1977–78 Quebec Nordiques season

The 1977–78 Quebec Nordiques season was the Nordiques sixth season in the WHA, as they were coming off of a 47–31–3 record in the 1976–77 season, finishing in first place in the Eastern Division. Quebec defeated the New England Whalers, Indianapolis Racers and Winnipeg Jets to win their first ever Avco Cup.

1977–78 Quebec Nordiques
Division4th
1977–78 record40–37–3
Home record29–10–2
Road record11–27–1
Goals for349
Goals against347
Team information
General ManagerMaurice Filion
CoachMarc Boileau (27–30–2)
Maurice Filion (13–7–1)
CaptainMarc Tardif
ArenaColisée Pepsi
Team leaders
GoalsMarc Tardif (65)
AssistsMarc Tardif (89)
PointsMarc Tardif (154)
Penalty minutesPaul Baxter (240)
Plus/minusJean Bernier (+22)
WinsRichard Brodeur (18)
Goals against averageRichard Brodeur (3.70)

Off-season

During the off-season, the league would lose another three teams, as the Calgary Cowboys, Phoenix Roadrunners, and San Diego Mariners would all fold, bringing the league down to eight teams. The WHA abandoned the divisional format and grouped the remaining teams together. There had been a tentative agreement that would see the Nordiques, Cincinnati Stingers, Edmonton Oilers, Houston Aeros, New England Whalers, and Winnipeg Jets join the National Hockey League, however, it could not be finalized. In a unique move, the Soviet All-Stars and Czechoslovakian All-Stars would play games that would count in the final standings, as they played each WHA team once.

Regular season

After losing their opening two games, the Nordiques would get hot, and earn a 16–10–1 record through their opening 27 games to sit in second place in the league. Quebec would then fall into a slump, in which they would post a record of 11–20–1 record in their next 32 games to fall three games under .500, and into fifth place. The slump would cost head coach Marc Boileau his job, as he was relieved of his duties and replaced with Maurice Filion. Under Filion, the Nordiques improved, earning a record of 13–7–1 to finish the season with a 40–37–3 record, earning 83 points, and fourth place in the league.

Offensively, Quebec was led by Marc Tardif, who won the Bill Hunter Trophy awarded to the player who leads the league in scoring. Tardif led the league in goals with 65, tied for the league lead with 89 assists, for 154 points. Real Cloutier had another great season, scoring 56 goals and 129 points in 73 games. Serge Bernier finished third in team scoring with 78 points, despite missing 24 games, while Paulin Bordeleau scored 42 goals and 65 points. On defense, Garry Lariviere had a breakout season, earning 56 points, while Jean Bernier had 10 goals and 42 points. J.C. Tremblay continued to put up points, earning 42 in 56 games and Paul Baxter had 35 points, along with a team high 240 penalty minutes.

In goal, Richard Brodeur missed some time due to injuries, however, he still led the team with 18 wins and a 3.70 GAA in 36 games. Backup Jim Corsi had 10 wins and a 4.52 GAA, while Ken Broderick earned 9 wins with a 4.37 GAA.

Season standings

Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF= Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points

WHA Team W L T Pts GF GA PIM
Winnipeg Jets50282102381270988
New England Whalers44315933352691255
Houston Aeros42344882963021543
Quebec Nordiques40373833493471185
Edmonton Oilers38393793093071296
Birmingham Bulls36413752873142177
Cincinnati Stingers35423732983321701
Indianapolis Racers24515532673531189
Soviet All-Stars34172736120
Czechoslovakia All-Stars1613214087

Schedule and results
#DateVisitorScoreHomeRecordPts
1October 13Quebec Nordiques2–5Winnipeg Jets0–1–00
2October 14Quebec Nordiques2–4Edmonton Oilers0–2–00
3October 15Edmonton Oilers2–6Quebec Nordiques1–2–02
4October 18Cincinnati Stingers1–5Quebec Nordiques2–2–04
5October 21Quebec Nordiques4–4Indianapolis Racers2–2–15
6October 22Birmingham Bulls5–8Quebec Nordiques3–2–17
7October 26Quebec Nordiques1–7New England Whalers3–3–17
8October 30Houston Aeros4–5Quebec Nordiques4–3–19
9November 1New England Whalers6–3Quebec Nordiques4–4–19
10November 4Quebec Nordiques7–6Houston Aeros5–4–111
11November 5Quebec Nordiques4–5Birmingham Bulls5–5–111
12November 8Edmonton Oilers3–7Quebec Nordiques6–5–113
13November 11Quebec Nordiques3–2Winnipeg Jets7–5–115
14November 12Cincinnati Stingers6–5Quebec Nordiques7–6–115
15November 15Winnipeg Jets6–7Quebec Nordiques8–6–117
16November 18Quebec Nordiques5–6Houston Aeros8–7–117
17November 20Indianapolis Racers2–5Quebec Nordiques9–7–119
18November 22New England Whalers4–5Quebec Nordiques10–7–121
19November 23Quebec Nordiques3–4Cincinnati Stingers10–8–121
20November 25Quebec Nordiques6–2New England Whalers11–8–123
21November 26Birmingham Bulls2–4Quebec Nordiques12–8–125
22November 29Cincinnati Stingers3–2Quebec Nordiques12–9–125
23December 1Quebec Nordiques4–5Indianapolis Racers12–10–125
24December 3Winnipeg Jets5–6Quebec Nordiques13–10–127
25December 6Houston Aeros3–4Quebec Nordiques14–10–129
26December 10Indianapolis Racers3–5Quebec Nordiques15–10–131
27December 11Czechoslovakian All-Stars4–8Quebec Nordiques16–10–133
28December 26Quebec Nordiques4–9Winnipeg Jets16–11–133
29December 27Quebec Nordiques3–9Edmonton Oilers16–12–133
30January 1Quebec Nordiques5–2Birmingham Bulls17–12–135
31January 3Soviet All-Stars3–3Quebec Nordiques17–12–236
32January 4Quebec Nordiques6–3New England Whalers18–12–238
33January 6Quebec Nordiques3–5Cincinnati Stingers18–13–238
34January 10Birmingham Bulls4–6Quebec Nordiques19–13–240
35January 11Quebec Nordiques1–2Indianapolis Racers19–14–240
36January 14Edmonton Oilers4–7Quebec Nordiques20–14–242
37January 15Cincinnati Stingers6–3Quebec Nordiques20–15–242
38January 18Quebec Nordiques1–5Winnipeg Jets20–16–242
39January 20Quebec Nordiques8–2Cincinnati Stingers21–16–244
40January 21New England Whalers2–3Quebec Nordiques22–16–246
41January 22Quebec Nordiques3–6New England Whalers22–17–246
42January 24Houston Aeros6–5Quebec Nordiques22–18–246
43January 27Quebec Nordiques6–9Edmonton Oilers22–19–246
44January 29Quebec Nordiques4–3Edmonton Oilers23–19–248
45January 31Winnipeg Jets7–2Quebec Nordiques23–20–248
46February 2Quebec Nordiques4–2Birmingham Bulls24–20–250
47February 3Quebec Nordiques4–5Indianapolis Racers24–21–250
48February 4Edmonton Oilers4–3Quebec Nordiques24–22–250
49February 7Birmingham Bulls3–8Quebec Nordiques25–22–252
50February 9Quebec Nordiques1–2Houston Aeros25–23–252
51February 11Quebec Nordiques4–8Houston Aeros25–24–252
52February 12Quebec Nordiques2–8Cincinnati Stingers25–25–252
53February 14Quebec Nordiques1–5New England Whalers25–26–252
54February 15Quebec Nordiques6–9Indianapolis Racers25–27–252
55February 17Quebec Nordiques4–6Edmonton Oilers25–28–252
56February 19Quebec Nordiques2–5Winnipeg Jets25–29–252
57February 21New England Whalers5–6Quebec Nordiques26–29–254
58February 23Quebec Nordiques3–7Birmingham Bulls26–30–254
59February 25Indianapolis Racers5–7Quebec Nordiques27–30–256
60February 28Houston Aeros2–5Quebec Nordiques28–30–258
61March 1Quebec Nordiques4–3New England Whalers29–30–260
62March 4Houston Aeros3–3Quebec Nordiques29–30–361
63March 5New England Whalers1–2Quebec Nordiques30–30–363
64March 7Cincinnati Stingers5–4Quebec Nordiques30–31–363
65March 8Quebec Nordiques5–4Indianapolis Racers31–31–365
66March 9Quebec Nordiques2–9Birmingham Bulls31–32–365
67March 11Winnipeg Jets7–4Quebec Nordiques31–33–365
68March 14Edmonton Oilers3–6Quebec Nordiques32–33–367
69March 16Indianapolis Racers2–5Quebec Nordiques33–33–369
70March 18New England Whalers3–5Quebec Nordiques34–33–371
71March 19Quebec Nordiques3–5Winnipeg Jets34–34–371
72March 21Birmingham Bulls5–4Quebec Nordiques34–35–371
73March 24Quebec Nordiques4–3Birmingham Bulls35–35–373
74March 25Quebec Nordiques3–4Houston Aeros35–36–373
75March 28Cincinnati Stingers4–6Quebec Nordiques36–36–375
76April 1Winnipeg Jets2–5Quebec Nordiques37–36–377
77April 2Houston Aeros1–7Quebec Nordiques38–36–379
78April 4Edmonton Oilers1–9Quebec Nordiques39–36–381
79April 8Indianapolis Racers3–7Quebec Nordiques40–36–383
80April 9Quebec Nordiques2–6Cincinnati Stingers40–37–383

Playoffs

In the opening round of the playoffs, Quebec would face the Houston Aeros in a best of seven series. The Aeros finished the season with a 42–34–4 record, earning 86 points, and a third-place finish. The series opened in Houston, and the Aeros won the series opener in overtime by a 4–3 score, however, the defending champion Nordiques evened the series with a 5–4 overtime victory in the second game. The series moved to Quebec for the next two games, and the Nordiques took control of the series, winning the third game 5–1, followed by a 3–0 shutout victory in the fourth game to take a 3–1 series lead. The fifth game was played in Houston, and the Aeros staved off elimination with a 5–2, bringing the series back to Quebec for the sixth game. The Nordiques would dominate in the sixth game, crushing the Aeros 11–2, and advance to the WHA semi-finals.

In the WHA semi-finals, the Nordiques would face off against the New England Whalers. New England finished in second during the regular season, with a record of 44–31–5, earning 93 points. The Whalers defeated the Edmonton Oilers in five games in the opening round of the playoffs. The series opened with two games in New England, and the Whalers took an early series lead with a 5–1 victory in the series opener. Quebec fought back and tied the series up with a 3–2 win in the second game. The series moved to Quebec for the next two games, however, it was the Whalers who took control of the series, defeating the Nordiques 5–4 in the third game, followed by a 7–3 win in the fourth game to take a 3–1 series lead. In the fifth game back in New England, the Whalers took their opportunity and finished off the Nordiques, defeating Quebec 6–3 to win the series.

Quebec Nordiques 4, Houston Aeros 2
#DateVisitorScoreHomeRecord
1April 16Quebec Nordiques3–4Houston Aeros0–1
2April 18Quebec Nordiques5–4Houston Aeros1–1
3April 20Houston Aeros1–5Quebec Nordiques2–1
4April 21Houston Aeros0–3Quebec Nordiques3–1
5April 23Quebec Nordiques2–5Houston Aeros3–2
6April 25Houston Aeros2–11Quebec Nordiques4–2

New England Whalers 4, Quebec Nordiques 1
#DateVisitorScoreHomeRecord
1April 28Quebec Nordiques1–5New England Whalers0–1
2April 30Quebec Nordiques3–2New England Whalers1–1
3May 3New England Whalers5–4Quebec Nordiques1–2
4May 5New England Whalers7–3Quebec Nordiques1–3
5May 7Quebec Nordiques3–6New England Whalers1–4

Player statistics

Scoring leaders
Regular season
Player GP G A Pts PIM
Marc Tardif78658915450
Real Cloutier73567312919
Serge Bernier5826527848
Paulin Bordeleau7742236529
Matti Hagman5325315616
Playoffs
Player GP G A Pts PIM
Real Cloutier10971615
Marc Tardif11691511
Serge Bernier114101417
Paul Baxter11471142
Paulin Bordeleau1146102

Goaltending
PlayerGPMinWLTGASOGAASave %
Richard Brodeur3619621815212103.70.892
Don McLeod74032402804.17.870
Ken Broderick2411409818304.37.859
Jim Corsi23108910708204.52.873
Markus Mattsson62661303006.77.819
Playoffs
PlayerGPMinWLGASOGAA
Ken Broderick24801202.50
Richard Brodeur11622553813.67
Note:
Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Awards & records

Draft picks

Quebec's draft picks at the 1977 WHA Amateur Draft.[1]

Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club Team (League)
19Lucien DeBlois (F) CanadaSorel Black Hawks (QMJHL)
214John Anderson (LW) CanadaToronto Marlboros (OHA)
220Benoit Gosselin (LW) CanadaTrois-Rivieres Draveurs (QMJHL)
329Tom Roulston (RW) CanadaWinnipeg Monarchs (WCHL)
438Robert Picard (D) CanadaMontreal Juniors (QMJHL)
547Alain Cote (LW) CanadaChicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL)
656Yves Guillemette (G) CanadaShawinigan Dynamos (QMJHL)
765Eddy Godin (RW) CanadaQuebec Remparts (QMJHL)
873Pierre Lagace (C) CanadaQuebec Remparts (QMJHL)
981Dan Chicoine (RW) CanadaSherbrooke Castors (QMJHL)
1089Roland Cloutier (C) CanadaTrois-Rivieres Draveurs (QMJHL)

Farm teams
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See also

References
  1. "1977 WHA Amateur Draft". hockeyDB.com. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
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