1978–79 Chicago Black Hawks
Smythe Division champions
Division1st Smythe
1978–79 record29–36–15
Goals for244
Goals against277
Team information
General managerBob Pulford
CoachBob Pulford
CaptainKeith Magnuson
Alternate captainsNone

The 1978–79 Chicago Black Hawks season was the 53rd season of operation of the Chicago Black Hawks in the National Hockey League. The club was coming off a first-place finish in the Smythe Division in 1977-78. In the 1978 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Black Hawks were swept by the Boston Bruins in four games in the quarter-finals.

Offseason

The Black Hawks had a very quiet off-season, however, Chicago did acquire goaltender 21-year-old goaltender Murray Bannerman from the Vancouver Canucks to complete an earlier trade that sent Pit Martin to the Canucks. Bannerman spent the previous season with the Fort Wayne Komets of the IHL, and did appear in a game with Vancouver, allowing no goals in a period of action.

In a couple of minor trades, Chicago traded away Pierre Plante to the Minnesota North Stars to complete an earlier deal, and in a separate trade, Chicago traded Thomas Gradin to the Vancouver Canucks for the Canucks second round draft pick in the 1980 NHL Entry Draft.

Regular season

Chicago opened the season with a six-game unbeaten streak, going 3-0-3, before suffering their first loss. The Hawks would struggle after their hot start, as Chicago saw their record fall to 17-24-9 at the start of February, however, despite their poor record, the Black Hawks were in first place in the Smythe Division. The Black Hawks turned their fortunes around in their next 14 games, going 8-3-3, putting their record at 25-27-12, with 62 points, 14 ahead of the second place Vancouver Canucks. Chicago then fell into an eight-game winless streak (0-7-1), but still held a 10-point lead. Chicago then finished the season with a 29-36-15 record, earning 73 points, and winning the Smythe Division for the second season in a row, and seventh division title in the past ten seasons.

Offensively, the Black Hawks were led by Ivan Boldirev, who led the club with 29 goals and 64 points in 66 games. Stan Mikita had 19 goals and a team high 36 assists for 55 points to finish second in team scoring. Defenceman Bob Murray scored 19 goals and 51 points to lead the Black Hawks blueline. Defenceman Dave Logan had a team high 175 penalty minutes, while winger Ted Bulley led Chicago with a +18 rating.

In goal, Tony Esposito saw the majority of playing time, going 24-28-11 with a 3.27 GAA, while earning four shutouts.

Final standings

Smythe Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Chicago Black Hawks8029361524427773
Vancouver Canucks8025421321729163
St. Louis Blues8018501224934848
Colorado Rockies8015531221033142

[1]

Record vs. opponents

Smythe Division record vs. opponents

Game log

No. R Date Score Opponent Record
1TOctober 11, 19784–4Atlanta Flames (1978–79)0–0–1
2TOctober 15, 19783–3Vancouver Canucks (1978–79)0–0–2
3WOctober 18, 19784–2@ Washington Capitals (1978–79)1–0–2
4WOctober 19, 19786–2Minnesota North Stars (1978–79)2–0–2
5WOctober 22, 19786–5Boston Bruins (1978–79)3–0–2
6TOctober 25, 19782–2Washington Capitals (1978–79)3–0–3
7LOctober 28, 19782–7@ Detroit Red Wings (1978–79)3–1–3
8WOctober 29, 19784–1Montreal Canadiens (1978–79)4–1–3
9LNovember 1, 19780–1Vancouver Canucks (1978–79)4–2–3
10TNovember 4, 19785–5@ St. Louis Blues (1978–79)4–2–4
11WNovember 5, 19783–1St. Louis Blues (1978–79)5–2–4
12WNovember 8, 19782–1Toronto Maple Leafs (1978–79)6–2–4
13LNovember 10, 19783–5@ Atlanta Flames (1978–79)6–3–4
14LNovember 12, 19781–4Los Angeles Kings (1978–79)6–4–4
15LNovember 15, 19781–8@ New York Rangers (1978–79)6–5–4
16WNovember 16, 19784–3@ Philadelphia Flyers (1978–79)7–5–4
17LNovember 18, 19783–8@ Colorado Rockies (1978–79)7–6–4
18LNovember 20, 19783–4@ Los Angeles Kings (1978–79)7–7–4
19LNovember 21, 19782–5@ Vancouver Canucks (1978–79)7–8–4
20WNovember 25, 19788–3@ Montreal Canadiens (1978–79)8–8–4
21TNovember 29, 19781–1Vancouver Canucks (1978–79)8–8–5
22LDecember 2, 19782–5@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1978–79)8–9–5
23WDecember 3, 19784–3Colorado Rockies (1978–79)9–9–5
24LDecember 7, 19782–4@ Vancouver Canucks (1978–79)9–10–5
25WDecember 9, 19784–2@ St. Louis Blues (1978–79)10–10–5
26TDecember 10, 19783–3Detroit Red Wings (1978–79)10–10–6
27LDecember 13, 19782–6Buffalo Sabres (1978–79)10–11–6
28LDecember 14, 19782–3@ Buffalo Sabres (1978–79)10–12–6
29LDecember 16, 19781–5@ Colorado Rockies (1978–79)10–13–6
30TDecember 17, 19783–3Pittsburgh Penguins (1978–79)10–13–7
31LDecember 20, 19783–5Montreal Canadiens (1978–79)10–14–7
32LDecember 21, 19781–5@ Montreal Canadiens (1978–79)10–15–7
33WDecember 23, 19785–2Philadelphia Flyers (1978–79)11–15–7
34WDecember 27, 19784–3St. Louis Blues (1978–79)12–15–7
35LDecember 30, 19784–5New York Rangers (1978–79)12–16–7
36LJanuary 3, 19793–6Boston Bruins (1978–79)12–17–7
37TJanuary 4, 19793–3@ Buffalo Sabres (1978–79)12–17–8
38WJanuary 6, 19795–3@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1978–79)13–17–8
39WJanuary 7, 19795–3Washington Capitals (1978–79)14–17–8
40WJanuary 10, 19793–0Los Angeles Kings (1978–79)15–17–8
41LJanuary 13, 19793–4@ Minnesota North Stars (1978–79)15–18–8
42WJanuary 17, 19792–1Colorado Rockies (1978–79)16–18–8
43LJanuary 19, 19791–6@ Atlanta Flames (1978–79)16–19–8
44LJanuary 20, 19792–4@ New York Islanders (1978–79)16–20–8
45LJanuary 22, 19791–2New York Islanders (1978–79)16–21–8
46WJanuary 24, 19795–0@ Vancouver Canucks (1978–79)17–21–8
47LJanuary 27, 19791–4@ Washington Capitals (1978–79)17–22–8
48LJanuary 28, 19792–7St. Louis Blues (1978–79)17–23–8
49TJanuary 31, 19792–2Boston Bruins (1978–79)17–23–9
50LFebruary 1, 19791–6@ Boston Bruins (1978–79)17–24–9
51WFebruary 3, 19794–2@ Atlanta Flames (1978–79)18–24–9
52WFebruary 4, 19795–4New York Islanders (1978–79)19–24–9
53LFebruary 12, 19792–5Toronto Maple Leafs (1978–79)19–25–9
54TFebruary 14, 19794–4Atlanta Flames (1978–79)19–25–10
55WFebruary 17, 19795–1@ St. Louis Blues (1978–79)20–25–10
56WFebruary 18, 19795–3Colorado Rockies (1978–79)21–25–10
57WFebruary 21, 19793–2Buffalo Sabres (1978–79)22–25–10
58WFebruary 22, 19794–2@ Buffalo Sabres (1978–79)23–25–10
59LFebruary 24, 19791–5@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1978–79)23–26–10
60TFebruary 25, 19792–2Pittsburgh Penguins (1978–79)23–26–11
61TFebruary 28, 19794–4@ Vancouver Canucks (1978–79)23–26–12
62WMarch 2, 19794–0@ Colorado Rockies (1978–79)24–26–12
63LMarch 3, 19795–8@ Los Angeles Kings (1978–79)24–27–12
64WMarch 8, 19795–1@ Philadelphia Flyers (1978–79)25–27–12
65LMarch 10, 19791–7@ New York Islanders (1978–79)25–28–12
66LMarch 11, 19792–5@ New York Rangers (1978–79)25–29–12
67LMarch 14, 19790–4Philadelphia Flyers (1978–79)25–30–12
68LMarch 17, 19792–4@ Boston Bruins (1978–79)25–31–12
69LMarch 18, 19792–4Detroit Red Wings (1978–79)25–32–12
70LMarch 20, 19793–5@ Detroit Red Wings (1978–79)25–33–12
71LMarch 21, 19796–7New York Rangers (1978–79)25–34–12
72TMarch 24, 19793–3@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1978–79)25–34–13
73WMarch 25, 19793–0Colorado Rockies (1978–79)26–34–13
74TMarch 27, 19791–1@ Colorado Rockies (1978–79)26–34–14
75WMarch 29, 19796–1New York Islanders (1978–79)27–34–14
76TApril 1, 19792–2Vancouver Canucks (1978–79)27–34–15
77LApril 3, 19793–4@ Minnesota North Stars (1978–79)27–35–15
78WApril 4, 19797–1Minnesota North Stars (1978–79)28–35–15
79LApril 7, 19791–4@ St. Louis Blues (1978–79)28–36–15
80WApril 8, 19793–2St. Louis Blues (1978–79)29–36–15

Playoffs

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 New York Islanders, who finished with the best record in the NHL, going 51-15-14, earning 116 points and winning the Patrick Division. The series opened with two games at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on Long Island, New York, with the Islanders, led by a Mike Bossy hat trick, easily defeated Chicago 6-2. The second game was decided in overtime, after the two teams played through three scoreless periods. The Islanders Mike Bossy scored his fourth goal of the series in overtime to give New York the 1-0 victory, and a 2-0 series lead. Black Hawks goaltender Tony Esposito made 39 saves in the loss, while Islanders goaltender Billy Smith stopped all 22 shots he faced. The series moved to Chicago Stadium for the next two games. In the third game, the Islanders once again shutout the Black Hawks, this time with goaltender Chico Resch making 21 saves for the shutout, as New York defeated the Hawks 4-0 to take a 3-0 series lead. The Islanders would complete the sweep in the fourth game, winning 3-1, and sending the Blackhawks to their sixteenth consecutive playoff loss.

New York Islanders 4, Chicago Black Hawks 0

#DateVisitorScoreHomeRecord
1April 16Chicago Black Hawks2–6New York Islanders0-1
2April 18Chicago Black Hawks0–1New York Islanders0-2
3April 20New York Islanders4–0Chicago Black Hawks0-3
4April 22New York Islanders3–1Chicago Black Hawks0-4

Player stats

Regular season

Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Ivan BoldirevC662935642571004
Stan MikitaC/RW65193655343401
Bob MurrayD79193251384410
Ted BulleyLW7527235015318108
John MarksLW80212445352402
Reg KerrLW7316244050-7224
J.P. BordeleauRW6315213634-7212
Grant MulveyRW8019153499-14501
Cliff KorollRW78121931203122
Phil RussellD6682331122-7111
Darcy RotaLW6313173077-10101
Doug WilsonD5652126374210
Mike O'ConnellD484222620-1100
Alain DaigleRW74111425552000
Tim HigginsRW3671623306001
Dave LoganD7611415176-9000
Tom LysiakC1401010143000
Mike WaltonC266394-4301
Jim HarrisonC2145922-6000
Doug HicksD4418915-12000
Bob KellyLW6325785-10000
Keith MagnusonD2614541-4000
Greg FoxD14055169000
Bobby OrrD622442000
Pat RibbleD1213487001
Harold PhillipoffLW140446-4000
Bob HoffmeyerD60225-4000
Doug LecuyerLW21010-1000
Tony EspositoG6301120000
Jean SavardC110119-2000
Mike VeisorG1701100000
Miles ZaharkoD100000000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T GA GAA SO
Tony Esposito3780632428112063.274
Mike Veisor102017584603.530
Team:4800802936152663.324

Playoffs

Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM PPG SHG GWG
Reg KerrLW41015000
Bob MurrayD41016000
Mike WaltonC41010000
J.P. BordeleauRW40112000
Greg FoxD40110000
Rick PatersonC10110000
Harold PhillipoffLW40117000
Kirk BowmanLW20000000
Ted BulleyLW20000000
Alain DaigleRW40000000
Tony EspositoG40000000
Tim HigginsRW40000000
Bob KellyLW40009000
Cliff KorollRW40000000
Dave LoganD40002000
Tom LysiakC40002000
John MarksLW40002000
Grant MulveyRW10002000
Mike O'ConnellD40004000
Pat RibbleD40004000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO
Tony Esposito243404143.460
Team:243404143.460

[3]

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;

Awards and records

Transactions

Draft picks

Chicago's draft picks at the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft held at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal, Quebec.

Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)
110Tim Higgins CanadaOttawa 67's (OMJHL)
229Doug Lecuyer CanadaPortland Winterhawks (WCHL)
346Rick Paterson CanadaCornwall Royals (QMJHL)
463Brian Young CanadaNew Westminster Bruins (WCHL)
579Mark Murphy CanadaSault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL)
696Dave Feamster United StatesColorado College (WCHA)
7113Dave Mancuso CanadaWindsor Spitfires (OMJHL)
8130Sandy Ross CanadaColgate University (ECAC)
9147Mark Locken CanadaNiagara Falls Flyers (OMJHL)
10164Glenn Van United StatesColorado College (WCHA)
11179Darryl Sutter CanadaLethbridge Broncos (WCHL)

Farm teams

See also

References

  1. ↑ National Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p. 163, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, ISBN 0-920445-98-5
  2. ↑ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  3. ↑ "1978-79 Chicago Black Hawks Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved June 16, 2009.
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