Wichita Wind

Wichita Wind
City	Wichita, Kansas
League	Central Hockey League
Founded	1980
Home arena	Kansas Coliseum
Colors	Blue, white, and orange
Affiliates	Edmonton Oilers New Jersey Devils

The Wichita Wind were a minor league ice hockey team based in Wichita, Kansas from 1980 to 1983. They were the feeder team of the Edmonton Oilers (1980–81 and 1981–82 seasons) and the New Jersey Devils (1982–83). The Wind played in the Central Hockey League (CHL) at the Britt Brown Arena in the Kansas Coliseum. The team's general manager (GM) was Larry Gordon for all three seasons of existence.

In June 1980, Gordon was replaced as Oilers' GM and took over as president, owner, and GM of the Wind. The team name was picked from 6,600 entries in a name-the-team contest, and the team's mascot was an orange tornado.Roy Sommer, now coach of the Worcester Sharks, was the captain all three seasons of existence.

The Wind were decimated by injuries their inaugural season. In a game against the Dallas Black Hawks on December 27, 1980, they dressed coach Garnet Bailey as a defenseman and a public relations employee as the backup goaltender; they lost the game 6–3. Bailey was described by Tom Roulston as "just like a big kid", who also said that many practices consisted of half-ice and shootouts. The team played to sixth place at 32 wins, 45 loses, and 3 ties in the regular season, also gaining the most penalty minutes. Bailey's club won its first playoff series against the Indianapolis Checkers in the decisive fifth game 6–5 on a goal by Tom Roulston, the league's leading scorer. The Wind won the following series 4–2 against the Dallas Black Hawks, who led the regular-season standings. The Wind lost in seven games to the reigning champions, the Salt Lake Golden Eagles, in the Adams Cup championship series.Don Murdoch was named playoff MVP after accumulating 17 goals and 7 assists over 18 games, a CHL playoff record for points. After the season, center Don Ashby, the Wind's second-leading scorer, died in a car crash.

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