1978–79 Chicago Black Hawks season

National Hockey League team season March 2026 August 2023 NHL 1978–79 1978 Chicago Black Hawks 29–36–15 18–12–10 11–24–5 Campbell 5th Smythe 1st 244 277 Bob Pulford Bob Pulford Keith Magnuson None Chicago Stadium Ivan Boldirev (29) Stan Mikita (36) Ivan Boldirev (64) Ted Bulley (+17) Dave Logan (176) Tony Esposito (24) Tony Esposito (3.28) Yes The 1978–79 Chicago Black Hawks season was the 53rd season of operation of the Chicago Black Hawks in the National Hockey League (NHL). The club was coming off a first-place finish in the Smythe Division in 1977–78. In the 1978 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Black Hawks were swept by the Boston Bruins in four games in the quarter-finals. Offseason The Black Hawks had a very quiet off-season, however, Chicago did acquire 21-year-old goaltender Murray Bannerman from the Vancouver Canucks to complete an earlier trade that sent Pit Martin to the Canucks. Bannerman spent the previous season with the Fort Wayne Komets of the IHL, and did appear in a game with Vancouver, allowing no goals in a period of action. In a couple of minor trades, Chicago traded away Pierre Plante to the Minnesota North Stars to complete an earlier deal, and in a separate trade, Chicago traded Thomas Gradin to the Vancouver Canucks for the Canucks second-round draft pick in the 1980 NHL entry draft. Regular season Chicago opened the season with a six-game unbeaten streak, going 3–0–3, before suffering their first loss. The Hawks would struggle after their hot start, as Chicago saw their record fall to 17-24-9 at the start of February, however, despite their poor record, the Black Hawks were in first place in the Smythe Division. The Black Hawks turned their fortunes around in their next 14 games, going 8–3–3, putting their record at 25–27–12, with 62 points, 14 ahead of the second place Vancouver Canucks. Chicago then fell into an eight-game winless streak (0–7–1), but still held a 10-point lead. Chicago then finished the season with a 29–36–15 record, earning 73 points, and winning the Smythe Division for the second season in a row, and seventh division title in the past ten seasons. Offensively, the Black Hawks were led by Ivan Boldirev, who led the club with 29 goals and 64 points in 66 games. Stan Mikita had 19 goals and a team high 36 assists for 55 points to finish second in team scoring. Defenceman Bob Murray scored 19 goals and 51 points to lead the Black Hawks blueline. Defenceman Dave Logan had a team high 175 penalty minutes, while winger Ted Bulley led Chicago with a +18 rating. In goal, Tony Esposito saw the majority of playing time, going 24-28-11 with a 3.27 GAA, while earning four shutouts. Final standings CHI Record vs. opponents CHI Schedule and results background:#fff; border-top:#CE1126 5px solid; border-bottom:#000000 5px solid; 1978–79 regular season1978-79 Chicago Black Hawks Schedule https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/CBH/1979_games.html Hockey-Reference.com March 28, 2025 y background:#fff; border-top:#CE1126 2px solid; border-bottom:#000000 2px solid; October Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |1||T||October 11, 1978||4–4 || align="left"| Atlanta Flames (1978–79) ||0–0–1 |- |2||T||October 15, 1978||3–3 || align="left"| Vancouver Canucks (1978–79) ||0–0–2 |- |3||W||October 18, 1978||4–2 || align="left"| @ Washington Capitals (1978–79) ||1–0–2 |- |4||W||October 19, 1978||6–2 || align="left"| Minnesota North Stars (1978–79) ||2–0–2 |- |5||W||October 22, 1978||6–5 || align="left"| Boston Bruins (1978–79) ||3–0–2 |- |6||T||October 25, 1978||2–2 || align="left"| Washington Capitals (1978–79) ||3–0–3 |- |7||L||October 28, 1978||2–7 || align="left"| @ Detroit Red Wings (1978–79) ||3–1–3 |- |8||W||October 29, 1978||4–1 || align="left"| Montreal Canadiens (1978–79) ||4–1–3 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#CE1126 2px solid; border-bottom:#000000 2px solid; November Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |9||L||November 1, 1978||0–1 || align="left"| Vancouver Canucks (1978–79) ||4–2–3 |- |10||T||November 4, 1978||5–5 || align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1978–79) ||4–2–4 |- |11||W||November 5, 1978||3–1 || align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1978–79) ||5–2–4 |- |12||W||November 8, 1978||2–1 || align="left"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1978–79) ||6–2–4 |- |13||L||November 10, 1978||3–5 || align="left"| @ Atlanta Flames (1978–79) ||6–3–4 |- |14||L||November 12, 1978||1–4 || align="left"| Los Angeles Kings (1978–79) ||6–4–4 |- |15||L||November 15, 1978||1–8 || align="left"| @ New York Rangers (1978–79) ||6–5–4 |- |16||W||November 16, 1978||4–3 || align="left"| @ Philadelphia Flyers (1978–79) ||7–5–4 |- |17||L||November 18, 1978||3–8 || align="left"| @ Colorado Rockies (1978–79) ||7–6–4 |- |18||L||November 20, 1978||3–4 || align="left"| @ Los Angeles Kings (1978–79) ||7–7–4 |- |19||L||November 21, 1978||2–5 || align="left"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1978–79) ||7–8–4 |- |20||W||November 25, 1978||8–3 || align="left"| @ Montreal Canadiens (1978–79) ||8–8–4 |- |21||T||November 29, 1978||1–1 || align="left"| Vancouver Canucks (1978–79) ||8–8–5 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#CE1126 2px solid; border-bottom:#000000 2px solid; December Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |22||L||December 2, 1978||2–5 || align="left"| @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1978–79) ||8–9–5 |- |23||W||December 3, 1978||4–3 || align="left"| Colorado Rockies (1978–79) ||9–9–5 |- |24||L||December 7, 1978||2–4 || align="left"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1978–79) ||9–10–5 |- |25||W||December 9, 1978||4–2 || align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1978–79) ||10–10–5 |- |26||T||December 10, 1978||3–3 || align="left"| Detroit Red Wings (1978–79) ||10–10–6 |- |27||L||December 13, 1978||2–6 || align="left"| Buffalo Sabres (1978–79) ||10–11–6 |- |28||L||December 14, 1978||2–3 || align="left"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1978–79) ||10–12–6 |- |29||L||December 16, 1978||1–5 || align="left"| @ Colorado Rockies (1978–79) ||10–13–6 |- |30||T||December 17, 1978||3–3 || align="left"| Pittsburgh Penguins (1978–79) ||10–13–7 |- |31||L||December 20, 1978||3–5 || align="left"| Montreal Canadiens (1978–79) ||10–14–7 |- |32||L||December 21, 1978||1–5 || align="left"| @ Montreal Canadiens (1978–79) ||10–15–7 |- |33||W||December 23, 1978||5–2 || align="left"| Philadelphia Flyers (1978–79) ||11–15–7 |- |34||W||December 27, 1978||4–3 || align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1978–79) ||12–15–7 |- |35||L||December 30, 1978||4–5 || align="left"| New York Rangers (1978–79) ||12–16–7 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#CE1126 2px solid; border-bottom:#000000 2px solid; January Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |36||L||January 3, 1979||3–6 || align="left"| Boston Bruins (1978–79) ||12–17–7 |- |37||T||January 4, 1979||3–3 || align="left"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1978–79) ||12–17–8 |- |38||W||January 6, 1979||5–3 || align="left"| @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1978–79) ||13–17–8 |- |39||W||January 7, 1979||5–3 || align="left"| Washington Capitals (1978–79) ||14–17–8 |- |40||W||January 10, 1979||3–0 || align="left"| Los Angeles Kings (1978–79) ||15–17–8 |- |41||L||January 13, 1979||3–4 || align="left"| @ Minnesota North Stars (1978–79) ||15–18–8 |- |42||W||January 17, 1979||2–1 || align="left"| Colorado Rockies (1978–79) ||16–18–8 |- |43||L||January 19, 1979||1–6 || align="left"| @ Atlanta Flames (1978–79) ||16–19–8 |- |44||L||January 20, 1979||2–4 || align="left"| @ New York Islanders (1978–79) ||16–20–8 |- |45||L||January 22, 1979||1–2 || align="left"| New York Islanders (1978–79) ||16–21–8 |- |46||W||January 24, 1979||5–0 || align="left"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1978–79) ||17–21–8 |- |47||L||January 27, 1979||1–4 || align="left"| @ Washington Capitals (1978–79) ||17–22–8 |- |48||L||January 28, 1979||2–7 || align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1978–79) ||17–23–8 |- |49||T||January 31, 1979||2–2 || align="left"| Boston Bruins (1978–79) ||17–23–9 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#CE1126 2px solid; border-bottom:#000000 2px solid; February Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |50||L||February 1, 1979||1–6 || align="left"| @ Boston Bruins (1978–79) ||17–24–9 |- |51||W||February 3, 1979||4–2 || align="left"| @ Atlanta Flames (1978–79) ||18–24–9 |- |52||W||February 4, 1979||5–4 || align="left"| New York Islanders (1978–79) ||19–24–9 |- |53||L||February 12, 1979||2–5 || align="left"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1978–79) ||19–25–9 |- |54||T||February 14, 1979||4–4 || align="left"| Atlanta Flames (1978–79) ||19–25–10 |- |55||W||February 17, 1979||5–1 || align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1978–79) ||20–25–10 |- |56||W||February 18, 1979||5–3 || align="left"| Colorado Rockies (1978–79) ||21–25–10 |- |57||W||February 21, 1979||3–2 || align="left"| Buffalo Sabres (1978–79) ||22–25–10 |- |58||W||February 22, 1979||4–2 || align="left"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1978–79) ||23–25–10 |- |59||L||February 24, 1979||1–5 || align="left"| @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1978–79) ||23–26–10 |- |60||T||February 25, 1979||2–2 || align="left"| Pittsburgh Penguins (1978–79) ||23–26–11 |- |61||T||February 28, 1979||4–4 || align="left"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1978–79) ||23–26–12 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#CE1126 2px solid; border-bottom:#000000 2px solid; March Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |62||W||March 2, 1979||4–0 || align="left"| @ Colorado Rockies (1978–79) ||24–26–12 |- |63||L||March 3, 1979||5–8 || align="left"| @ Los Angeles Kings (1978–79) ||24–27–12 |- |64||W||March 8, 1979||5–1 || align="left"| @ Philadelphia Flyers (1978–79) ||25–27–12 |- |65||L||March 10, 1979||1–7 || align="left"| @ New York Islanders (1978–79) ||25–28–12 |- |66||L||March 11, 1979||2–5 || align="left"| @ New York Rangers (1978–79) ||25–29–12 |- |67||L||March 14, 1979||0–4 || align="left"| Philadelphia Flyers (1978–79) ||25–30–12 |- |68||L||March 17, 1979||2–4 || align="left"| @ Boston Bruins (1978–79) ||25–31–12 |- |69||L||March 18, 1979||2–4 || align="left"| Detroit Red Wings (1978–79) ||25–32–12 |- |70||L||March 20, 1979||3–5 || align="left"| @ Detroit Red Wings (1978–79) ||25–33–12 |- |71||L||March 21, 1979||6–7 || align="left"| New York Rangers (1978–79) ||25–34–12 |- |72||T||March 24, 1979||3–3 || align="left"| @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1978–79) ||25–34–13 |- |73||W||March 25, 1979||3–0 || align="left"| Colorado Rockies (1978–79) ||26–34–13 |- |74||T||March 27, 1979||1–1 || align="left"| @ Colorado Rockies (1978–79) ||26–34–14 |- |75||W||March 29, 1979||6–1 || align="left"| New York Islanders (1978–79) ||27–34–14 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#CE1126 2px solid; border-bottom:#000000 2px solid; April Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |76||T||April 1, 1979||2–2 || align="left"| Vancouver Canucks (1978–79) ||27–34–15 |- |77||L||April 3, 1979||3–4 || align="left"| @ Minnesota North Stars (1978–79) ||27–35–15 |- |78||W||April 4, 1979||7–1 || align="left"| Minnesota North Stars (1978–79) ||28–35–15 |- |79||L||April 7, 1979||1–4 || align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1978–79) ||28–36–15 |- |80||W||April 8, 1979||3–2 || align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1978–79) ||29–36–15 |- |- | Legend: #cfc Win (2 points) 1px solid black #fcc Loss (0 points) 1px solid black #ffc Tie (1 point) 1px solid black Playoffs Since the Hawks won their division, they were given a bye in the NHL preliminary round, and advanced straight to the NHL quarter-finals. Their first round opponent was the New York Islanders, who finished with the best record in the NHL, going 51–15–14, earning 116 points and winning the Patrick Division. The series opened with two games at Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum on Long Island, New York, with the Islanders, led by a Mike Bossy hat trick, easily defeated Chicago 6–2. The second game was decided in overtime, after the two teams played through three scoreless periods. The Islanders Mike Bossy scored his fourth goal of the series in overtime to give New York the 1–0 victory, and a 2–0 series lead. Black Hawks goaltender Tony Esposito made 39 saves in the loss, while Islanders goaltender Billy Smith stopped all 22 shots he faced. The series moved to Chicago Stadium for the next two games. In the third game, the Islanders once again shutout the Black Hawks, this time with goaltender Chico Resch making 21 saves for the shutout, as New York defeated the Hawks 4–0 to take a 3–0 series lead. The Islanders would complete the sweep in the fourth game, winning 3–1, and sending the Blackhawks to their sixteenth consecutive playoff loss. background:#fff; border-top:#CE1126 5px solid; border-bottom:#000000 5px solid; 1979 Stanley Cup playoffs y background:#fff; border-top:#CE1126 2px solid; border-bottom:#000000 2px solid; Preliminary round vs. (N4) New York Islanders – Islanders win 4–0 Game Date Visitor Score Home Series |- | 1 || April 16 || Chicago Black Hawks || 2–6 || New York Islanders || 0–1 |- | 2 || April 18 || Chicago Black Hawks || 0–1 || New York Islanders || 0–2 |- | 3 || April 20 || New York Islanders || 4–0 || Chicago Black Hawks || 0–3 |- | 4 || April 22 || New York Islanders || 3–1 || Chicago Black Hawks || 0–4 |- |- | Legend: #cfc Win 1px solid black #fcc Loss 1px solid black Player stats Regular season Scoring Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG Ivan Boldirev C 66 29 35 64 2571004 Stan Mikita C/RW 65 19 36 55 343401 Bob Murray Robert Frederick Murray D 79 19 32 51 384410 Ted Bulley LW 75 27 23 50 15318108 John Marks John Marks (ice hockey) LW 80 21 24 45 352402 Reg Kerr LW 73 16 24 40 50-7224 J.P. Bordeleau RW 63 15 21 36 34-7212 Grant Mulvey RW 80 19 15 34 99-14501 Cliff Koroll RW 78 12 19 31 203122 Phil Russell Phil Russell (ice hockey) D 66 8 23 31 122-7111 Darcy Rota LW 63 13 17 30 77-10101 Doug Wilson Doug Wilson (ice hockey) D 56 5 21 26 374210 Mike O'Connell D 48 4 22 26 20-1100 Alain Daigle RW 74 11 14 25 552000 Tim Higgins Tim Higgins (ice hockey) RW 36 7 16 23 306001 Dave Logan Dave Logan (ice hockey) D 76 1 14 15 176-9000 Tom Lysiak C 14 0 10 10 143000 Mike Walton C 26 6 3 9 4-4301 Jim Harrison Jim Harrison (ice hockey) C 21 4 5 9 22-6000 Doug Hicks D 44 1 8 9 15-12000 Bob Kelly Bob Kelly (ice hockey, born 1946) LW 63 2 5 7 85-10000 Keith Magnuson D 26 1 4 5 41-4000 Greg Fox Greg Fox (ice hockey) D 14 0 5 5 169000 Bobby Orr D 6 2 2 4 42000 Pat Ribble D 12 1 3 4 87001 Harold Phillipoff LW 14 0 4 4 6-4000 Bob Hoffmeyer D 6 0 2 2 5-4000 Doug Lecuyer LW 2 1 0 1 0-1000 Tony Esposito G 63 0 1 1 20000 Jean Savard C 11 0 1 1 9-2000 Mike Veisor G 17 0 1 1 00000 Miles Zaharko D 1 0 0 0 00000 Goaltending Player MIN GPW LTGAGAA SO Tony Esposito 3780 63 24 28 11 206 3.27 4 Mike Veisor 1020 17 5 8 4 60 3.53 0 Team: 4800 80 29 36 15 266 3.32 4 Playoffs Scoring Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM PPG SHG GWG Reg Kerr LW 4 1 0 1 5000 Bob Murray Robert Frederick Murray D 4 1 0 1 6000 Mike Walton C 4 1 0 1 0000 J. P. Bordeleau RW 4 0 1 1 2000 Greg Fox Greg Fox (ice hockey) D 4 0 1 1 0000 Rick Paterson C 1 0 1 1 0000 Harold Phillipoff LW 4 0 1 1 7000 Kirk Bowman LW 2 0 0 0 0000 Ted Bulley LW 2 0 0 0 0000 Alain Daigle RW 4 0 0 0 0000 Tony Esposito G 4 0 0 0 0000 Tim Higgins Tim Higgins (ice hockey) RW 4 0 0 0 0000 Bob Kelly Bob Kelly (ice hockey, born 1946) LW 4 0 0 0 9000 Cliff Koroll RW 4 0 0 0 0000 Dave Logan Dave Logan (ice hockey) D 4 0 0 0 2000 Tom Lysiak C 4 0 0 0 2000 John Marks John Marks (ice hockey) LW 4 0 0 0 2000 Grant Mulvey RW 1 0 0 0 2000 Mike O'Connell D 4 0 0 0 4000 Pat Ribble D 4 0 0 0 4000 Goaltending Player MIN GPW LGAGAA SO Tony Esposito 243 4 0 4 14 3.46 0 Team: 243 4 0 4 14 3.46 0 hockey-reference.com 2009-06-16 1978-79 Chicago Black Hawks Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/CBH/1979.html Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals       MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; Draft picks Chicago's draft picks at the 1978 NHL amateur draft held at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal. Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)110Tim Higgins Canada Ottawa 67's (OMJHL)229Doug Lecuyer Canada Portland Winterhawks (WCHL)346Rick Paterson Canada Cornwall Royals (QMJHL)463Brian Young Canada New Westminster Bruins (WCHL)579Mark Murphy Canada Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OMJHL)696Dave Feamster United States Colorado College (WCHA)7113Dave Mancuso Canada Windsor Spitfires (OMJHL)8130Sandy Ross Canada Colgate University (ECAC)9147Mark Locken Canada Niagara Falls Flyers (OMJHL)10164Glenn Van United States Colorado College (WCHA)11179Darryl Sutter Canada Lethbridge Broncos (WCHL) See also 1978–79 NHL season References Category:Chicago Blackhawks seasons Chicago Blackhawks Category:Smythe Division champion seasons Category:1978 in sports in Illinois Category:1979 in sports in Illinois Category:1978 in Chicago Category:1979 in Chicago