Edmonton Oil Kings (WCHL)
| Edmonton Oil Kings | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| City | Edmonton, Alberta |
| League | Western Hockey League |
| Operated | 1951–79 |
| Home arena | Edmonton Gardens, Jasper Place Arena |
| Colours | Red, Blue, White |
| Championships | 1963 & 1966 Memorial Cup Champions |
| Franchise history | |
| 1967–78 | Flin Flon Bombers |
| 1978–79 | Edmonton Oil Kings |
| 1979–80 | Great Falls Americans |
| 1980–82 | Spokane Flyers |
| Previous franchise history | |
| 1951–76 | Edmonton Oil Kings |
| 1976-Present | Portland Winterhawks |
The Edmonton Oil Kings were a junior ice hockey team, and founding member of the Western Hockey League. They played at Edmonton Gardens in Edmonton, Alberta, and later Northlands Coliseum. In 1976 they moved to Portland, Oregon to become the Portland Winter Hawks. A second incarnation of the team played only one season in 1977–78 before moving to Great Falls, Montana.
The Edmonton Oil Kings have a history that predates the founding of the Western Hockey League. They won the Memorial Cup in 1963 and 1966 as members of the senior men's Central Alberta Hockey League. The team was required to defeat the Alberta Junior Hockey League champion to earn the right to play for the national junior championship. They were also cup finalists seven different years between 1954 and 1971.
In 1966, Bill Hunter, the team's General Manager, was concerned about the state of junior hockey in western Canada. Each of the west's four provinces all had their own junior league, and Hunter felt that this put them at a disadvantage when competing nationally against the powerful leagues in Ontario and Quebec. Hunter hoped to form a unified western league to compete.
Hunter's hopes became reality in the summer of 1966, when a revolt within the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League caused several of its top clubs, the Estevan Bruins, Regina Pats, Saskatoon Blades, Moose Jaw Canucks and Weyburn Red Wings, to leave the league and join Hunter's Oil Kings in forming a new league. A seventh franchise was also added in Calgary, the Calgary Buffaloes.
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