# Houston Aeros (WHA)

The Houston Aeros were a professional ice hockey team in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1972 to 1978.

## Franchise history

The Aeros were originally slated to play in Dayton, Ohio, as a charter member of the WHA. However, Dayton residents were indifferent to a WHA team, and there were doubts that a U.S. market with less than a million people and a stagnating economy would support a major league hockey franchise. More important, in the short term, Dayton did not have a suitable arena. The largest one in the city, the University of Dayton Arena, did not have an ice plant and the university balked at the cost of installing one. The largest hockey venue, Hara Arena, seated only 5,000 people, not enough even for temporary use. Due to these problems, owner Paul Deneau moved the team to Houston, Texas. Although the name "Aeros" had been chosen in honor of the Wright brothers, who had lived and worked in Dayton, it was deemed appropriate for Houston given its importance in the space industry.
In Houston, the Aeros became one of the most successful franchises in the WHA. They won four consecutive Western Division titles, from 1973–74 to 1976–77, and finished second in the Western Division in 1972–73 and third in the league in 1977–78. They won the AVCO World Trophy in 1974 over the Chicago Cougars and in 1975 over the Quebec Nordiques, winning both series in four-game sweeps.
In 1977, John Ziegler became president of the National Hockey League, the WHA's established rival, and soon began the first serious discussions of merger with the WHA. Houston, along with Cincinnati, Winnipeg, New England, Quebec, and Edmonton applied for entry into the NHL. After a lengthy debate, NHL owners voted the proposal down.
Discussions resumed in 1978, and it again appeared that the Aeros, as one of the league's strongest teams, were an obvious candidate to join the NHL. However, by now Ziegler realized NHL owners would never vote to admit six teams and proposed to admit four WHA franchises. The WHA responded by insisting that all three of its Canadian teams be included in the merger. This left room for only one American team. The Aeros and Whalers were the only serious contenders, as they were the most stable of the American teams. Aeros owner Kenneth Schnitzer tried to persuade Boston Bruins owner Jeremy Jacobs to support a merger that included the Aeros and not the Hartford-based Whalers, but Jacobs was opposed to any sort of merger with the WHA. Also, Ziegler was cool to the idea of admitting another team from the Sun Belt. Of the three Sun Belt teams that had joined the league since 1967, one, the California Golden Seals, had relocated and another, the Atlanta Flames, were struggling financially. (The Flames would move to Calgary two years later.)
During the final series of talks, it became evident that no merger would take place in time for the 1978–79 NHL season. It was also apparent that the Aeros were not likely to be included. Schnitzer announced that the Aeros would not take part in the 1978–79 WHA season. He first applied for direct admission to the NHL, only to find the older league uninterested, with so many of its existing franchises struggling. Finally, Schnitzer campaigned to purchase an existing club and relocate it to Houston. The obvious candidate to move was the Cleveland Barons (formerly the Golden Seals), who had barely survived the season and were on the verge of folding. Schnitzer believed the older league would accept almost any other proposal as an alternative to the embarrassment of having to disband a franchise, and did come close to a deal to relocate the moribund Barons to Houston. However, the NHL opted instead to approve a proposal from the owners of the Minnesota North Stars to buy the Barons franchise and merge it with their own. Having run out of options, Schnitzer folded the Aeros on July 9, 1978. The Aeros were thus the only WHA champion that did not join the NHL.
Bill Dineen was the Aeros' head coach during their entire history. Among the members of the team were Gordie Howe and his two sons Mark and Marty, who became the first father/son combination to play together in professional hockey. Mark Howe was the last active member of the Aeros, retiring as a member of the Detroit Red Wings, his father's old team, in 1995.

## Season-by-season record

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Season | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM | Finish | Playoffs |
| 1972–73 | 78 | 39 | 35 | 4 | 82 | 284 | 269 | 1363 | 2nd, Western | Won quarter-final (Sharks) Lost semi-final (Jets) |
| 1973–74 | 78 | 48 | 25 | 5 | 101 | 318 | 219 | 1038 | 1st, Western | Won quarter-final (Jets) Won semi-final (Fighting Saints) Won in Final (Cougars) |
| 1974–75 | 78 | 53 | 25 | 0 | 106 | 369 | 247 | 1257 | 1st, Western | Won quarter-final (Crusaders) Won semi-final (Mariners) Won in Final (Nordiques) |
| 1975–76 | 80 | 53 | 27 | 0 | 106 | 341 | 263 | 1093 | 1st, Western | Won quarter-final (Mariners) Won semi-final (Whalers) Lost in Final (Jets) |
| 1976–77 | 80 | 50 | 24 | 6 | 106 | 320 | 241 | 1432 | 1st, Western | Won quarter-final (Oilers) Lost semi-final (Jets) |
| 1977–78 | 80 | 42 | 34 | 4 | 88 | 296 | 302 | 1543 | 3rd, League | Lost quarter-final (Nordiques) |
| Totals | 474 | 285 | 170 | 19 | 589 | 1928 | 1541 | 7726 | | |