1977–78 Houston Aeros season

1977–78 Houston Aeros
League3rd WHA
1977–78 record42–34–4
Home record24–13–2
Road record18–21–2
Goals for296
Goals against302
Team information
CoachBill Dineen
CaptainTerry Ruskowski
Alternate captainsAndre Lacroix
John Schella
Poul Popiel
ArenaThe Summit
Team leaders
GoalsMorris Lukowich (40)
AssistsAndre Lacroix (77)
PointsAndre Lacroix (113)
Penalty minutesCam Connor (217)
WinsErnie Wakely (28)
Goals against averageErnie Wakely (3.24)

The 1977–78 Houston Aeros season was the Houston Aeros' sixth and final season of operation in the World Hockey Association (WHA). The Aeros again qualified for the playoffs, but lost in the first round to the Quebec Nordiques.

Offseason

Regular season

Final standings

Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF= Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points

WHA Team W L T Pts GF GA PIM
Winnipeg Jets 50 28 2 102 381 270 988
New England Whalers 44 31 5 93 335 269 1255
42 34 4 88 296 302 1543
Quebec Nordiques 40 37 3 83 349 347 1185
Edmonton Oilers 38 39 3 79 309 307 1296
Birmingham Bulls 36 41 3 75 287 314 2177
Cincinnati Stingers 35 42 3 73 298 332 1701
Indianapolis Racers 24 51 5 53 267 353 1189
Soviet All-Stars 3 4 1 7 27 36 120
Czechoslovakia All-Stars 1 6 1 3 21 40 87


Schedule and results

1977–78 regular season[1]
October
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
1 L October 12, 1977 0–3 New England Whalers (1977–78) 0–1–0
2 L October 14, 1977 3–5 @ Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 0–2–0
3 W October 15, 1977 5–1 Indianapolis Racers (1977–78) 1–2–0
4 W October 21, 1977 6–5 Cincinnati Stingers (1977–78) 2–2–0
5 W October 26, 1977 8–7 OT Edmonton Oilers (1977–78) 3–2–0
6 L October 29, 1977 2–7 @ New England Whalers (1977–78) 3–3–0
7 L October 30, 1977 4–5 @ Quebec Nordiques (1977–78) 3–4–0
November
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
8 L November 1, 1977 3–6 @ Indianapolis Racers (1977–78) 3–5–0
9 W November 2, 1977 5–3 Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 4–5–0
10 L November 4, 1977 6–7 Quebec Nordiques (1977–78) 4–6–0
11 L November 6, 1977 1–7 @ Edmonton Oilers (1977–78) 4–7–0
12 L November 9, 1977 3–4 @ Winnipeg Jets (1977–78) 4–8–0
13 W November 11, 1977 5–3 Indianapolis Racers (1977–78) 5–8–0
14 W November 18, 1977 6–5 Quebec Nordiques (1977–78) 6–8–0
15 L November 19, 1977 3–4 @ Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 6–9–0
16 W November 23, 1977 3–0 Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 7–9–0
17 W November 25, 1977 3–1 Cincinnati Stingers (1977–78) 8–9–0
18 T November 30, 1977 3–3 New England Whalers (1977–78) 8–9–1
December
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
19 L December 2, 1977 2–4 Indianapolis Racers (1977–78) 8–10–1
20 W December 4, 1977 3–2 @ Cincinnati Stingers (1977–78) 9–10–1
21 L December 6, 1977 3–4 OT @ Quebec Nordiques (1977–78) 9–11–1
22 L December 7, 1977 2–5 @ Winnipeg Jets (1977–78) 9–12–1
23 W December 9, 1977 5–3 @ Edmonton Oilers (1977–78) 10–12–1
24 W December 11, 1977 4–2 @ Edmonton Oilers (1977–78) 11–12–1
25 L December 13, 1977 3–5 Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 11–13–1
26 T December 15, 1977 3–3 @ Indianapolis Racers (1977–78) 11–13–2
27 W December 18, 1977 3–2 Czechoslovakia (1977–78) 12–13–2
28 W December 20, 1977 6–4 Edmonton Oilers (1977–78) 13–13–2
29 L December 21, 1977 3–4 Winnipeg Jets (1977–78) 13–14–2
30 L December 23, 1977 2–6 Soviet All-Stars (1977–78) 13–15–2
31 W December 29, 1977 7–1 @ Indianapolis Racers (1977–78) 14–15–2
32 T December 30, 1977 5–5 Cincinnati Stingers (1977–78) 14–15–3
January
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
33 W January 1, 1978 2–1 @ Edmonton Oilers (1977–78) 15–15–3
34 L January 4, 1978 3–5 @ Cincinnati Stingers (1977–78) 15–16–3
35 L January 6, 1978 4–6 @ Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 15–17–3
36 L January 7, 1978 1–2 OT Indianapolis Racers (1977–78) 15–18–3
37 L January 8, 1978 2–4 Edmonton Oilers (1977–78) 15–19–3
38 W January 13, 1978 3–2 Winnipeg Jets (1977–78) 16–19–3
39 W January 14, 1978 5–4 OT @ New England Whalers (1977–78) 17–19–3
40 W January 20, 1978 4–3 @ Indianapolis Racers (1977–78) 18–19–3
41 W January 21, 1978 5–2 Cincinnati Stingers (1977–78) 19–19–3
42 W January 22, 1978 4–2 Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 20–19–3
43 W January 24, 1978 6–5 @ Quebec Nordiques (1977–78) 21–19–3
44 W January 26, 1978 2–1 OT Winnipeg Jets (1977–78) 22–19–3
45 L January 28, 1978 0–3 New England Whalers (1977–78) 22–20–3
46 W January 29, 1978 6–4 New England Whalers (1977–78) 23–20–3
47 W January 31, 1978 4–2 @ Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 24–20–3
February
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
48 L February 3, 1978 0–1 @ Cincinnati Stingers (1977–78) 24–21–3
49 W February 4, 1978 5–4 New England Whalers (1977–78) 25–21–3
50 W February 9, 1978 2–1 Quebec Nordiques (1977–78) 26–21–3
51 W February 11, 1978 8–4 Quebec Nordiques (1977–78) 27–21–3
52 L February 12, 1978 5–6 Winnipeg Jets (1977–78) 27–22–3
53 W February 15, 1978 5–2 @ Cincinnati Stingers (1977–78) 28–22–3
54 L February 16, 1978 2–5 Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 28–23–3
55 L February 17, 1978 3–4 OT Cincinnati Stingers (1977–78) 28–24–3
56 W February 18, 1978 3–2 @ Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 29–24–3
57 W February 22, 1978 6–5 @ Edmonton Oilers (1977–78) 30–24–3
58 L February 24, 1978 4–5 OT @ Edmonton Oilers (1977–78) 30–25–3
59 L February 26, 1978 6–9 @ Winnipeg Jets (1977–78) 30–26–3
60 L February 28, 1978 2–5 @ Quebec Nordiques (1977–78) 30–27–3
March
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
61 L March 1, 1978 1–5 @ Indianapolis Racers (1977–78) 30–28–3
62 W March 3, 1978 3–2 OT @ New England Whalers (1977–78) 31–28–3
63 T March 4, 1978 3–3 @ Quebec Nordiques (1977–78) 31–28–4
64 W March 5, 1978 4–3 @ Winnipeg Jets (1977–78) 32–28–4
65 W March 7, 1978 4–3 Edmonton Oilers (1977–78) 33–28–4
66 W March 9, 1978 6–4 New England Whalers (1977–78) 34–28–4
67 L March 11, 1978 2–4 @ Indianapolis Racers (1977–78) 34–29–4
68 W March 12, 1978 6–3 Indianapolis Racers (1977–78) 35–29–4
69 L March 17, 1978 2–3 Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 35–30–4
70 L March 22, 1978 2–9 @ Cincinnati Stingers (1977–78) 35–31–4
71 W March 24, 1978 1–0 @ New England Whalers (1977–78) 36–31–4
72 W March 25, 1978 4–3 OT Quebec Nordiques (1977–78) 37–31–4
73 W March 28, 1978 5–3 Winnipeg Jets (1977–78) 38–31–4
74 W March 30, 1978 5–1 Edmonton Oilers (1977–78) 39–31–4
April
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
75 L April 2, 1978 1–7 @ Quebec Nordiques (1977–78) 39–32–4
76 L April 3, 1978 6–8 @ New England Whalers (1977–78) 39–33–4
77 W April 4, 1978 6–3 Winnipeg Jets (1977–78) 40–33–4
78 L April 7, 1978 3–5 @ Birmingham Bulls (1977–78) 40–34–4
79 W April 8, 1978 5–4 Cincinnati Stingers (1977–78) 41–34–4
80 W April 9, 1978 5–4 @ Winnipeg Jets (1977–78) 42–34–4

Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Playoffs

1978 Avco Cup playoffs[1]
Quarterfinals vs. Quebec Nordiques – Nordiques win 4–2
Game Date Visitor Score Home Series
1 April 16 Quebec Nordiques 3–4 Houston Aeros 1–0
2 April 18 Quebec Nordiques 5–4 Houston Aeros 1–1
3 April 20 Houston Aeros 1–5 Quebec Nordiques 1–2
4 April 21 Houston Aeros 0–3 Quebec Nordiques 1–3
5 April 23 Quebec Nordiques 2–5 Houston Aeros 2–3
6 April 25 Houston Aeros 2–11 Quebec Nordiques 2–4

Legend:   Win   Loss

Player statistics

Scoring
Regular season[2]
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Andre Lacroix C 78 36 77 113 57 8 7 0 0
Morris Lukowich LW 80 40 35 75 131 13 13 0 0
Terry Ruskowski C 78 15 57 72 170 13 3 1 0
John Tonelli LW 65 23 41 64 103 13 5 0 0
Don Larway RW 69 24 35 59 52 1 5 0 0
John Gray RW 77 35 23 58 80 15 6 0 0
Rich Preston RW 73 25 25 50 52 3 7 3 0
Cam Connor RW 68 21 16 37 217 4 0 0 0
Scott Campbell D 75 8 29 37 116 10 1 0 0
Poul Popiel D 80 6 31 37 53 −6 1 1 0
Steve West C 71 11 21 32 23 4 0 0 0
John Schella D 63 9 20 29 125 −2 4 0 0
John Hughes D 79 3 25 28 130 20 1 0 0
Larry Lund C 76 9 17 26 36 −22 1 0 0
Al McLeod D 80 2 22 24 54 18 0 0 0
Ron Hansis RW 78 13 9 22 51 0 1 0 0
Ted Taylor LW 54 11 11 22 46 8 1 1 0
Larry Hale D 56 2 11 13 22 4 0 0 0
Frank Hughes LW 11 3 2 5 2 −10 0 0 0
Ernie Wakely G 51 0 4 4 2 0 0 0 0
Cleland Mortson RW 6 0 1 1 7 −1 0 0 0
Glen Irwin D 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
John Mazur LW 1 0 0 0 0 −1 0 0 0
Wayne Rutledge G 12 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0
Lynn Zimmerman G 20 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T GA GAA SO
Ernie Wakely 3070 51 28 18 4 166 3.24 2
Lynn Zimmerman 1166 20 10 9 0 84 4.32 0
Wayne Rutledge 634 12 4 7 0 47 4.45 0
Team: 4870 80 42 34 4 297 3.66 2
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM PPG SHG GWG
Ted Taylor LW 6 3 1 4 10 0 0 1
Andre Lacroix C 6 2 2 4 0 0 0 0
John Tonelli LW 6 1 3 4 8 0 0 0
Don Larway RW 6 1 2 3 4 0 0 0
Morris Lukowich LW 6 1 2 3 17 0 0 0
John Gray RW 6 0 3 3 10 0 0 0
Scott Campbell D 6 1 1 2 8 0 0 1
Ron Hansis RW 6 1 1 2 4 0 0 0
John Hughes D 6 1 1 2 6 0 0 0
Terry Ruskowski C 4 1 1 2 5 0 0 0
Paul Terbenche D 6 1 1 2 0 0 0 0
Larry Lund C 6 0 2 2 2 0 0 0
Poul Popiel D 6 0 2 2 13 0 0 0
Cam Connor RW 2 1 0 1 22 0 0 0
Al McLeod D 6 1 0 1 2 0 0 0
Steve West C 6 1 0 1 0 0 0 0
Cleland Mortson RW 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 0
John Schella D 6 0 1 1 33 0 0 0
Wayne Rutledge G 3 0 0 0 2 0 0 0
Lynn Zimmerman G 4 0 0 0 6 0 0 0
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO
Wayne Rutledge 239 3 1 2 21 5.27 0
Lynn Zimmerman 131 4 1 2 8 3.66 0
Team: 370 6 2 4 29 4.70 0

[3]

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;

Awards and records

WHA All-Star Game (January 17, 1978)

Transactions

Draft picks

Houston's draft picks at the 1977 WHA Amateur Draft.[4]

Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)
1 1 Scott Campbell (D)  Canada London Knights (OHA)
1 10 Dwight Foster (F)  Canada Kitchener Rangers (OHA)
2 21 Dave Semenko (LW)  Canada Brandon Wheat Kings (WCHL)
3 30 Glen Hanlon (G)  Canada Brandon Wheat Kings (WCHL)
4 39 Reg Kerr (D)  Canada Kamloops Chiefs (WCHL)
5 48 Kevin McCarthy (D)  Canada Winnipeg Monarchs (WCHL)
6 57 Markus Mattsson (G)  Finland Ilves (Liiga)
7 66 Harald Luckner (F)  Sweden Farjestads BK (Elitserien)
8 74 Matti Forss (F)  Finland Lukko Rauma (Liiga)
9 82 Mike Dwyer (LW)  Canada Niagara Falls Flyers (OHA)
10 90 Dave Parro (G)  Canada Saskatoon Blades (WCHL)

See also

References

  1. ^ a b "1977-78 Houston Aeros Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved April 9, 2025.
  2. ^ "1977-78 Houston Aeros Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved June 30, 2009.
  3. ^ "1977-78 Houston Aeros Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved June 28, 2009.
  4. ^ "1977 WHA Amateur Draft". hockeyDB.com. Retrieved December 18, 2018.
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