1972–73 Ottawa Nationals season

The 1972–73 Ottawa Nationals season was the 1st season of the Nationals franchise in the World Hockey Association (WHA). The Nationals finished 4th in the Eastern Division and lost in the Quarter-finals to the New England Whalers 4 games to 1.
==Off-season==
The Nationals were originally owned by Doug Michel, who rumoured he would place the team in either Hamilton or Toronto, however, he placed the club in Ottawa. After the team was placed to play in Ottawa, Nick Trbovich became the majority owner, with Michel running hockey operations. The club was placed in the six team Eastern Division, with the top four clubs earning a playoff berth.
In June 1972, the team signed its first players, Rich Leduc and Ron Climie.
The Nationals hired former Toronto Maple Leafs player Billy Harris to coach the team. Ottawa's top signing was Wayne Carleton, who had previously played with the Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins and California Golden Seals in the NHL.
The Nationals jersey colours for their only WHA season were red, white and blue with a primarily white home jersey and a primarily red away jersey. Jersey numbers were outlined with the names were not. Shoulders yolks with three stripes underneath the front and back and three stripes on the arms and body completed the design. The logo was a rounded rectangle containing the letters "ON" with a maple leaf inside the "O". Both jerseys had the player's names on the back with no nameplate.
==Pre-season==
The Nationals held their training camp in Hull, Quebec. NHL players the team had signed couldn't attend camp until October 1, 1972, the day their NHL contracts expired. The team held its first exhibition game on October 1 and lost 3-1 to the Philadelphia Blazers. The Nationals lost all five of their exhibition games.
==Regular Season==
The first game in the WHA was a match between the Nationals and the Alberta Oilers at the Civic Centre, with Alberta winning the game 7-4 on October 11, 1972. Ottawa recorded their first victory in their fourth game, a 6-2 decision over the Chicago Cougars. The Nationals would eventually find themselves a season high two games over .500 with a 12-10-1 record before falling into a long slump, in which the club had a record of 7-21-3 in their next 31 games and see themselves in last place in the Eastern Division. Ottawa would play very good hockey down the stretch, and finish the season at 35-39-4, earning 74 points and the fourth and final playoff position.
Attendance was an issue for the club though, as they drew an average of just over 3,000 fans per game, as the team was competing against the very popular Ottawa 67's OHA team for fans.
Offensively, Ottawa was led by Carleton, who scored a team high 42 goals and 49 assists for 91 points, which ranked him tenth in league scoring. Twenty year old Gavin Kirk had a very good season, earning 68 points in 78 games, while Bob Charlebois earned 64 points. On the blueline, Brian Gibbons had 42 points to lead the way, while Rick Cunningham had 41 points, and a team high 121 penalty minutes.
In goal, Gilles Gratton had the majority of playing time, winning a team high 25 games and posting a 3.71 GAA. Les Binkley backed him up, earning 10 wins and a GAA of 3.72.
The Nationals would play the season in Ottawa, but transferred their playoff games to Toronto. Due to low attendance in Ottawa, an arena lease dispute and much better attendance in their two playoff games in Toronto, where they averaged over 5000 fans per game, the Nationals would relocate to Toronto permanently beginning in the 1973-74, and the club would be renamed the Toronto Toros. 
===Final Standings===
===Game Log===
Regular Season Schedule	Regular Season Schedule	Regular Season Schedule 	Regular Season Schedule	Regular Season Schedule 	Regular Season Schedule	Regular Season Schedule
# 	Date 	Visitor 	Score 	Home 	Record 	Pts
1 	October 11 	Alberta Oilers 	7–4 	Ottawa Nationals 	0–1–0 	0
2 	October 14 	Ottawa Nationals 	6–8 	New York Raiders 	0–2–0 	0
3 	October 15 	Cleveland Crusaders 	7–5 	Ottawa Nationals 	0–3–0 	0
4 	October 19 	Chicago Cougars 	2–6 	Ottawa Nationals 	1–3–0 	2
5 	October 21 	Ottawa Nationals 	5–3 	Cleveland Crusaders 	2–3–0 	4
6 	October 22 	Ottawa Nationals 	3–2 	Quebec Nordiques 	3–3–0 	6
7 	October 25 	Ottawa Nationals 	8–5 	Los Angeles Sharks 	4–3–0 	8
8 	October 26 	Ottawa Nationals 	3–7 	Houston Aeros 	4–4–0 	8
9 	October 28 	Ottawa Nationals 	5–3 	Philadelphia Blazers 	5–4–0 	10
10 	November 2 	Los Angeles Sharks 	1–1 	Ottawa Nationals 	5–4–1 	11
11 	November 5 	Ottawa Nationals 	5–3 	Alberta Oilers 	6–4–1 	13
12 	November 9 	Winnipeg Jets 	4–1 	Ottawa Nationals 	6–5–1 	13
13 	November 12 	Philadelphia Blazers 	1–2 	Ottawa Nationals 	7–5–1 	15
14 	November 16 	Ottawa Nationals 	3–6 	Cleveland Crusaders 	7–6–1 	15
15 	November 18 	Ottawa Nationals 	2–3 	New England Whalers 	7–7–1 	15
16 	November 20 	Ottawa Nationals 	5–7 	New England Whalers 	7–8–1 	15
17 	November 21 	Quebec Nordiques 	2–4 	Ottawa Nationals 	8–8–1 	17
18 	November 23 	Chicago Cougars 	8–1 	Ottawa Nationals 	8–9–1 	17
19 	November 26 	Alberta Oilers 	2–1 	Ottawa Nationals 	8–10–1 	17
20 	November 28 	Minnesota Fighting Saints	2–3 	Ottawa Nationals 	9–10–1 	19
21 	November 30 	Cleveland Crusaders 	2–3 	Ottawa Nationals 	10–10–1 	21
22 	December 1 	Ottawa Nationals 	4–3 	Winnipeg Jets 	11–10–1 	23
23 	December 3 	Houston Aeros 	4–5 	Ottawa Nationals 	12–10–1 	25
24 	December 4 	Ottawa Nationals 	2–7 	New England Whalers 	12–11–1 	25
25 	December 7 	New England Whalers 	4–2 	Ottawa Nationals 	12–12–1 	25
26 	December 9 	Ottawa Nationals 	1–7 	Philadelphia Blazers 	12–13–1 	25
27 	December 10 	Quebec Nordiques 	6–7 	Ottawa Nationals 	13–13–1 	27
28 	December 14 	New York Raiders 	4–3 	Ottawa Nationals 	13–14–1 	27
29 	December 15 	Ottawa Nationals 	4–3 	Alberta Oilers 	14–14–1 	29
30 	December 17 	Ottawa Nationals 	1–3 	Alberta Oilers 	14–15–1 	29
31 	December 19 	Ottawa Nationals 	3–7 	Quebec Nordiques 	14–16–1 	29
32 	December 21 	Los Angeles Sharks 	4–4 	Ottawa Nationals 	14–16–2 	30
33 	December 22 	Ottawa Nationals 	5–7 	New York Raiders 	14–17–2 	30
34 	December 24 	Quebec Nordiques 	2–6 	Ottawa Nationals 	15–17–2 	32
35 	December 26 	Houston Aeros 	3–3 	Ottawa Nationals 	15–17–3 	33
36 	December 30 	Ottawa Nationals 	4–2 	Chicago Cougars 	16–17–3 	35
37 	December 31 	Ottawa Nationals 	4–8 	Quebec Nordiques 	16–18–3 	35
38 	January 4 	Ottawa Nationals 	4–9 	New York Raiders 	16–19–3 	35
39 	January 9 	Quebec Nordiques 	5–7 	Ottawa Nationals 	17–19–3 	37
40 	January 11 	New York Raiders 	1–4 	Ottawa Nationals 	18–19–3 	39
41 	January 12 	Ottawa Nationals 	3–4 	Philadelphia Blazers 	18–20–3 	39
42 	January 14 	Ottawa Nationals 	2–3 	Minnesota Fighting Saints	18–21–3 	39
43 	January 16 	Ottawa Nationals 	4–5 	Quebec Nordiques 	18–22–3 	39
44 	January 18 	Minnesota Fighting Saints	3–6 	Ottawa Nationals 	19–22–3 	41
45 	January 19 	Ottawa Nationals 	2–4 	Philadelphia Blazers 	19–23–3 	41
46 	January 21 	Ottawa Nationals 	2–5 	Houston Aeros 	19–24–3 	41
47 	January 23 	Ottawa Nationals 	3–11 	Houston Aeros 	19–25–3 	41
48 	January 25 	New England Whalers 	4–2 	Ottawa Nationals 	19–26–3 	41
49 	January 26 	Ottawa Nationals 	2–4 	Minnesota Fighting Saints	19–27–3 	41
50 	January 28 	Winnipeg Jets 	5–4 	Ottawa Nationals 	19–28–3 	41
51 	January 30 	Philadelphia Blazers 	5–4 	Ottawa Nationals 	19–29–3 	41
52 	February 1 	Ottawa Nationals 	2–2 	Cleveland Crusaders 	19–29–4 	42
53 	February 2 	Ottawa Nationals 	1–4 	Chicago Cougars 	19–30–4 	42
54 	February 4 	Cleveland Crusaders 	3–2 	Ottawa Nationals 	19–31–4 	42
55 	February 6 	Philadelphia Blazers 	3–5 	Ottawa Nationals 	20–31–4 	44
56 	February 8 	New York Raiders 	3–2 	Ottawa Nationals 	20–32–4 	44
57 	February 9 	Ottawa Nationals 	7–4 	New England Whalers 	21–32–4 	46
58 	February 11 	Ottawa Nationals 	2–3 	New York Raiders 	21–33–4 	46
59 	February 14 	Ottawa Nationals 	6–3 	Quebec Nordiques 	22–33–4 	48
60 	February 15 	Ottawa Nationals 	0–3 	Minnesota Fighting Saints	22–34–4 	48
61 	February 17 	Ottawa Nationals 	3–1 	Chicago Cougars 	23–34–4 	50
62 	February 20 	Los Angeles Sharks 	4–2 	Ottawa Nationals 	23–35–4 	50
63 	February 22 	Philadelphia Blazers 	6–5 	Ottawa Nationals 	23–36-4 	50
64 	February 25 	Alberta Oilers 	2–3 	Ottawa Nationals 	24–36–4 	52
65 	February 27 	Cleveland Crusaders 	1–2 	Ottawa Nationals 	25–36–4 	54
66 	March 1 	New York Raiders 	1–2 	Ottawa Nationals 	26–36–4 	56
67 	March 4 	Chicago Cougars 	4–6 	Ottawa Nationals 	27–36–4 	58
68 	March 6 	Winnipeg Jets 	2–5 	Ottawa Nationals 	28–36–4 	60
69 	March 11 	Ottawa Nationals 	2–4 	Los Angeles Sharks 	28–37–4 	60
70 	March 13 	Ottawa Nationals 	3–1 	Los Angeles Sharks 	29–37–4 	62
71 	March 16 	Ottawa Nationals 	6–1 	Winnipeg Jets 	30–37–4 	64
72 	March 18 	Ottawa Nationals 	4–2 	Winnipeg Jets 	31–37–4 	66
73 	March 22 	New England Whalers 	2–4 	Ottawa Nationals 	32–37–4 	68
74 	March 25 	Minnesota Fighting Saints	1–6 	Ottawa Nationals 	33–37–4 	70
75 	March 27 	Quebec Nordiques 	2–6 	Ottawa Nationals 	34–37–4 	72
76 	March 29 	New England Whalers 	2–5 	Ottawa Nationals 	35–37–4 	74
77 	March 31 	Ottawa Nationals 	2–4 	Cleveland Crusaders 	35–38–4 	74
78 	April 1 	Houston Aeros 	6–3 	Ottawa Nationals 	35–39–4 	74
==Playoffs==
The Nationals would open the playoffs with a best of seven series against the New England Whalers, who had a league high 94 points. The series opened up with two games in New England, and the Whalers took advantage of their home ice, defeating Ottawa 6-3 and 4-3 to take a two game series lead. The series moved to Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, as the Nationals ownership decided to move their playoff games from Ottawa due to attendance problems. The Nationals used their "home ice" advantage in the third game, defeating the Whalers 4-2 to get back into the series, however, New England easily defeated Ottawa in the fourth game 7-3 to take a 3-1 series lead. The Whalers would close out the series in the fifth game back in New England, as they beat Ottawa 5-4 in overtime to eliminate the Nationals.
===New England Whalers 4, Ottawa Nationals 1===
#	Date 	Visitor 	Score	Home 	Record
1	April 7 	Ottawa Nationals 	3–6 	New England Whalers	0–1
2	April 8 	Ottawa Nationals 	3–4 	New England Whalers	0–2
3	April 10	New England Whalers	2–4 	Ottawa Nationals 	1-2
4	April 12	New England Whalers	7–3 	Ottawa Nationals 	1–3
5	April 14	Ottawa Nationals 	4–5 	New England Whalers	1-4
==Player Stats==
===Regular Season===
;Scoring Leaders
# 	Player 	GP	G 	A 	Pts	PIM
9 	Wayne Carleton 	75	42	49	91 	42
11	Gavin Kirk 	78	28	40	68 	54
16	Bob Charlebois 	78	24	40	64 	28
7 	Guy Trottier 	72	26	32	58 	25
19	Bob Leduc 	78	22	33	55 	71
12	Steve King 	69	18	34	52 	28
17	Tom Martin 	74	19	27	46 	27
6 	Brian Gibbons 	73	7 	35	42 	62
8 	Rick Sentes 	74	22	19	41 	78
3 	Rick Cunningham	78	9 	32	41 	121
21	Jack Gibson 	59	22	13	35 	48
23	Ron Climie 	31	12	19	31 	2
20	Brian Conacher 	69	8 	19	27 	32
4 	Ken Stephanson 	77	3 	16	19 	93
14	Tom Simpson 	57	10	7 	17 	44
10	Mike Boland 	41	1 	15	16 	44
5 	Mike Amodeo 	61	1 	14	15 	77
2 	Steve Warr 	72	3 	8 	11 	79
22	Chris Meloff 	28	1 	6 	7 	40
15	Ron Riley 	22	0 	5 	5 	2
24	John Donnelly 	15	1 	1 	2 	44
 	Merv Haney 	7 	0 	1 	1 	4
33	Gilles Gratton 	51	0 	1 	1 	10
1 	John Blum 	2 	0 	0 	0 	0
30	Les Binkley 	30	0 	0 	0 	0
;Goaltending
Player 	GP	TOI 	W 	L 	T	GA 	SO	GAA 	Save %
Gilles Gratton	51	3021	25	22	3	187	0 	3.71	.882
Les Binkley 	30	1709	10	17	1	106	0 	3.72	.882
Frank Blum 	2 	28 	0 	0 	0	3 	0 	6.43	.824
===Playoffs===
;Scoring Leaders
Player 	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Wayne Carleton	3 	3	3	6 	4
Gavin Kirk 	5 	2	3	5 	12
Tom Martin 	5 	0	5	5 	2
Rick Sentes 	5 	3	1	4 	2
Brian Conacher	5 	1	3	4 	4
;Goaltending
Player 	GP	TOI	W	L	GA	SO	GAA
Les Binkley 	4 	223	1	3	17	0 	4.57
Gilles Gratton	2 	87 	0	1	7 	0 	4.83
==Awards and Records==
*Wayne Carleton, Left Wing, WHA Third Team All-Star
==Gallery==
72-73WHAOttawaAd.jpg
72-73WHAQFTorontoGameAd.jpg|Quarter Final @ Toronto
==See Also==
* 1972–73 WHA season
==References==
*SHRP Sports
*The Internet Hockey Database
*Ottawa Nationals Attendance Figures (Archived 2009-10-21)
Category:1972 in hockey
Category:1973 in hockey
Category:Ottawa Nationals season