Soviet Tour of the Eastern Hockey League December 1963.

In December 2020, I posted to our EHL Facebook group day-by-day newspaper articles from the home cities of a 6-city Soviet Tour of the Eastern Hockey League (EHL) which occurred 57 years earlier in December 1963. The dates listed are the newspaper dates, so the games were the prior day. There is a lot of prelim, so if you want to read just about the games, then start at "Day 21".

Nashville Dixie Flyers Norm Ryder Checks Russian Veniamin Alexandrov, Dec 25, 1963
from The Tennessean Dec 26, 1963

The results of the series were:
Dec 17, 1963 Soviets 12 at Greensboro Generals 3
Dec 18, 1963 Soviets 6 at Charlotte Checkers 3
Dec 20, 1963 Soviets 12 at Philadelphia Ramblers 2
Dec 21, 1963 Soviets 9 at Johnstown Jets 6
Dec 22, 1963 Soviets 4 at Knoxville Knights 4
Dec 25, 1963 Soviets 4 at Nashville Dixie Flyers 1

The following month, January 1964 a team of EHL All-Stars made a tour of Russia. The next blog will cover those articles.

Day 1: Jan-Oct 1963 Articles

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158524553381590/

Day 2: Nov 1963 Articles

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158526217861590/

Day 3: Nov 30, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158528977301590/

Day 4: Dec 1, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158530879856590/

Day 5: Dec 2, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158533177591590/

Day 6: Dec 3, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158535228551590/

Day 7: Dec 4, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158537423096590/

Day 8: Dec 5, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158539289671590/

Day 9: Dec 6, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158541334596590/

Day 10: Dec 7, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158544634771590/

Day 11: Dec 8, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158546540086590/

Day 12: Dec 9, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158548825161590/

Day 13: Dec 10, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158551280051590/

Day 14: Dec 11, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158553663111590/

Day 15: Dec 12, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158554959536590/

Day 16: Dec 13, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158556980381590/

Day 17: Dec 14, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158560286961590/

Day 18: Dec 15, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158562409151590/

Day 19: Dec 16, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158564438231590/

Day 20: Dec 17, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158566805091590/

Day 21: Dec 18, 1963 Soviets 12 at Greensboro Generals 3

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158568959571590/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158569034546590/

Day 22: Dec 19, 1963 Soviets 6 at Charlotte Checkers 3

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158569910361590/

Day 23: Dec 20, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158572334226590/

Day 24: Dec 21, 1963 Soviets 12 at Philadelphia Ramblers 2

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158575875081590/

Day 25: Dec 22, 1963 Soviets 9 at Johnstown Jets 6

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158577647436590/

Day 26: Dec 23, 1963 Soviets 4 at Knoxville Knights 4

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158579720671590/

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158587704496590/

Day 27: Dec 24, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158581601911590/

Day 28: Dec 25, 1963

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158584401831590/

Day 29: Dec 26, 1963 Soviets 4 at Nashville Dixie Flyers 1

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158586640681590/

Day 30: Dec 27-31, 1963 Soviets 5 U of Denver 0, Soviets 6 U of Denver 3

https://www.facebook.com/groups/129103506589/posts/10158587701176590/


As I've stated elsewhere, once the EHL Facebook group got going (Currently 3300+ members and growing), there's not a whole lot of need to "blog", since I usually do continuous posting there. But sometimes like this the blog format is a lot cleaner than trying to search Facebook.

Enjoy!
Tom Telaar
TheEHL.com

Canada Games Torch named for the first Greensboro Generals coach, Roly McLenahan

http://mclenahan.blogspot.com/

Florence Morning News 09-15-59, p. 10
McLenahan Leads Greensboro Team In Hockey League
GREENSBORO. N.C. (AP) -
Veteran Coach Roly McLenahan will guide the Greensboro Generals in their first season of Eastern
Hockey League play. Ken Wilson, general manager of the new club, announced the 37 year-old Canadian's appointment Thursday. McLenahan a native of St. Catherines, Ontario led the Cincinatti Mohawks of the IHL to four straight championships brfore taking over at Rochester of the AHL in 1957-58. In his playing days, McLenahan defenced for the National Hockey League 's Detroit Red Wings and the AHL's Cleveland, Hershey, Buffalo and Indianapolis cubs.

Greensboro Generals' Roy Pyke Inducted into Brockville Sports Hall of Fame

Roy Pyke, veteran of the 1965-67 Greensboro Generals was inducted Friday into the Brockville (ON) and Area Sports Hall of Fame.

http://www.recorder.ca/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=3166745#

A thrill for new inductees

RON SMITH, Sports Editor, The Recorder & Times, June 11, 2011

It's an amazing wall that just became even more impressive. The Brockville and Area Sports Hall of Fame inducted its five newest members for the lobby wall of the Memorial Centre on Friday afternoon. With the well-deserved addition of Jim Hale, George Hunter (deceased), Steve McAllister, Roy Pyke and Jim Vickery, there are now an even 100 plaques recognizing the sports accomplishments and achievements of Brockville and area.

Pyke, well known as the tough, hard-nosed catcher for the Brockville Commercial Stars fastball team, found it a special wall to see. "It means an awful lot to me. Seventy per cent of the people (on the wall) I know or played against or played with, and it just makes me feel so proud and honoured to know I am going to be joining the people who have become my friends. I am very honoured," said Pyke.

The casual, 60-minute ceremony recognized the returning Hall of Famers along with the newests inductees.

"This is THE highlight of my career and I've had some good ones," said Pyke, who won gold for Canada in playing senior hockey with the Morrisburg Combines. "This is the highlight of my sports career, No. 1."

Pyke played baseball and hockey growing up, and some semi-pro hockey before being one of the final cuts of the St. Louis Blues in 1967.

He joins Hodgkinson, Dixie, Bates and Metcalfe from the Commercial Stars in the Hall of Fame.

"It shows you how talented that team was," said the 65-year-old Pyke of a dominant fastball team from the 1970's to the 1990's.

(I'm pretty sure Roy Pyke is the second from left in the article photo.)

Roy Pyke's Stats courtesy hockeydb.com

Brian "Butch" MacKay - Greensboro Generals and US National Team

The last few weeks, I've been collecting articles about the 1962 US World Championships. The Canadian team had EHLers Butch Martin (Johnstown), and future EHLer Bobby Brown (Johnstown, Long Island, Jacksonville, Knoxville, Jersey). The US team had EHLers Don Hall & Dick Roberge (Johnstown), Reggie Meserve (Philadelphia), Gord Tottle (Charlotte) and the Greensboro Generals defenseman and captain, Brian "Butch" MacKay. These articles are posted on the EHL Discussion Boards http://theehl.yuku.com/topic/71/EHL-stars-at-the-1962-WORLD-CHAMPIONSHIPS As you read through, you'll see that the EHLers, including MacKay represented the U.S. and Canada well.

Butch MacKay was one of a handful of Troy Bruins (IHL), who stayed with the team when they became the nucleus of the EHL Greensboro Generals in 1959, along with Pat Kelly, Don Carter, and Max Szturm. The first year Kelly was team captain, with MacKay an alternate. The next three years MacKay was team captain, until his retirement after the Generals won the EHL Championship in 1962-63 to work at a meat packing company in Greensboro. MacKay was a high-scoring, yet rugged defenseman, as the article on the right would suggest - and that's before he entered the EHL. He was an EHL 2nd-team All-Star in 1960-61.

The photo below is from a game at Clinton on November 7, 1962. MacKay, #2, has the "C".
The program cover is from the Generals first season, with MacKay wearing the "A".





















Butch MacKay's Obituary from the Greensboro News & Record, May 19, 2011
http://obituaries.news-record.com/obituaries/news-record/obituary.aspx?n=brian-edward-mackay-butch&pid=151134587&fhid=6071

Brian Edward "Butch" MacKay Sr. Visit Guest Book

GREENSBORO — Brian Edward "Butch" MacKay, Sr., 78, passed away on May 17, 2011 at Moses Cone Hospital.
A graveside service will be held on Friday, May 20, 2011 at 2 p.m. at Westminster Gardens Cemetery with Father John Eckert officiating.
A native of Montreal, Canada, Brian was born September 29, 1932 to the late Louis Edward Turner MacKay and Agnus Brady MacKay. He was self-employed and worked in the beverage industry.
Butch MacKay's stats at hockeydb.com:
http://hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=12768

Wally Sprange - Nashville Dixie Flyers

I was looking for a shot of the Nashville Dixie Flyers "pegasus" uniforms and came across this blog from Lowetide (an Edmonton Oilers based blog) on Wally Sprange. Jackpot on the photo, eh? As I recall, the one time I saw Sprange and the Dixie Flyers in the 1969-71 timeframe, they had "NASHVILLE" written across the front of their purple jerseys. I still haven't found a photo confirming that jersey.

The most memorable part of that game was Nashville scoring a goal in the second period against Jersey goalie Gilles Banville. The goal was insignificant in the big scheme of things, until they announced the shots for the period: Jersey 10, Nashville 1. I hope to track down the boxscore on that next time I'm back in Jersey.

I did see Nashville's purple pants one more time, on October 7, 1972, when the Suncoast Suns played their first game ever, a 7-1 exhibition victory over the Jersey Devils at Cherry Hill Arena. The game was a fundraser for the South Jersey Minor Hockey Association, which I played in that year - possibly the worst player in the league. Apparently, the Suns pants hadn't arrived, yet. So, they used the old purple Nashville pants. Imagine the green Suncoast jerseys with orange and yellow trim with green, orange and yellow stockings (see http://SuncoastSuns.com) and purple pants. It was one of my favorite hockey uniforms of all time.

Sprange won the John Carlin Trophy as EHL leading scorer in 1970-71 with 45 goals and 89 assists for 134 points. Nashville folded at the end of that season, and the players were bought by Greensboro. The Generals kept the players they wanted, including Sprange, from their team and the ex-Dixie Flyers and sold the rest to the new Suncoast franchise. Sprange was a second team All-Star with Greensboro in the EHL's last season of 1972-73 season, with 40 goals and 92 assists for 132 points.

Wally Sprange Links:
http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=10326

A Few 2008 EHL News Links...Clinton Comets, Syracuse Blazers, Greensboro Generals

Here's a few 2008 EHL news links that I'm removing from http://TheEHL.com front page, but wanted to save.

Thursday, October 2, 2008
Skaters Flock to Clinton By Marques Phillips Utica Observer-Dispatch
CLINTON - For more than a half a century, the ice at Clinton Arena has been a blank canvas for figure skating artists to use their pallet of spins, jumps and dance moves to sculpt a skating identity...more

Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Greensboro Booster Club is having a meeting Wednesday night, Sept.17th at Shoney's on Regional Road, Eat: 6:00, Meet: 7:00PM. Head Coach Mark Richards and Assistant Coach Sean Cowan for the Cyclones will be there. Everyone is invited to attend.

Wednesday, August 13, 2008 Syracuse.com
War Memorial Gets an Update Onondaga County is on the hook for repairs it promised the Crunch
By John Mariani, Staff writer.

July 22, 2008
Clinton Comets to appear at fundraiser Utica Observer-Dispatch
CLINTON — The Clinton Comets will be together again. Or at least a few of them will be next Wednesday at one of two gatherings to raise funds for the Reschetnikow Benefit Fund. “An Evening with the Clinton Comets” will be held from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m. July 30 at VFW Post 9591 on Franklin Avenue, with coach Pat Kelly, captain Jack Kane and several other members of the very successful and wildly popular Eastern Hockey League team of the 1950s and 1960s scheduled to attend... more

36 Years Ago Today - The EHL Dissolves into the NAHL and SHL

On April 12, 1973 the Syracuse Blazers won the EHL championship. As Ray Adduono skated around the rink with the Walker Trophy, it broke into three pieces. This was symbolic of what was about to happen to the EHL, splitting into three pieces (the NAHL, the SHL and the others) on May 1, 1973 at the last ever league meeting. Here's the AP Wire version of the story...

NEW YORK (AP) - The Eastern Hockey League, at its annual meeting in New York Tuesday, announced the formal dissolution of the EHL and the creation of two seperate leagues, one based in the north and the other operating out of the south, to fill the void.
The northern league, titled the North American Hockey League, plans to begin play this fall with a minimum of six teams. Charter members include the Cape Cod Cubs, Mohawk Valley Comets, Johnstown, Pa. Jets and the Binghamton, N.Y. Dusters. At least two additional NAHL entries are expected to be named shortly, with franchises from Rhode Island and Lewiston, Me. having the inside track. A Long Island entry is also a possibility. Cape Cod, Mohawk Valley and Johnstown were members of the now disbanded EHL. The NAHL, which is scheduled to begin a 74-game regular season Oct. 12, chose Jack Newkirk of Cape Cod as temporary chairman and Ed Stanley of Mohawk Valley as treasurer.
Earlier Tuesday, the Southern Hockey League was formed, with franchises granted to Charlotte, N.C., Greensboro, N.C., Winston-Salem, N.C., Roanoke Valley, Va. and St. Petersburg, Fla.

Binghamton and Lewiston had previously applied for EHL membership, and both were expected to be in the league for 1973-74.

It's interesting that Ed Stanley, who was the Clinton Arena manager who got Clinton into the league in 1954 became treasurer of the new NAHL. In 1973, Clinton had just been sold to a group of locals in a "Save the Comets" kind of deal. The new ownership, splitting the team between Clinton and Utica, renamed the team the Mohawk Valley Comets. Stanley was not one of the owners.

Of the teams not mentioned...
Syracuse Blazers owner Bill Charles had been angling all season to get into the AHL. They ended up back in the NAHL.
The Jersey Devils are a blog in themselves of things going wrong for them at that time. They were hoping for a northern division in the SHL or a southern division in the NAHL, neither of which happened. They were given two weeks to make a decision which league to join. In spite of the Philadelphia Blazers moving to Vancouver within that timeframe, the Devils never made it to the next season.
The Long Island Ducks, also affected by a local WHA franchise, had tried to fold at the end of the 1973 regular season - and even told the Devils to take their spot in the playoffs, before the league intervened and made the Ducks play. On May 24, 1973, the Long Island Cougars, under different ownership and as a farm team of the WHA Chicago Cougars, were accepted into the NAHL.
Rhode Island never made it to the gate.

In the south, Baltimore, Alabama were listed as possibilities for other first year franchises, but neither developed. The Macon Whoopees were added as the sixth SHL franchise that summer.