Jets Reign - But Just How Good Are They? • by Reyn Davis • The Sporting News • June 10, 1978
The Winnipeg Jets were the class of their league this season and, fittingly, they have been crowned the World Hockey Association's champions of 1977-78.
Performing in the darkness of doubt — only seven of their 24 players had contracts with the team for next season — the Jets captured their second Avco Cup in a four-game sweep over the New England Whalers in the best of seven championship series.
"While we're together, we decided we would make the most of it," said Larry Hillman, Winnipeg coach who, himself, had no idea where he stood in the organization.
Sparked by a line of self-professed foot soldiers, the Jets came off a 15-day layoff to systematically erase the Whalers by scores of 4-1, 5-2, 10-2 and 5-3.
Particularly devestating were Bobby Guindon, Lyle Moffat and Bill Lesuk, backed by their defense team of Ted Green and Mike Amodeo
They swarmed the Whalers driving them deep and hard into their own end, always double teamimg. Seven goals they scored as a unit, contributing at least one in every game.
Guindon established himself as the Jets' second-best center, behind only Uif Nilsson.
But wasn't until the final game that the vaunted Hot-Line of Bobby Hull, Anders Hedberg and Nilsson exploded, scoring and setting up four of the five Winnipeg goals.
"The great mystery will be that we'll never know how good this team really is," said Dave Dunn, a defenseman.
They met every challenge. On home ice, they beat the mighty Soviet National Team. They won games in Houston, Quebec and Springfield, Mass., where the Whalers had to play. They never lost a game in Cincinnati.
As if there could be no doubt, they extended their unbeaten string to 12 games over the Whalers in the playoffs. It was last December 2 in Hartford that the Whalers last beat the Jets, 4-1. Since then, all they could manage was a tie in 12 games.
The New England coach, Harry Neale, used the same line against Hull, Hedberg and Nilsson that rendered the Quebec unit of Marc Tardif, Real Cloutier and Chris Bordeleau punchless in the semifinals.
Danny Bolduc followed Hedberg wherever he went. Larry Pleau and Mike Rogers watched the other two.
"They did a good job," said Neale. "Their other lines killed us."
But he maintained a great deal of respect for Hedberg and Nilsson, the sensational Swedes who have been signed by the New York Rangers for $2.4 million for the next two seasons.
"The Rangers have no idea how much they have improved themselves by acquiring these two players," he said.
As WHA chairman Ben Hatskin waddled out onto the ice to present the trophy to the team he founded, the Jets jostled with Bobby Hull.
First, Ted Green grabbed him, then Lars-Erik Sjoberg. Though Sjoberg was the team captain, and Green an assistant, it was Hull who should accept it, they agreed.
But Hull wouldn't, though the capacily crowd pleaded too.
"I wanted to stay in the background," said Hull. "They are the ruling group."
Ruling group? Hull is one of the Jets eight owners and its established star, He was also one of the four players regularly consulted by Hillman when major decisions had to be made. The others were Green, Sjoberg and Hedberg.
Finally, the stubby Sjoberg took the trophy and skated around the ice for all the fans to see the symbol of their supermacy.
Hull said he knew the Jets were made of the stuff of champions when they came back from a midseason junket to Japan and set a league-record of 15 consecutive wins.
"All the guys on this team are tarred with the same brush," said Hull. "They are people of good hearts and good minds."
The Jets, who consider themselves the Montreal Canadiens of their league, are known for their speed and finesse. In Peter Sullivan, Dan Labraaten, Willy Lindstrom, Kent Nilsson, Hedberg, Hull and Ulf Nilsson, the Jets had speed burners who play the game with artistry.
They won 50 and tied two of their 80 league games, finished first by the comfortable margin of nine points over New England.
In the opening round of playoffs, they met the sixth-place Birmingham Bulls, their very antithesis. When the Bulls won, they usually terrorized their opponents. They had talent, too, couched and protected by an army of bodyguards.
Their best of seven series lasted five games. Feelings ran high, and the Jets never forgot the forecast of Birmingham Coach Glen Sonmor in the wake of his club's defeat.
"No matter who you meet in the final, Quebec or New England, you will be beaten because outside of a couple of Swedes, you'll be out-competed, out-worked and out-coached, too."
On no count was Sonmor proved right.
Four factors seemed to make the Jets a better hockey club than the one that lost in seven games in last year's WHA final against the Quebec Nordiques.
They had two capable goaltenders instead of one. Joe Daley, one of only two originals, had a 21-11-1 record and a goals-against average of 3.29, while Gary Bromley posted a 25-12-1 record and an average of 3.31.
Another factor was the addition of rugged Kim Clackson. He made every member of the Jets infinitely braver. He feared no one and challenged every one no matter where or under what circumstances. Clackson could intimidate intimidators. Consequently, the Jets spent most of their time playing in peace.
Hillman's low-key coaching style disrupted no one. Extremely stable, his cool, dedicated approach seemed to suit the Jets best. His predecessor, Bobby Kromm, is a very capable career coach. But his volatile nature did disturb some of the Jets, notably Hull and Sjoberg.
But, the difference in the end, according to Hillman, was the Jets' depth. "I consider the turning point this season to be the day this club acquired Lynn Powis, Dave Kryskow and Ken Baird," said Hillman.
"The low point had to be the day we cut back, dropping Fran Huck and sending Kent Ruhnke to the minors. It's too bad. I know both of them could have contributed. But we had to do it to stay within budget."
When the Jets entered the playoffs, the only players under contract for next season were goaltenders Joe Daley and Markus Mattsson, defenseman Lars-Erik Sjoberg, and forwards Peter Sullivan, Willy Lindstrom, Bobby Hull and Kent Nilsson.
But the day the Jets wrapped up their second Avco Cup, it was announced that Bob Guindon had signed, as had Barry Long and Dan Labraaten, both of whom spurned offers by the Detroit Red Wings.
The day after they won the title, however, Vancouver signed Gary Bromley for two seasons.
