The 1977–78 WCHL season was the 12th season for the Western Canada Hockey League. Twelve teams completed a 72-game season. The New Westminster Bruins won their fourth consecutive President's Cup and second consecutive Memorial Cup.
League notes
- The Calgary Centennials relocated to Billings, Montana to become the Billings Bighorns.
- The Winnipeg Monarchs relocated to Calgary, Alberta to become the Calgary Wranglers.
- The Kamloops Chiefs relocated to Seattle, Washington to become the Seattle Breakers.
Regular season
Final standings
| East Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x Brandon Wheat Kings | 72 | 46 | 12 | 14 | 106 | 424 | 299 |
| x Flin Flon Bombers | 72 | 33 | 30 | 9 | 75 | 396 | 380 |
| x Regina Pats | 72 | 29 | 38 | 5 | 63 | 363 | 405 |
| Saskatoon Blades | 72 | 20 | 50 | 2 | 42 | 340 | 460 |
| Central Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x Lethbridge Broncos | 72 | 36 | 29 | 7 | 79 | 341 | 328 |
| x Billings Bighorns | 72 | 32 | 31 | 9 | 73 | 342 | 336 |
| x Medicine Hat Tigers | 72 | 22 | 41 | 9 | 53 | 293 | 365 |
| Calgary Wranglers | 72 | 18 | 40 | 14 | 50 | 303 | 404 |
| West Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x Portland Winter Hawks | 72 | 41 | 20 | 11 | 93 | 361 | 296 |
| x Victoria Cougars | 72 | 34 | 29 | 9 | 77 | 365 | 333 |
| x New Westminster Bruins | 72 | 33 | 28 | 11 | 77 | 345 | 310 |
| Seattle Breakers | 72 | 32 | 28 | 12 | 76 | 359 | 316 |
Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brian Propp | Brandon Wheat Kings | 70 | 70 | 112 | 182 | 200 |
| Ray Allison | Brandon Wheat Kings | 71 | 73 | 86 | 160 | 254 |
| Steve Tambellini | Lethbridge Broncos | 66 | 75 | 80 | 155 | 32 |
| Errol Rausse | Seattle Breakers | 72 | 62 | 92 | 154 | 60 |
| Bill Derlago | Brandon Wheat Kings | 52 | 89 | 63 | 152 | 105 |
| Geordie Robertson | Victoria Cougars | 61 | 64 | 72 | 136 | 85 |
| Gerald Minor | Regina Pats | 66 | 54 | 75 | 129 | 236 |
| Merlin Malinowski | Medicine Hat Tigers | 72 | 48 | 78 | 126 | 131 |
| Ryan Walter | Seattle Breakers | 62 | 54 | 71 | 125 | 148 |
| Wayne Babych | Portland Winter Hawks | 68 | 50 | 71 | 121 | 218 |
1978 WCHL Playoffs
Division Semi-finals
Round Robin format
- Flin Flon (4–4) advanced
- Regina (4–4) advanced
- Brandon (4–4) eliminated
- Billings (6–2) advanced
- Medicine Hat (3–5) advanced
- Lethbridge (3–5) eliminated
- New Westminster (7–1) advanced
- Victoria (4–4) advanced
- Portland (1–7) eliminated
Division Finals
- Flin Flon defeated Regina 4 games to 1
- Billings defeated Medicine Hat 4 games to 0
- New Westminster defeated Victoria 4 games to 1
League semi-finals
Round Robin format
- Billings (3–1) advanced
- New Westminster (3–1) advanced
- Flin Flon (0–4) eliminated
WHL Championship
- New Westminster defeated Billings 4 games to 0
All-Star game
On January 18, the West All-Stars defeated the East All-Stars 2–1 at Regina, Saskatchewan with a crowd of 2,814.
WHL awards
All-Star Teams
| First Team | Second Team | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Goal | Tim Thomlison | Billings Bighorns | Bart Hunter | Portland Winter Hawks |
| Defense | Brad McCrimmon | Brandon Wheat Kings | Dwayne Lowdermilk | Seattle Breakers |
| Larry Playfair | Portland Winter Hawks | Keith Brown (tie) | Portland Winter Hawks | |
| - | - | Brian Young (tie) | New Westminster Bruins | |
| Center | Ryan Walter | Seattle Breakers | Bill Derlago | Brandon Wheat Kings |
| Left Wing | Brian Propp | Brandon Wheat Kings | Errol Rausse | Seattle Breakers |
| Right Wing | Wayne Babych | Portland Winter Hawks | Ray Allison | Brandon Wheat Kings |
See also
References
- whl.ca
- 2005–06 WHL Guide
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