1978-1979  Coach: Pat Stapleton  Record: 5-18-2, 12 points RACERS  Finish: Team disbanded, December 15, 1978  Playoffs: -

The Racers were dead on their feet after 1977-78, and should have folded, but owner had other ideas. He signed 17-year old to play for the Racers, in the hopes he would be the savior the franchise so badly needed. To his credit, Gretzky played well for the Racers—for eight games. Still, no one went to the games as the fans had abandoned the team after a year of seeing its best talent traded away or simply let go. The financial reality was so severe Skalbania had no choice but to sell Gretzky to Edmonton for cash on November 2, 1978, but this only gave the Racers life for a few more weeks. When the cash ran out, the team folded in mid-December, 1978. During their abbreviated final season, the Racers won just 5 of 25 games and were on pace to allow over 400 goals. Fan-favorite Pat Stapleton coached the club, while Don Larway and were the scoring stars for Indy, each with 18 points. Ed Mio provided the only highlight of the season, a 4-0 shutout of the Nordiques in Québec, the first time ever the Nordiques had been shut out at home during the regular season (it was also the same game in which Gretzky registered his first big-league point—an assist—on Richie Leduc’s first period goal). In late November, another 17-year old kid skated a few games for the Racers: . In time, Gretzky and Messier would win four Stanley Cups together in Edmonton, play into the new millennium (Messier retiring from the NHL in 2004), and establish themselves as all-time greats of the game. Few people remember that both began their long and storied careers as kids, skating for a failing franchise in Indianapolis.

Summary of Games (@ Away, * Overtime)

date opponent score record pts gf-ga date opponent score record pts gf-ga 1 Oct 14 Winnipeg 3-6 L 0-1-0 0 3-6 14 Nov 17 @ Edmonton 1-6 L 2-10-2 6 38-70 2 Oct 15 Birmingham 3-9 L 0-2-0 0 6-15 15 Nov 19 @ Winnipeg 2-5 L 2-11-2 6 40-75 3 Oct 18 @ Québec 4-0 W 1-2-0 2 10-15 16 Nov 23 Winnipeg 1-5 L 2-12-2 6 41-80 4 Oct 20 Edmonton 3-4 L 1-3-0 2 13-19 17 Nov 24 @ Cincinnati 5-8 L 2-13-2 6 46-88 5 Oct 22 New England 3-6 L 1-4-0 2 16-25 18 Nov 25 Cincinnati 6-3 W 3-13-2 8 52-91 6 Oct 27 @ Birmingham 2-4 L 1-5-0 2 18-29 19 Nov 28 @ Edmonton 2-8 L 3-14-2 8 54-99 7 Oct 28 Winnipeg 3-2 W 2-5-0 4 21-31 20 Dec 1 Birmingham 6-3 W 4-14-2 10 60-102 8 Oct 29 @ Winnipeg 3-3 T 2-5-1 5 24-34 21 Dec 2 @ Birmingham 2-4 L 4-15-2 10 62-106 9 Nov 3 @ New England 3-6 L 2-6-1 5 27-40 22 Dec 3 Cincinnati 2-4 L 4-16-2 10 64-110 10 Nov 4 New England 6-6 T 2-6-2 6 33-46 23 Dec 7 Winnipeg 4-9 L 4-17-2 10 68-119 11 Nov 5 @ Winnipeg 2-6 L 2-7-2 6 35-52 24 Dec 10 Edmonton 6-4 W 5-17-2 12 74-123 12 Nov 8 @ Cincinnati 0-4 L 2-8-2 6 35-56 25 Dec 12 New England 4-7 L 5-18-2 12 78-130 13 Nov 11 @ Québec 2-8 L 2-9-2 6 37-64 Franchise folded, December 15, 1978

Wayne Gretzky Comes to the WHA

By the time Wayne Gretzky was 17 years old, he was already well-known to the hockey world as a prodigy, and after one year playing for Sault Ste. Marie of the OHA, had shown he was ready for better competition. The NHL balked at signing a 17-year old child, leaving Gretzky with one alternative: the WHA. In June 1978 he signed a personal services contract with Nelson Skalbania, who hoped the young star-to-be would vault his Racers out of the cellar, or at least keep them solvent for the upcoming season. Gretzky’s career in Indianapolis lasted just eight games, and on November 2, 1978, he was sold—along with and —to Edmonton. In Edmonton, Gretzky won the WHA’s Rookie-of-the-Year award and of course, went on to a remarkable career in the NHL.

Wayne Gretzky’s Scoring Summary with Indianapolis

No. Date Opponent Summary 1 Oct 14 Winnipeg No scoring. 2 Oct 15 Birmingham No scoring. 3 Oct 18 Québec Assisted on Richie Leduc’s second-period goal at 16:14. also assisted. 4 Oct 20 Edmonton Scored at 6:07 and 6:41 of the second period against Dave Dryden. Morrison assisted on his the first goal, while Peter Driscoll and Don Larway assisted on his second goal. 5 Oct 22 New England Assisted on Driscoll’s goal at 16:56 of the first period. Scored at 3:30 of the third period, with assists to Larway and Al McLeod. 6 Oct 27 Birmingham Assisted on Don Larway’s goal at 18:49 of the first period. Gerry Leroux also assisted. 7 Oct 28 Winnipeg No scoring. 8 Oct 29 Winnipeg No scoring.

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