WHAT HAPPENED TO THE CALIFORNIA GOLDEN SEALS? // DEFUNCT: A CALIFORNIA GOLDEN SEALS DOCUMENTARY

In this All Sports History video, we'll take a look back to late 1960's NHL. When in 1967 the California Golden Seals story began when they were included as part of a legendary expansion to the National Hockey League, placing NHL teams on the west coast for the first time. So why after nine seasons did the Seals leave the San Francisco Bay Area and move to Cleveland? In today’s video we’ll take a look back at how financial turmoil and failed relocation attempts doomed the Seals almost from the very beginning.

This "California Golden Seals Documentary" Includes

In their final season in the WHL, the Seals moved from the aging Cow Palace arena to the brand new Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena (known today as Oakland Arena). Due to the team now playing in Oakland, Van Gerbig decided to rename the team the “California Seals” to try and widen the team’s appeal throughout the bay area and state. However, in a way, the team rebrand backfired. The Seals first season in the NHL was disastrous on the ice. And making matters worse, people who lived across the bay in San Francisco had little interest in commuting to the East Bay to attend Seals games. A frustrated Van Gerbig decided to drop the name California, and simply call the team the “Oakland Seals” instead. Van Gerbig on many different occasions also threatened to move the team to another city, if the Seal’s fortunes didn’t turn around. Bert Olmstead, the Oakland Seals hockey head coach and general manger publicly backed the idea of the team moving to Vancouver, while an ownership group from western New York offered to buy the Oakland Golden Seals and move them to Buffalo. However, the NHL blocked the team's efforts to relocate.

By the club's third season Van Gerbig was looking to offload to a new ownership group, and briefly sold the Seals to a group financially backed by football announcer Pat Summerall among others. But, the deal fell apart when the Summerall backed company known as Trans-National Communications failed to pay ownership installments for the Seals. Van Gerbig then took control of the team back, and later sold the franchise to the Oakland A’s owner Charlie O Finley, setting up the second chapter to the Seals time in the Bay Area. Charlie Finley Oakland A's ownership made him Known for his eccentric behavior, and he immediately set out to put his stamp on the Seals franchise. Finley decided to change the team’s name to the “Bay Area Seals” for the 1970-71 season, but ended up changing the name again just two games into the season, to the “California Golden Seals”.

In one of the most lopsided trades in NHL history, the Seals traded away their first round draft pick for the 1971 draft to the Montreal Canadiens for a first round pick in the 1970 draft. Because of how bad the Seals played in 1970, the Canadiens were able to select future hall of fame player Guy Lafleur with the first pick in the draft. During the summer of 1975, a new ownership group headed by San Francisco hotel magnate Mel Swig swooped in and bought the Seals with the intention of keeping the team in the bay area. Swig wanted the team to move into a proposed new arena in San Francisco. Unfortunately, plans for the new arena fell through after the election for mayor of San Francisco in November of that year. With no new prospects of a future arena getting built anytime soon, an exasperated NHL at this point threw their hands up and essentially greenlit owner Swig the option to relocate out of the Bay Area.

The Seals minority owners, George and Gordon Gund convinced Swig to move the team to their hometown in Cleveland, Ohio. That summer the NHL formally approved of the Seals relocation to Cleveland, where they would rebrand as the “Cleveland Barons”. With the approval, and move done so hastily, the club had little time to set up a marketing campaign in Cleveland to announce their presence. After yet another last place finish, and Melvin Swigs inability to cover in basic necessities like the team’s payroll, he decided to sell his ownership stake to the Gund Brothers for $5.3 million. the Gund Brothers pitched the idea of merging the Barons with the equally struggling Minnesota North Stars franchise, which the NHL reluctantly went along with.

Throughout their brief existence, the California Golden Seals left an indelible mark on the NHL. In 2022, as part of Adidas’ Reverse Retro jersey series, the San Jose Sharks even honored Bay Area hockey history with a California Golden Seals NHL 22 inspired design. Today, the California Golden Seals remain a nostalgic reminder of a bygone era in hockey, serving as a testament to the enduring passion and enduring allure of the sport.

So what did you guys think about the Golden Seals moving to Cleveland and becoming the Barons, and then eventually being folded into the Minnesota North Stars? And should the San Jose Sharks do more to honor the old California Golden Seals teams? Let me know in the comments below!