1977–78 Chicago Black Hawks season

The 1977–78 Chicago Black Hawks season was the Hawks' 52nd season in the NHL, and the club was coming off a 26–43–11 record, earning 63 points, which was their lowest total since the 1957–58 season. The Hawks managed to qualify for the playoffs, as they finished in third place in the Smythe Division. In the playoffs, the Black Hawks were quickly swept out in two games by the Boston Bruins in the NHL Preliminary Round.[1]

1977–78 Chicago Black Hawks
Smythe Division champions
Division1st Smythe
Conference4th Campbell
1977–78 record32–29–19
Home record20–9–11
Road record12–20–8
Goals for230
Goals against220
Team information
General managerBob Pulford
CoachBob Pulford
CaptainKeith Magnuson
Alternate captainsNone
ArenaChicago Stadium
Team leaders
GoalsIvan Boldirev (35)
AssistsIvan Boldirev (45)
PointsIvan Boldirev (80)
Penalty minutesKeith Magnuson (145)
Plus/minusJohn Marks (+27)
WinsTony Esposito (28)
Goals against averageTony Esposito (2.63)

Offseason

During the off-season, Hawks general manager Tommy Ivan announced his retirement, and the club decided to not bring interim head coach Bill White back, so the club hired former Los Angeles Kings head coach Bob Pulford to take over both the head coach and general manager position. Pulford had been the head coach of the Kings from 1972–1977, winning the 1975 Jack Adams Trophy. The team also named Keith Magnuson as the only team captain, as in the 1976–77 season, the Hawks used Magnuson, Stan Mikita and Pit Martin as tri-captains.

Regular season

The Black Hawks started off the season in a slump, as the team had a 6–10–8 record in their first 24 games. Chicago eventually snapped out of their funk, and found themselves a season high five games over .500 with a 24–18–16 record late in February. The Hawks, who were comfortably in first place in the Smythe Division, finished the season with a 32–29–19 record, earning 83 points, which was their highest total since 1973–74, and their sixth division title in the past nine seasons.[2]

Offensively, the Black Hawks were led by Ivan Boldirev, who scored a team high 35 goals and 45 assists for 80 points. Thirty-seven-year-old Stan Mikita earned 59 points in 76 games to finish second in team scoring, while 22-year-old Ted Bulley had a very solid rookie season, scoring 23 goals and 51 points in 79 games. Another rookie, Doug Wilson, led the defense, scoring 14 goals and 34 points, while Bob Murray also scored 14 goals, along with 17 assists from the blueline. Keith Magnuson had a team high 145 penalty minutes, while John Marks led Chicago with a +27 rating.

In goal, Tony Esposito once again had the majority of playing time, winning 28 games, along with 5 shutouts and a 2.63 GAA.[3]

Final standings
Smythe Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Chicago Black Hawks8032291923022083
Colorado Rockies8019402125730559
Vancouver Canucks8020431723932057
St. Louis Blues8020471319530453
Minnesota North Stars801853921832545

[4]Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Record vs. opponents

Game log
#DateVisitorScoreHomeRecordPts
1October 13Chicago Black Hawks1–5Philadelphia Flyers0–1–00
2October 15Colorado Rockies3–3Chicago Black Hawks0–1–11
3October 16Chicago Black Hawks2–0Buffalo Sabres1–1–13
4October 19Buffalo Sabres2–2Chicago Black Hawks1–1–24
5October 22Chicago Black Hawks0–3Colorado Rockies1–2–24
6October 23St. Louis Blues0–2Chicago Black Hawks2–2–26
7October 26Philadelphia Flyers2–2Chicago Black Hawks2–2–37
8October 28Chicago Black Hawks4–2Cleveland Barons3–2–39
9October 30Cleveland Barons1–6Chicago Black Hawks4–2–311
10November 2Chicago Black Hawks2–2Washington Capitals4–2–412
11November 5Chicago Black Hawks5–2Minnesota North Stars5–2–414
12November 6Atlanta Flames3–3Chicago Black Hawks5–2–515
13November 9Minnesota North Stars2–2Chicago Black Hawks5–2–616
14November 12Chicago Black Hawks4–7Pittsburgh Penguins5–3–616
15November 13Montreal Canadiens3–2Chicago Black Hawks5–4–616
16November 15Chicago Black Hawks1–1New York Islanders5–4–717
17November 16Chicago Black Hawks2–5New York Rangers5–5–717
18November 20Chicago Black Hawks0–1Boston Bruins5–6–717
19November 23Chicago Black Hawks3–8Los Angeles Kings5–7–717
20November 25Chicago Black Hawks5–1Colorado Rockies6–7–719
21November 26Chicago Black Hawks2–2Vancouver Canucks6–7–820
22November 30Buffalo Sabres3–2Chicago Black Hawks6–8–820
23December 3Chicago Black Hawks2–3Montreal Canadiens6–9–820
24December 4Vancouver Canucks6–2Chicago Black Hawks6–10–820
25December 6Chicago Black Hawks2–1Detroit Red Wings7–10–822
26December 7New York Islanders4–0Chicago Black Hawks7–11–822
27December 10Chicago Black Hawks2–4Philadelphia Flyers7–12–822
28December 11Minnesota North Stars3–8Chicago Black Hawks8–12–824
29December 13Chicago Black Hawks2–2New York Islanders8–12–925
30December 14New York Rangers2–2Chicago Black Hawks8–12–1026
31December 17Chicago Black Hawks1–7Toronto Maple Leafs8–13–1026
32December 18Atlanta Flames0–3Chicago Black Hawks9–13–1028
33December 21Chicago Black Hawks6–2St. Louis Blues10–13–1030
34December 22Los Angeles Kings4–0Chicago Black Hawks10–14–1030
35December 27Chicago Black Hawks4–2Atlanta Flames11–14–1032
36December 28Toronto Maple Leafs0–4Chicago Black Hawks12–14–1034
37January 1Vancouver Canucks3–2Chicago Black Hawks12–15–1034
38January 4Boston Bruins3–0Chicago Black Hawks12–16–1034
39January 7Chicago Black Hawks0–0St. Louis Blues12–16–1135
40January 8Washington Capitals1–3Chicago Black Hawks13–16–1137
41January 11Philadelphia Flyers4–5Chicago Black Hawks14–16–1139
42January 14Chicago Black Hawks3–3Toronto Maple Leafs14–16–1240
43January 18Washington Capitals2–5Chicago Black Hawks15–16–1242
44January 19Chicago Black Hawks2–4Detroit Red Wings15–17–1242
45January 21Chicago Black Hawks4–1Minnesota North Stars16–17–1244
46January 22St. Louis Blues1–3Chicago Black Hawks17–17–1246
47January 26Cleveland Barons0–5Chicago Black Hawks18–17–1248
48January 28Detroit Red Wings1–6Chicago Black Hawks19–17–1250
49February 1Philadelphia Flyers1–3Chicago Black Hawks20–17–1252
50February 4Chicago Black Hawks5–1Vancouver Canucks21–17–1254
51February 8New York Islanders4–5Chicago Black Hawks22–17–1256
52February 9Chicago Black Hawks3–3Montreal Canadiens22–17–1357
53February 12Atlanta Flames2–2Chicago Black Hawks22–17–1458
54February 14Chicago Black Hawks1–2Pittsburgh Penguins22–18–1458
55February 15Colorado Rockies2–2Chicago Black Hawks22–18–1559
56February 18Boston Bruins2–4Chicago Black Hawks23–18–1561
57February 19Pittsburgh Penguins2–2Chicago Black Hawks23–18–1662
58February 22New York Rangers2–3Chicago Black Hawks24–18–1664
59February 23Chicago Black Hawks2–6New York Rangers24–19–1664
60February 25Chicago Black Hawks1–7New York Islanders24–20–1664
61February 26Toronto Maple Leafs5–3Chicago Black Hawks24–21–1664
62March 1Chicago Black Hawks2–3Vancouver Canucks24–22–1664
63March 4Chicago Black Hawks6–3Los Angeles Kings25–22–1666
64March 5Chicago Black Hawks2–2Colorado Rockies25–22–1767
65March 8Chicago Black Hawks4–3Minnesota North Stars26–22–1769
66March 11Chicago Black Hawks1–4Atlanta Flames26–23–1769
67March 12Chicago Black Hawks2–5Buffalo Sabres26–24–1769
68March 15Montreal Canadiens6–2Chicago Black Hawks26–25–1769
69March 18Chicago Black Hawks4–5St. Louis Blues26–26–1769
70March 19Pittsburgh Penguins1–9Chicago Black Hawks27–26–1771
71March 22Chicago Black Hawks6–2Washington Capitals28–26–1773
72March 23Chicago Black Hawks0–7Boston Bruins28–27–1773
73March 25St. Louis Blues2–2Chicago Black Hawks28–27–1874
74March 26Vancouver Canucks3–4Chicago Black Hawks29–27–1876
75March 29Los Angeles Kings1–5Chicago Black Hawks30–27–1878
76April 1Detroit Red Wings0–2Chicago Black Hawks31–27–1880
77April 2Chicago Black Hawks2–4Cleveland Barons31–28–1880
78April 5Colorado Rockies4–4Chicago Black Hawks31–28–1981
79April 8Minnesota North Stars2–4Chicago Black Hawks32–28–1983
80April 9Chicago Black Hawks2–3New York Rangers32–29–1983

Playoffs

Since the Hawks won their division, they were given a bye in the NHL Preliminary Round, and advanced straight to the NHL quarter-finals. Their first round opponent was the Boston Bruins, who finished in first place in the Adams Division with 113 points. The series opened at the Boston Garden, and the Bruins struck first, easily winning the first game by a 6–1 score. Chicago forced the second game into overtime, however, the Bruins would be victorious once again, this time winning 4–3 to take a 2–0 series lead. The series moved to Chicago Stadium for the next two games, but it was Boston who stayed hot, as they defeated the Hawks 4–3 in overtime once again in the third game. The Bruins dominated the fourth game, winning 5–2, to sweep the series. This was the third straight season that the Black Hawks were swept out of their first playoff round, as the team saw their playoff losing streak reach twelve games.

Boston Bruins 4, Chicago Black Hawks 0
#DateVisitorScoreHomeRecord
1April 17Chicago Black Hawks1–6Boston Bruins0–1
2April 19Chicago Black Hawks3–4Boston Bruins0–2
3April 21Boston Bruins4–3Chicago Black Hawks0–3
4April 23Boston Bruins5–2Chicago Black Hawks0–4

Player stats

Regular season
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Ivan BoldirevC8035458034−31002
Stan MikitaC/RW761841593518602
Ted BulleyLW792328511414605
J.P. BordeleauRW76152540329023
Grant MulveyRW78142438135−1300
Darcy RotaLW78172037675301
John MarksLW801522372627001
Doug WilsonD771420347211502
Cliff KorollRW73161531198104
Bob MurrayD701417314111203
Pierre PlanteRW7710182859−2002
Phil RussellD576202613919011
Dale TallonD7542024663212
Bob KellyLW757111895−26002
Jean SavardC3171118206202
Alain DaigleRW53661213−12100
Jim HarrisonC26281031−3100
Doug HicksD1317825000
Keith MagnusonD672461450000
Dave LoganD5415677−14100
Kirk BowmanLW33145130000
Tony EspositoG6404400000
Pit MartinC71120−1000
Mike O'ConnellD611220000
Reg KerrLW202202000
Bob HoffmeyerD501112−2000
Randy HoltD600020−4000
Eddie JohnstonG400000000
Mike VeisorG1200000000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T GA GAA SO
Tony Esposito3840642822141682.635
Mike Veisor72012345312.582
Eddie Johnston2404130174.250
Team:4800803229192162.707

Playoffs
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM PPG SHG GWG
Bob MurrayD41452000
Grant MulveyRW42240100
Stan MikitaC/RW43030200
Ted BulleyLW41122000
Ivan BoldirevC40222000
Dale TallonD40220000
Doug HicksD41012100
Cliff KorollRW41010000
J.P. BordeleauRW40110000
Alain DaigleRW40110000
John MarksLW40110000
Kirk BowmanLW30000000
Tony EspositoG40000000
Bob KellyLW40008000
Dave LoganD40008000
Keith MagnusonD40007000
Pierre PlanteRW10000000
Darcy RotaLW40002000
Doug WilsonD40000000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO
Tony Esposito252404194.520
Team:252404194.520

[6]

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
      MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts;

Playoff stats

Scoring leaders
Player GP G A Pts PIM
Bob Murray41452
Grant Mulvey42240
Stan Mikita43030
Ted Bulley41122
Dale Tallon40220

Goaltending
PlayerGPTOIWLGASOGAA
Tony Esposito4252041904.52

Draft picks

Chicago's draft picks at the 1977 NHL amateur draft at the Mount Royal Hotel in Montreal, Quebec.

Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)
16Doug Wilson CanadaOttawa 67's (OMJHL)
219Jean Savard CanadaQuebec Remparts (QMJHL)
460Randy Ireland CanadaPortland Winter Hawks (WCHL)
578Gary Platt CanadaSorel Black Hawks (QMJHL)
696Jack O'Callahan United StatesBoston University (NCAA)
7114Floyd Lahache CanadaSherbrooke Castors (QMJHL)
8129Jeff Geiger CanadaOttawa 67's (OMJHL)
9144Steve Ough CanadaLaval National (QMJHL)

References
  1. 1976–77 NHL Season Summary – Hockey-Reference.com
  2. 1977–78 Chicago Black Hawks Games – Hockey-Reference.com
  3. "Chicago Blackhawks goaltending history : Tony Esposito". Archived from the original on February 17, 2008. Retrieved July 25, 2008.
  4. Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 151. ISBN 9781894801225.
  5. "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  6. "1977-78 Chicago Black Hawks Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved June 16, 2009.

Sources
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