1974–75 California Golden Seals season

The 1974–75 California Golden Seals season was the Seals' 8th season in the NHL. The team continued to be operated by the league until early 1975, when new local ownership led by Mel Swig, owner of the Fairmont Hotel in San Francisco, was found. The Seals adopted new uniforms this season with new turquoise and gold colors. They recorded a 15-point improvement over the previous season. In early 1975, rumors began to circulate that the Seals would be relocated to Denver, Colorado, although this did not come to pass.

1974–75 California Golden Seals
Division4th Adams
ConferencePrince of Wales
1974–75 record19–48–13
Goals for212
Goals against316
Team information
General managerBill McCreary
CoachMarshall Johnston
Bill McCreary
CaptainJoey Johnston
Alternate captainsLen Frig
Jim Neilson
Bob Stewart
Team leaders
GoalsDave Hrechkosy (29)
AssistsStan Weir (27)
PointsLarry Patey, Stan Weir (45)
Penalty minutesLen Frig (127)
Plus/minusFrank Spring (+1)
WinsGary Simmons (10)
Goals against averageGary Simmons (3.67)

On March 28, 1975, the Seals suffered the indignity of losing at home to the expansion Washington Capitals, 5–3, providing the Caps with the only road win of their inaugural season.

Offseason

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Amateur Draft

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Round Pick Player Nationality College/Junior/Club team
1 3. Rick Hampton   Canada St. Catharines Black Hawks (OHA)
1 17. Ron Chipperfield   Canada Brandon Wheat Kings (WCHL)
2 21. Bruce Affleck   Canada University of Denver Pioneers (WCHA)
3 39. Charlie Simmer   Canada Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHA)
4 57. Tom Price   Canada Ottawa 67's (OHA)
5 75. Jim Warden   United States Michigan Tech Huskies (WCHA)
6 93. Tom Sundberg   United States St. Paul Vulcans (MidJHL)
7 111. Tom Anderson   United States St. Paul Vulcans (MidJHL)
8 128. Jim McCabe   Canada Welland Sabres (SOJHL)

Regular season

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On March 28, 1975, the Seals lost at home 5–3 to Washington, giving the expansion Capitals their only road win of the season.

Final standings

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Adams Division[1]
GP W L T GF GA DIFF Pts
1 Buffalo Sabres 80 49 16 15 354 240 +114 113
2 Boston Bruins 80 40 26 14 345 245 +100 94
3 Toronto Maple Leafs 80 31 33 16 280 309 −29 78
4 California Golden Seals 80 19 48 13 212 316 −104 51

[2]

Record vs. opponents

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Adams Division record vs. opponents


Schedule and results

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No. R Date Score Opponent Record
1 T October 9, 1974 4–4 St. Louis Blues (1974–75) 0–0–1
2 W October 11, 1974 3–0 Atlanta Flames (1974–75) 1–0–1
3 L October 13, 1974 3–7 @ Detroit Red Wings (1974–75) 1–1–1
4 T October 16, 1974 5–5 @ New York Rangers (1974–75) 1–1–2
5 L October 17, 1974 1–6 @ Buffalo Sabres (1974–75) 1–2–2
6 L October 19, 1974 1–5 @ Montreal Canadiens (1974–75) 1–3–2
7 L October 20, 1974 0–5 @ Boston Bruins (1974–75) 1–4–2
8 T October 23, 1974 4–4 Kansas City Scouts (1974–75) 1–4–3
9 W October 25, 1974 4–1 Philadelphia Flyers (1974–75) 2–4–3
10 L October 26, 1974 1–5 @ Los Angeles Kings (1974–75) 2–5–3
11 L October 28, 1974 1–10 @ New York Islanders (1974–75) 2–6–3
12 L October 30, 1974 1–4 @ Atlanta Flames (1974–75) 2–7–3
13 T November 1, 1974 4–4 Detroit Red Wings (1974–75) 2–7–4
14 L November 6, 1974 3–7 New York Rangers (1974–75) 2–8–4
15 L November 9, 1974 2–5 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1974–75) 2–9–4
16 L November 10, 1974 0–3 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1974–75) 2–10–4
17 W November 13, 1974 2–0 Chicago Black Hawks (1974–75) 3–10–4
18 L November 15, 1974 3–5 Toronto Maple Leafs (1974–75) 3–11–4
19 L November 17, 1974 0–10 @ New York Rangers (1974–75) 3–12–4
20 L November 19, 1974 4–6 @ Washington Capitals (1974–75) 3–13–4
21 L November 21, 1974 2–4 @ Boston Bruins (1974–75) 3–14–4
22 L November 23, 1974 1–3 @ Minnesota North Stars (1974–75) 3–15–4
23 L November 27, 1974 1–3 Boston Bruins (1974–75) 3–16–4
24 T November 29, 1974 3–3 New York Islanders (1974–75) 3–16–5
25 W December 1, 1974 5–2 @ Washington Capitals (1974–75) 4–16–5
26 L December 3, 1974 1–5 @ St. Louis Blues (1974–75) 4–17–5
27 W December 4, 1974 3–1 Atlanta Flames (1974–75) 5–17–5
28 W December 6, 1974 5–3 Minnesota North Stars (1974–75) 6–17–5
29 L December 10, 1974 0–3 @ Vancouver Canucks (1974–75) 6–18–5
30 L December 12, 1974 3–5 @ Kansas City Scouts (1974–75) 6–19–5
31 L December 14, 1974 3–5 @ Montreal Canadiens (1974–75) 6–20–5
32 T December 15, 1974 5–5 @ Buffalo Sabres (1974–75) 6–20–6
33 L December 18, 1974 3–4 Montreal Canadiens (1974–75) 6–21–6
34 W December 20, 1974 5–2 Washington Capitals (1974–75) 7–21–6
35 L December 22, 1974 4–6 Vancouver Canucks (1974–75) 7–22–6
36 W December 27, 1974 5–2 Boston Bruins (1974–75) 8–22–6
37 W December 28, 1974 3–2 @ Los Angeles Kings (1974–75) 9–22–6
38 L December 31, 1974 3–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1974–75) 9–23–6
39 T January 1, 1975 3–3 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1974–75) 9–23–7
40 T January 3, 1975 2–2 Buffalo Sabres (1974–75) 9–23–8
41 W January 5, 1975 5–1 Philadelphia Flyers (1974–75) 10–23–8
42 W January 7, 1975 3–2 @ St. Louis Blues (1974–75) 11–23–8
43 L January 8, 1975 2–3 @ Atlanta Flames (1974–75) 11–24–8
44 L January 11, 1975 3–6 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1974–75) 11–25–8
45 L January 12, 1975 1–2 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1974–75) 11–26–8
46 L January 15, 1975 0–4 Buffalo Sabres (1974–75) 11–27–8
47 T January 17, 1975 4–4 New York Rangers (1974–75) 11–27–9
48 L January 19, 1975 1–3 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1974–75) 11–28–9
49 L January 22, 1975 5–7 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1974–75) 11–29–9
50 W January 24, 1975 6–1 Toronto Maple Leafs (1974–75) 12–29–9
51 L January 26, 1975 2–3 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1974–75) 12–30–9
52 L January 29, 1975 2–4 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1974–75) 12–31–9
53 L January 30, 1975 0–6 @ Boston Bruins (1974–75) 12–32–9
54 L February 2, 1975 1–5 Montreal Canadiens (1974–75) 12–33–9
55 W February 5, 1975 5–1 Washington Capitals (1974–75) 13–33–9
56 L February 7, 1975 1–4 Pittsburgh Penguins (1974–75) 13–34–9
57 L February 9, 1975 1–2 Kansas City Scouts (1974–75) 13–35–9
58 W February 12, 1975 4–2 Detroit Red Wings (1974–75) 14–35–9
59 W February 15, 1975 3–0 @ Kansas City Scouts (1974–75) 15–35–9
60 L February 16, 1975 4–8 @ Minnesota North Stars (1974–75) 15–36–9
61 T February 19, 1975 3–3 Toronto Maple Leafs (1974–75) 15–36–10
62 W February 21, 1975 6–4 Boston Bruins (1974–75) 16–36–10
63 T February 23, 1975 2–2 Los Angeles Kings (1974–75) 16–36–11
64 L February 26, 1975 1–3 Minnesota North Stars (1974–75) 16–37–11
65 L March 1, 1975 1–6 @ New York Islanders (1974–75) 16–38–11
66 L March 3, 1975 2–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (1974–75) 16–39–11
67 L March 5, 1975 2–4 Chicago Black Hawks (1974–75) 16–40–11
68 W March 9, 1975 4–2 New York Islanders (1974–75) 17–40–11
69 L March 12, 1975 2–7 Buffalo Sabres (1974–75) 17–41–11
70 W March 14, 1975 4–2 Detroit Red Wings (1974–75) 18–41–11
71 T March 19, 1975 3–3 Pittsburgh Penguins (1974–75) 18–41–12
72 W March 21, 1975 7–4 St. Louis Blues (1974–75) 19–41–12
73 L March 23, 1975 4–9 @ Buffalo Sabres (1974–75) 19–42–12
74 L March 24, 1975 3–5 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1974–75) 19–43–12
75 L March 26, 1975 2–6 Philadelphia Flyers (1974–75) 19–44–12
76 L March 28, 1975 3–5 Washington Capitals (1974–75) 19–45–12
77 L April 1, 1975 0–7 @ Vancouver Canucks (1974–75) 19–46–12
78 L April 2, 1975 0–3 Vancouver Canucks (1974–75) 19–47–12
79 L April 5, 1975 3–5 @ Los Angeles Kings (1974–75) 19–48–12
80 T April 6, 1975 1–1 Los Angeles Kings (1974–75) 19–48–13

Player statistics

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Skaters

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Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in minutes

    Regular season   Playoffs
Player # GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
Larry Patey 9 79 25 20 45 68
Stan Weir 21 80 18 27 45 12
Dave Hrechkosy 18 73 29 14 43 25
Al MacAdam 25 80 18 25 43 55
John Stewart 17 75 19 19 38 55
Joey Johnston 22 62 14 23 37 72
Dave Gardner 7 64 16 20 36 6
Ron Huston 11 56 12 21 33 8
Butch Williams 12 63 11 21 32 118
Rick Hampton 2 78 8 17 25 39
Charlie Simmer 10 35 8 13 21 26
Jim Neilson 15 72 3 17 20 56
Len Frig 6 80 3 17 20 127
Bob Stewart 4 68 5 12 17 93
Mike Christie 3 34 0 14 14 76
George Pesut 5 47 0 13 13 73
Wayne King 24 25 4 7 11 8
Frank Spring 14 28 3 8 11 6
Morris Mott 20 52 3 8 11 8
Brian Lavender 8 65 3 7 10 48
Jim Moxey 19 47 5 4 9 4
Gilles Meloche 27 47 0 6 6 14
Stan Gilbertson 10 15 1 4 5 2
Fred Ahern 16 3 2 1 3 0
Craig Patrick 14 14 2 1 3 0
Terry Murray 5 9 0 2 2 8
Ted McAneeley 23 9 0 2 2 4
Gary Holt 8 1 0 1 1 0
Bruce Greig 28 8 0 1 1 42
Gary Simmons 31 34 0 1 1 26
Glenn Patrick 5 2 0 0 0 0
Larry Wright 16 2 0 0 0 0
Tom Price 5 3 0 0 0 4
Brent Meeke 24 4 0 0 0 0

[4]

Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Seals. Stats reflect time with the Seals only. Traded mid-season

Goaltenders

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Note: GP = Games played; TOI = Time on ice (minutes); W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average

    Regular season   Playoffs
Player # GP TOI W L T GA SO GAA GP TOI W L GA SO GAA
Gary Simmons 31 34 2029 10 21 3 124 2 3.67
Gilles Meloche 27 47 2771 9 27 10 186 1 4.03

Transactions

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The Seals were involved in the following transactions during the 1974–75 season:

Trades

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May 24, 1974 To California Golden Seals
Al MacAdam
Larry Wright
1st round pick in 1974 Draft (Ron Chipperfield)
Future considerations (George Pesut, December 11, 1974)
To Philadelphia Flyers
Reggie Leach
May 24, 1974 To California Golden Seals
Mike Christie
Len Frig
To Chicago Black Hawks
Ivan Boldirev
June 18, 1974 To California Golden Seals
John Stewart
To Atlanta Flames
Hilliard Graves
June 18, 1974 To California Golden Seals
Glenn Patrick
To St. Louis Blues
Ron Serafini
September 23, 1974 To California Golden Seals
Brian Lavender
To New York Rangers
Hartland Monahan
October 1, 1974 To California Golden Seals
Gary Simmons
To Phoenix Roadrunners (WHA)
cash
November 11, 1974 To California Golden Seals
Dave Gardner
Butch Williams
To St. Louis Blues
Stan Gilbertson
Craig Patrick
January 9, 1975 To California Golden Seals
Frank Spring
To St. Louis Blues
Bruce Affleck

Additions and subtractions

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Additions
Player Former team Via
Jim Neilson New York Rangers Intra-League Draft (1974-06-10)
Bob Murdoch Cranbrook Royals (WIHL) free agency (1974–10)
Subtractions
Player New team Via
Walt McKechnie New York Rangers Intra-League Draft (1974-06-10)
Gary Coalter Kansas City Scouts Expansion Draft (1974-06-12)
Gary Croteau Kansas City Scouts Expansion Draft (1974-06-12)
Pete Laframboise Washington Capitals Expansion Draft (1974-06-12)

Playoffs

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The Seals did not qualify for the Stanley Cup playoffs this season.

References

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  1. ^ "1974-1975 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
  2. ^ National Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p.163, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, ISBN 0-920445-98-5
  3. ^ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  4. ^ "1974-75 California Golden Seals Roster and Statistics".