Indianapolis Racers

The Indianapolis Racers were a franchise in the former World Hockey Association. They competed for five seasons, folding after 25 into the 1978-79 season. They are by far best-known for being the first professional team to secure the services of the player often considered hockey's all-time greatest player, Wayne Gretzky. The presence of the young Gretzky was inadequate to save the team, however, or in the final analysis even the WHA as a whole, which folded at the end of the 1978-79 season.

Related Topics:
World Hockey Association - Wayne Gretzky

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At the beginning of the final season of the WHA, 7 teams remained with the Racers being one of them. After selling Gretzky after only 8 games to the Edmonton Oilers (also of the WHA), the Racers bowed out 17 games later. The other six teams finished the season, but after the Winnipeg Jets won the Avco World Trophy, the league folded. The four best teams, the Edmonton Oilers, Winnipeg Jets, New England Whalers, and Quebec Nordiques, merged with the National Hockey League while the two worst teams, the Cincinnati Stingers and Birmingham Bulls were paid large sums of cash to fold.

Related Topics:
Edmonton Oilers - Winnipeg Jets - Avco World Trophy - New England Whalers - Quebec Nordiques - National Hockey League - Cincinnati Stingers - Birmingham Bulls

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While the NHL accepted four WHA teams into its fold, the WHA's records were not accepted by the NHL and all players and teams had their WHA stats wiped. Resultantly, Gretzky's official records, as amazing as they are, in fact somewhat understate his accomplishments.

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