1979 – One for the record books

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/05/2010 (5773 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It was the Brandon Wheat Kings team against which all others are measured.

Brandon’s record-setting 1978-79 squad has gone down in lore as not only the greatest team in Wheat Kings history, but perhaps also the best junior hockey team to not win the Memorial Cup.

Led by the likes of Brad McCrimmon, Brian Propp and Laurie Boschman, who each went on to play more than 1,000 National Hockey League games, and coached by the legendary Dunc McCallum — the Western Hockey League’s coach-of-the-year award is now named after him — the Wheat Kings posted a remarkable record-setting 58-5-9 regular-season record that season. The Wheat Kings won the franchise’s first WHL title before eventually falling in the Memorial Cup final, 2-1 in overtime to the Peterborough Petes.

"We just expected to win every time," said Don Dietrich of Deloraine, a rookie defenceman on that team. "Anything else was unacceptable. That’s what winning does. It can be habit-forming, too, and that’s just the way we went about business. We just expected to win."

Sure the Wheat Kings had loads of talent — Boschman (ninth overall), Propp (14th), McCrimmon (15th) and Ray Allison (18th) were all first-round picks in the 1979 NHL entry draft — but there was something driving this team: Unfinished business.

Having posted more than 100 points in each of the previous two seasons, the Wheat Kings were stopped short of their goal both times, losing in the league final in 1976-77 and in the playoff round robin in 1977-78.

Players such as Propp, McCrimmon and Allison turned down the opportunity to play professionally in the World Hockey Association for one more shot at the Memorial Cup and the results were spectacular.

The team’s five regular-season losses and 125 points are Canadian Hockey League records that still stand today. Propp, Boschman and Allison each broke the 60-goal plateau, led by Propp’s 94. Propp finished the season with 194 points for the season and 511 for his career, both WHL records at the time.

"Having a lot of the same core players, we just felt that we could have just a fabulous season," said Propp, now living in New Jersey only minutes away from former linemate Allison.

"But to go through a whole season and only have five losses, it’s pretty amazing because even when you’re playing your best some night you never know if another goaltender (will shine) or something will happen or penalties. So I just look back at that, that really just showed the true grit of our team."

After the dynamic regular season, the Wheat Kings continued to roll in the playoffs, amassing an 18-4 record culminating with a four-games-to-two victory over the Portland Winterhawks — a formidable team themselves with 111 regular-season points — in the league final.

The marvelous season came with a price, however. Defenceman Mike Perovich and rookie forward Kelly McCrimmon — both point-a-game players during the regular season — were injured before the Memorial Cup and both missed the tournament.

Once at the Memorial Cup in Quebec, a whole new challenge awaited. At that time, the tournament was a three-team event that began with a double round-robin. Each team played the other teams twice, once in the opponent’s rink and once in their own "home" arena — which in the Wheat Kings’ case was in Verdun.

The tournament got off to an ominous start, a 4-1 loss to the Trois-Rivieres Draveurs in a game preceded by a brawl in the warm-up. The Wheat Kings then lost 7-6 in overtime to the Petes before rallying to win their next two — 6-1 over the Draveurs and 3-2 over the Petes.

That left all three teams at 2-2 in the round robin, with Brandon and Peterborough advancing by the slimmest of margins, based on their goals for and against margin.

"We had to really battle back just to get ourselves into the final game," Propp said. "And the final game was just truly a fabulous game."

Tim Trimper opened the scoring for the Petes before Propp replied for the Wheat Kings in the first period. The teams battled to a saw-off until overtime when Bob Atwell of the Petes potted the winner at 2:44 — a controversial goal that some feel should never have happened due to an apparent icing moments earlier.

"Even at that time, I figured we were in control," Dietrich said. "All year long, when you only lose five games, you know you’re going to win. I just remember being just utterly stunned."

Certainly the Petes were worthy champions. A team with 13 future NHLers, they had been the runners-up the year before and finished second again in 1980.

While bitterly disappointed, the Wheat Kings felt no shame in losing to such an accomplished rival.

"You go and you take what’s available and you do your best," said Brad McCrimmon, who is said to have played virtually the entire game in the final. "Looking back as time’s passed, I have no doubt our guys did everything they could to win. We didn’t have anything to hang our heads about. Certainly disappointed would be an understatement not to win, but at the same time, the effort and the try of our group was unquestionable, I believe."

While the club didn’t reach its ultimate goal, the feats accomplished along the way were truly remarkable. No doubt it was a season that won’t soon be forgotten, by the team’s fans or by its players.

"The clock spins unfortunately and it’s been something that you look back and you were very proud to be a part of a team like that year," added McCrimmon, now an assistant coach with the NHL’s Detroit Red Wings. "To be a part of that organization the three years I was there, there was a lot of great players and a lot of good hockey was played by that group through that time."