exposure to the AHL. He did, and the Vees won the Calder Cup in their first season. Anchored by seasoned veterans and stimulated by exciting young prospects, the Vees finished in a first place tie with Boston in the regular schedule and led the league in goals. They hit their stride in the playoffs, knocking off Springfield in five games, burying their bitter rivals, Boston, in an emotional four straight games and taking out Baltimore in six games to win the title.

This was a team without significant flaws. The goaltending, shared mainly by Wayne Thomas and Michel Plasse, was solid all season. Plasse caught fire in the playoffs, and was named playoff M.V.P. The defense was an effective mix of veterans and youth. All through the lineup the chemistry seemed ideal. The savvy of veterans like defenseman Noel Price, captain Mike Laughton and forward Joe Hardy blended neatly with blossoming young talents like Larry Robinson, Chuck Lefley and Yvon Lambert. This team also had flair. There was the striking sight of giant forward Murray Wilson in full flight; the blue dart slapshots of Chuck Arnason; the silky scoring touch of points leader Germaine Gagnon; the steady whirling persistence of forechecking specialist Rey Comeau; the dashing play of young forwards like Lefley and Randy

Rota; the cold two-fisted toughness of Tony Featherstone and Lambert. And there was Larry Robinson. At first he was just another awkward, gangly defenseman learning the ropes in his first pro season. By the time playoffs rolled around he was a smart, tough electrifying presence who was beginning to show the signs of the great NHL player he was to become. The job of moulding all that talent fell to a Cape Breton native. Sydney’s Al MacNeil had coached the

Canadiens to the Stanley Cup the previous season. Now he added the Calder Cup. It was an impressive coaching accomplishment for the likeable Maritimer. There was a sour note to that first AHL season in Nova Scotia. Fans were scarce. Attendance hit 6,600 for the final game of the playoffs. But that was mainly a bandwagon crowd. The Vees drew poorly all season. Less than 2,000 turned out for the first playoff game. Some observers speculated that Halifax was not a Montreal town and that a Toronto Maple Leafs’ or Boston Bruins’ farm team would have held more appeal. Others blamed an inferior rink, the Forum. Post-expansion cynicism was also cited-many fans felt that the NHL had gone downhill with expansion and that the American League could only be inferior as well. Whatever their reasons, the many Halifax fans who stayed away from the old Forum in those winter months 25 years ago were the big losers. They missed a great show.

Members of the team were: Charles Amason, Murray Anderson, Ron Busniuk, Reynald Comeau, Floyd Curry, Michel Deguise, Tony Featherstone, Germain Gagnon, Tino Geoffroy, Joe Hardy, Mike Kelly, Kerry Ketter, Yvon Lambert, Mike Laughton, Chuck Lefley, Al MacNeil (coach), Bob Murray, Dr. Ken Nickerson, Michel Plasse, Sam Pollock, Lynn Powis, Noel Price, Doug Robinson, Larry Robinson, Randy Rota, Claude Ruel, Wayne Thomas, Fred Voeltz, Murray Wilson.

Bio courtesy of Harris Sullivan