A REGAL AFFAIR, Part 7: Regular season champs romp to WHL title

The Brandon Regals and Edmonton Flyers battled all season long in the Western Hockey League, so it couldn’t have been a surprise the rivals would slug it out in the 1957 playoffs.

After second-place Edmonton edged the third-place Calgary Stampeders 2-1 in the best-of-three Prairie Division quarterfinals, they met a well-rested Brandon team that earned a bye by winning the regular season pennant.

On the other side of the league in the Coast Division, the second-place New Westminster Royals beat the third-place Victoria Cougars, and were facing the first-place Seattle Americans.

The best-of-seven series kicked off in Edmonton on April 2, and Brandon held 1-0 and 2-1 leads but couldn’t overcame a hat trick by Jerry Melnyk and a pair of goals by Don Poile in a 5-4 loss.

Len Haley and Elliott Chorley both sniped twice for the Regals.

Two days later, Lucien Dechene made 33 saves and Les Colwill and Vic Lynn each scored in a 2-1 Brandon victory to even the series.

“We’re certainly not overconfident, that’s for sure,” player-coach Don Raleigh said after the win. “This is going to be a real tough series. We’ve got to point for Saturday’s game. That’s the big one now. The rest would get a lot bigger if we don’t win that one.”

As it turned out, Raleigh was wrong.

In Game 3 on April 6 back in Brandon, Vic Lynn, Les Lilley and Norm Johnson pumped in goals in the first period to give the hosts a 3-0 lead and they hung on for a 4-2 victory to take their first series lead.

The bad news was that Don Poile fell on Dechene’s leg, and the goalie needed a few minutes for repairs to the bad knee — he was wearing a brace — before he could continue.

Since teams only carried one goalie at the time, the WHL appointed Calgary’s Hank Bassen as the emergency netminder if needed.

A little bit of history was made that night as Brandon fans got their first local look at the NHL officiating system comprised of a referee and two linesmen instead of just two on-ice officials. The officials certainly had their hands full with the Flyers, who leaned on intimidation and forced the Regals to punch back.

The biggest goal of the series came in overtime in Game 4 on April 9.

After Edmonton took a 1-0 lead, Brandon’s Bob Chrystal tied it and then Les Colwill gave the hosts the lead. But after Poile tied the game in the third period, it went to overtime.

Just two minutes 39 seconds into the fourth period, tiny Len (Comet) Haley beat Flyers goalie Dennis Riggin on a pass by Colwill to score what was at that point the biggest goal in Regals history.

“I knew I had him as soon as I saw him starting to come out to meet me,” Haley told The Brandon Sun after the game.

His coach said it was a big night for his club.

“That was a tremendous win,” Raleigh said. “I’m getting tired of saying that, but I just hope I can go on saying it for quite a while.”

Game 5 remained in Brandon, and on April 11, 1956, the Regals won their first playoff series.

Rookie Bill Voss scored twice and assisted Lilley’s goal while Dechene made 35 saves in a 3-0 victory.

“I’m glad to get them out of my hair,” Raleigh told the Sun in the dressing room after the game. “I still say they are a terrific hockey team … but my gang played well and deserved the win … they took a lot of punishment from Edmonton and stuck to playing top-notch hockey all the way.”

Flyers coach Bud Poile, who had his run-ins with the team earlier in the season, offered the Regals praise after the game.

“They won the whole thing right here,” he said. “They should have no trouble with New Westminster. If they keep getting goaltending like that, they’ll beat them … I’ve never seen a guy like that Dechene in my life. Nobody in the NHL could play better … But I’m not ashamed of my guys. They never quit trying.”

LEAGUE FINAL

New West beat the Seattle Americans 4-2 in the best-of-seven Coast Division final to advance to what looked to be a terrific final.

Brandon and New Westminster played a spirited six games during the regular season, with two ties, and two wins by each team.

The Royals were without rugged top forward Pete Durham, who was injured late in the regular season, and utility man Steve Hrymnak was also missing. They balanced that with the return of high-scoring forward Gord Fashoway, who missed part of the division final with an infected jaw.

The series opening in British Columbia for a reason that will resonate with Brandon Wheat Kings fans. The Regals couldn’t secure the Wheat City Arena because of other bookings so the games were moved west at the 11th hour, with the Regals boarding the train late Sunday evening.

Sun news editor Jim Reid, who travelled with the team, noted the clubs played nearly identical styles “featuring persistent checking and super-fancy passing,” and it would be a different series than the rugged divisional finals both had just played.

The good news for the Regals was they were unbeaten in New Westminster so far that season.

The question was which goalie they would face. On April 16, Royals goalie Bev Bentley was suffering dizzy spells before Game 1, so they elected to use the WHL’s spare goalie for the series, Victoria Cougars netminder Marcel Pelletier.

The teams were tied 3-3 late in the third period when Haley emerged as the hero again, scoring at the 17:11 mark on a screened pass from Vic Lynn.

Both goalies made 31 saves, with Pelletier turning aside 17 shots in the third period as the Regals poured on the pressure.

The Regals remained fairly healthy, although Jim Reid noted that Ray Manson had a split finger and Bill Bucyk had a “gimpy” back.

Just before Game 2 on April 18, the team received a telegram from home with best wishes from 200 of their fans.

The teams were again knotted up late in the third period that night, but Chrystal scored from the blue-line at the 14:56 mark to give his team a 3-2 victory. Manson and Lilley had the other Brandon goals, with Dechene making just 18 saves.

Pelletier was once again in net for the Royals, which perturbed Raleigh because he considered him a better goalie than Bentley.

The team arrived back in Brandon on the train on Sunday afternoon, with 500 fans there to greet them.

Before Game 3, a controversy was sparked because Brandon GM Frank Boucher had challenged the American Hockey League-winning Cleveland Barons to a series.

New West coach Hal Laycoe was understandably upset.

“I imagine if anyone plays Cleveland it will be the WHL champions and unless I’m a little bit confused, they haven’t been decided yet,” The Sun quoted Laycoe as saying. “I think Boucher’s statement is more than a little premature. My team came a long way down here to finish out this series and I don’t think my players like being counted out as soon as they arrived.

“The Regals should win one series before they start talking about another.”

He was also annoyed by suggestions that he was gaming the system to play Pelletier instead of Bentley in net, noting his goalie’s issues were far worse than some wax in his ear throwing off his balance, as some had suggested.

He also expected better ice in Brandon, which he said would play to the benefit of his small, speedy lineup.

The series resumed with Game 3 on April 23 after a five-day break.

Les Lilley, Ray Manson and Len Haley gave Brandon a 3-0 lead in a five-minute stretch midway through the second period and they held on for a 3-1 victory to take a stranglehold on the best-of-seven series.

The Royals actually took a sight-seeing trip at Riding Mountain on the day off between games, with Raleigh hopeful his team could close out the sweep.

“It would be nice to make it four straight but we have to remember that we’ve got to keep on playing our best hockey to do it,” the Regals coach said. “We can’t afford to relax now.”

On Thursday, April 25, 1957, the Regals played their best hockey.

After Dick Roberge opened the scoring for the Royals 3:53 into the game, Elliott Chorley tied it before the period ended. Brandon then pumped in goals by Colwill and Chrystal 51 seconds apart early in the second to go up 3-1.

Roberge scored his second of the game at the 8:13 mark of the third period to draw New West back within a goal, but Les Lilley replied for Brandon three minutes later and Colwill scored his second of the game with 80 seconds left for a 5-2 victory.

The Brandon Regals, a team that had missed the playoffs the year before, were suddenly the WHL champions.

The team split $4,500 for winning the regular season pennant, then added $7,000 more in the division final and $7,000 for winning the WHL final.

The biggest prize was an $11,000 payout to the winner of the Edinburgh Trophy, which matched the WHL and Quebec Hockey League champions.

If they won there, their total payouts would be nearly $2,000 per man, nearly doubling the annual salary for some of them.

» This is the seventh instalment in a 10-part series chronicling the unlikely story of Brandon’s only professional hockey team, their mid-season move to the city, their brief stay and why the Regals eventually left after the 1956-57 season. Tomorrow, the Regals meet the Quebec Aces for the Edinburgh Trophy.

» pbergson@brandonsun.com