[6] However, this was all for naught, as the Seals finished with the worst record in the NHL that year. The San Francisco Seals were one such team from the WHL. [29], "California Seals" redirects here.

The Seals were never successful at the gate, qualifying for the postseason in only two of their nine seasons and failing to obtain a winning record in each, and eventually moved to Cleveland to become the Cleveland Barons in 1976, only to cease operations two years later. Buy It Now.

Although Seltzer's offer was slightly better and included a more detailed plan for revival, a majority of NHL owners from the "old establishment" voted in favor of Finley. The team rebounded in 1971–72, but the arrival of the World Hockey Association (WHA) wiped out most of those gains.

Van Gerbig had planned to have the team play out of a new arena in San Francisco, but the arena never came to fruition, and the Seals played out of the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena (now known as Oracle Arena). The Seals asserted that the league's constitution was in violation by prohibiting clubs from relocating their operations, and that the relocation request was denied in an attempt to keep the San Francisco market in the NHL and thereby discourage the formation of a rival team or league in that location. With a new arena out of the picture, the league dropped its objection to a relocation of the franchise. Starkey continued to call the Golden Seals games on KEEN in 1974-75 and 1975-76.

Failed Sale to Trans National Communications. Although divisional restructuring in 1974–75 included a revamped format in which three teams in each division made the playoffs, the Seals efforts' were frustrated by their placement in the Adams Division, with the strong Buffalo, Boston, and Toronto teams of the day. Those would be the only two years that the Seals franchise made the playoffs.


[5] The Seals are remembered for wearing white skates, but initially Torrey convinced Finley to use green and gold painted skates instead, team colored skates being a period trend. The Seals asserted that the league's constitution was in violation by prohibiting clubs from relocating their operations, and that the relocation request was denied in an attempt to keep the San Francisco market in the NHL and thereby discourage the formation of a rival team or league in that location. First-year coach and general manager Bert Olmstead publicly advocated a move to Vancouver, but an offer from Labatt's brewery to purchase and relocate the team was rejected by the league, as was a proposal to move the team to Buffalo from the eventual owners of the Buffalo Sabres, who had been shut out of the 1967 expansion. The team fell just short of the playoffs, and after a mayoral election, plans for the new arena were cancelled.
This, as well as the team's dismal on-ice performance, led to major changes to both the Seals' front office and the roster – only seven out of the 20 Seals players remained after the first season. Eventually, a compromise was struck whereby the Gunds would sell their share of the North Stars to Baldwin's group, with the Gunds receiving an expansion team in the Bay Area to begin play in the 1991–92 season. The merged team continued as the Minnesota North Stars under the Gunds' ownership, but assumed the Barons' place in the Adams Division. Ironically, in their first two seasons in the league, the Sharks played their home games at the Cow Palace in Daly City (the same facility the NHL rejected as a home for the Seals in 1967) while their new permanent home arena in San Jose was being completed. Jim Gordon, Bill Schonely and Bill McColgan each did play-by-play alone on multiple games. [6], Finley renamed the team the "Bay Area Seals" to begin the 1970–71 season, but after just two games into the season on October 16, 1970, he changed the team name to the "California Golden Seals",[7] following a number of other marketing gimmicks intended to sell the team to the fans, among them changing the Seals' colors to green and gold to match those of the popular A's. In 1966, the NHL announced that six expansion teams would be added as a new division for the 1967–68 season, officially because of a general desire to expand the league to new markets, but also to squelch the Western Hockey League's threat to turn into a major league. As it turned out, the league's 1970 expansion would include Vancouver and Buffalo.

He decided to move the team across the Bay from the Cow Palace in Daly City to Oakland to play in the new Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena.

For the 1969–70 season the team was sold to a group called Trans National Communications, whose investors included Pat Summerall and Whitey Ford. The plan to bring fans in from San Francisco failed, and on November 6, 1967,[2] Van Gerbig announced that the team's name would be changed to the Oakland Seals (although the league did not register the change until December) to focus more on the East Bay. Nature's Way Premium Formula Echinacea-Goldenseal, 250 mg per serving, 99.9% Alcohol-Free, 1.01 Oz. Below are the different colors used by the California Golden Bears. Finley and Roller Derby boss Jerry Seltzer had both put in a bid on the team. Charlie Simmer was still active with the IHL's San Diego Gulls until 1992. This was done in an attempt to appeal to fans from San Francisco, and to address complaints from the other NHL teams that Oakland was not considered a major league city and would not be a draw for fans. [4], On October 15, 1970, with the new season already two games old, Finley announced that the team's name was being changed to California Golden Seals ("Bay Area Seals" had been reported the previous week, and appears on some of that year's promotional material), following a number of other marketing gimmicks intended to sell the team to the fans, among them changing the Seals' colors to green and gold to match the popular A's.

The team's final game in Oakland was a win over the Los Angeles Kings on April 4, 1976;[14] league approval for the move was granted on July 14, and the team was renamed the "Cleveland Barons" after the city's old AHL squad. Tired of the struggling hockey team, especially in comparison to his World Series champion Athletics, Finley tried to sell the Seals, but there were no takers.

The San Francisco Bay Area was not considered a particularly lucrative hockey market, but the terms of a new television agreement with CBS called for two of the expansion teams to be located in California. [16] In 2006, Brad Kurtzberg published the first book on the Seals franchise, Shorthanded: The Untold Story of the Seals: Hockey's Most Colorful Team. The team fell just short of the playoffs, and after a mayoral election, plans for the new arena were cancelled. On May 5, 1990, the Gunds officially sold their share of the North Stars to Baldwin and were awarded a new team in the Bay Area that would eventually become the Sharks.

Z 6 S M p X W o n s 2 o r U e d 2 W 8 K. Gilles Meloche - California Golden Seals - Custom Hockey Card - 1973-74. Meanwhile, a group led by former Hartford Whalers owner Howard Baldwin was pushing the NHL to bring a team to San Jose, where an arena was being built. For the 1969–70 season the team was sold to Trans National Communications, whose investors included Pat Summerall and Whitey Ford. Next Day Labels 2" Round, Gold Metallic Package, Envelope, Certificate Wafer Seals with Serrated Edge.

Learn how and when to remove this template message, List of California Golden Seals head coaches, "April 4, 1976: California Golden Seals hockey team beats L.A. in final game", "California Golden Seals left a short-lived, but colorful legacy in the Bay Area, "Tim Ryan hoping NHL's Golden Knights succeed where Golden Seals could not", "On Someone Else's Nickel: a Life in Television, Sports, and Travel – by Tim Ryan", "California Golden Seals Radio Network Coverage Map", "50 Forgotten Stories: Bob Miller & Roy Storey", "A Tale of Two Teams: California Hockey, Then and Now", "Column: California Seals documentary is one you don't want to let slip away", "Jon Miller's tough rookie year (with 1974 photo!

The Seals are remembered for wearing white skates, but initially Torrey convinced Finley to use green and gold painted skates instead, as team-colored skates were a trend of the period. Although Seltzer's offer was slightly better and included a more detailed plan for revival, a majority of NHL owners from the "old establishment" voted in favor of Finley. While the Bay Area was not considered a particularly lucrative hockey market, the terms of a new television agreement with CBS called for two of the expansion teams to be located in California. The league's rejection of a proposed move to Vancouver prompted a lawsuit that was not settled until 1974 (San Francisco Seals Ltd. v. National Hockey League). The NHL eventually took control of the team in February 1974.

Free returns. In 1969-70, Saturday and Sunday games were broadcast by KGO radio. [9] In return, the North Stars would be allowed to participate as an equal partner in an expansion draft with the new franchise. Years after the Barons-North Stars merger, the Gunds wanted to bring hockey back to the Bay Area.

The current NHL team in the Bay Area, the San Jose Sharks, has a historical connection to the Seals.