Judy's Hockey History: First NHL Experiences PART 3

My sister Patty and her family lived in the Detroit Michigan suburb of Fraser. Knowing we had lost our hockey team and that TV stations in Kansas did not broadcast hockey, she began sending video tape recordings to me of Hockey Night in Canada games and Don Cherry’s Coach’s Corner with his dog “Blue”.

* Fraser Michigan was part of the Colonial Hockey League in the fall of 1991.

The 1984 Stanley Cup Final was held between the Edmonton Oilers and the then-defending champion New York Islanders. Edmonton was making their second-straight Finals appearance, and New York was making their fifth-straight (they had won the previous four). The Oilers would win the best-of-seven series four games to one to win their first Stanley Cup, becoming the third post-1967 expansion team and first former WHA team to win the Cup.

Don and I took a vacation to Los Angeles and saw a LA Kings hockey game in the Fabulous Forum.

The 1985 Stanley Cup Finals was played between the defending champion Edmonton Oilers in their third-straight Finals appearance and the Philadelphia Flyers. The Oilers would win the best-of-seven series four games to one, to win their second Stanley Cup.

In May of 1985, Don and I were married and moved to Topeka. Don’s new position with Southwestern Bell in Topeka required that he travel to St. Louis for meetings. So of course, I went along to attend St. Louis hockey games held at “The Saint Louis Arena” popularly referred to as "The Barn".

The huge structure was completed in 1929, just over a year after construction began. At 476 feet long and 276 feet wide, it was behind only Madison Square Garden as the largest indoor entertainment space in the country. A 13-story building could have been erected inside of it.