Nice job by the Blackhawks (Blues should have never fired Joel )

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/nhl-...640a69ef3d

That's great.

It was nice seeing Kevin Dineen in the video. Kevin and Gordie Dineen both spent part of their youth in Houston and played Squirt and Pee Wee hockey in the old MAHA at the Ice Haus and Sharpstown rinks while their dad coached the WHA Aeros.

(03-19-2016 09:07 PM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  It was nice seeing Kevin Dineen in the video. Kevin and Gordie Dineen both spent part of their youth in Houston and played Squirt and Pee Wee hockey in the old MAHA at the Ice Haus and Sharpstown rinks while their dad coached the WHA Aeros.

I was thinking the same thing.

(03-19-2016 09:15 PM)Owl 69/70/75 Wrote:  

(03-19-2016 09:07 PM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  It was nice seeing Kevin Dineen in the video. Kevin and Gordie Dineen both spent part of their youth in Houston and played Squirt and Pee Wee hockey in the old MAHA at the Ice Haus and Sharpstown rinks while their dad coached the WHA Aeros.

I was thinking the same thing.

Yes, that is correct. I was Kevin's teammate as a first year bantam on the MHHA travel team in 1977 or 78. We won district that year beating our nemesis Littleton, Colorado at the Ice Haus and advanced to regionals in Salt Lake City. In fact, in the first game I gave Kevin a buddy pass and he was clobbered and missed the rest of the tournament.

I'm sure several of you - and in particular Tiki - know this story better than I do, but it's still amazing to me that Houston doesn't get more play in NHL expansion discussion ... and, going further back, during the Sun Belt expansion of the '90s.

(Let's Go Ducks!)

(03-29-2016 08:31 AM)Orange County Owl Wrote:  I'm sure several of you - and in particular Tiki - know this story better than I do, but it's still amazing to me that Houston doesn't get more play in NHL expansion discussion ... and, going further back, during the Sun Belt expansion of the '90s.

(Let's Go Ducks!)

Quick answer:Les Alexander. Earlier periods of NHL expansion (Atlanta Flames, KC Scouts) opportunity were caught up in the WHA vs NHL wars.

(03-29-2016 06:12 AM)OwlRon87 Wrote:  

(03-19-2016 09:15 PM)Owl 69/70/75 Wrote:  

(03-19-2016 09:07 PM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  It was nice seeing Kevin Dineen in the video. Kevin and Gordie Dineen both spent part of their youth in Houston and played Squirt and Pee Wee hockey in the old MAHA at the Ice Haus and Sharpstown rinks while their dad coached the WHA Aeros.

I was thinking the same thing.

Yes, that is correct. I was Kevin's teammate as a first year bantam on the MHHA travel team in 1977 or 78. We won district that year beating our nemesis Littleton, Colorado at the Ice Haus and advanced to regionals in Salt Lake City. In fact, in the first game I gave Kevin a buddy pass and he was clobbered and missed the rest of the tournament.

People would be surprised how scary good the squirt, pee wee, bantam, and midget travel teams were in MHHA (thanks for reminding me of the correct acronym) during that period. In addition to Dineen's kids (Bill had two other older boys Peter and Shawn. Peter played briefly as a midget then went to Canada to play Jr Hockey and Shawn the oldest was in Canada playing Jr on his way to playing at Denver U) several of the older Aeros had kids in the system. The formation of the Aeros also brought additional hockey families to Houston like Warren Hynes and Bob Keltie who helped build MHHA.

The Aeros connection was just part of the influx of hockey centric folks as the oil embargo of 1973 brought huge numbers of oil and finacial related professionals, many from the north, to Houston. Quality coaching, especially with the travel teams, also helped develop native Houston kids into good hockey players. The leaders of MHHA managed to get northern teams from St Louis, Detroit, and Chicago to come to Houston to play during the Christmas break giving exposure to the Houston program. With travel team games in a number of divisions there would be games at Ice Haus, Sharpstown, the Coliseum, and the Summit.

It was a really fun time and it would have been amazing to see what would have happened to youth hockey had the Aeros joined the NHL with the other 4 WHA clubs, but Ken Schnitzer killed that dream.

(BTW, I remember the Littleton game quite well.)

(03-29-2016 09:40 AM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  

(03-29-2016 06:12 AM)OwlRon87 Wrote:  

(03-19-2016 09:15 PM)Owl 69/70/75 Wrote:  

(03-19-2016 09:07 PM)Tiki Owl Wrote:  It was nice seeing Kevin Dineen in the video. Kevin and Gordie Dineen both spent part of their youth in Houston and played Squirt and Pee Wee hockey in the old MAHA at the Ice Haus and Sharpstown rinks while their dad coached the WHA Aeros.

I was thinking the same thing.

Yes, that is correct. I was Kevin's teammate as a first year bantam on the MHHA travel team in 1977 or 78. We won district that year beating our nemesis Littleton, Colorado at the Ice Haus and advanced to regionals in Salt Lake City. In fact, in the first game I gave Kevin a buddy pass and he was clobbered and missed the rest of the tournament.

People would be surprised how scary good the squirt, pee wee, bantam, and midget travel teams were in MHHA (thanks for reminding me of the correct acronym) during that period. In addition to Dineen's kids (Bill had two other older boys Peter and Shawn. Peter played briefly as a midget then went to Canada to play Jr Hockey and Shawn the oldest was in Canada playing Jr on his way to playing at Denver U) several of the older Aeros had kids in the system. The formation of the Aeros also brought additional hockey families to Houston like Warren Hynes and Bob Keltie who helped build MHHA.

The Aeros connection was just part of the influx of hockey centric folks as the oil embargo of 1973 brought huge numbers of oil and finacial related professionals, many from the north, to Houston. Quality coaching, especially with the travel teams, also helped develop native Houston kids into good hockey players. The leaders of MHHA managed to get northern teams from St Louis, Detroit, and Chicago to come to Houston to play during the Christmas break giving exposure to the Houston program. With travel team games in a number of divisions there would be games at Ice Haus, Sharpstown, the Coliseum, and the Summit.

It was a really fun time and it would have been amazing to see what would have happened to youth hockey had the Aeros joined the NHL with the other 4 WHA clubs, but Ken Schnitzer killed that dream.

(BTW, I remember the Littleton game quite well.)

Yes, we had some good teams. Mr Hynes son, Steven I believe, was on that bantam team as well. I got to travel all over the US and Canada to play hockey. It was a total blast. My best youth memories. We lost in Utah to a team from Seattle, that went on the finish 2nd or 3rd in the nation. Alas, hockey was not to be for me. A number of us from Houston and Dallas were recruited to Kent School in Connecticut, which had the best prep hockey in New England. I never made varsity. I played baseball there as well. I ended up back at Rice and walked on to David Hall's baseball team which I did for 3 years.

I play Monday nights now in a men's league at Bellerive Ice, the old Sharpstown Ice Center. The old girl has been totally renovated and looks great.