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Who were the Seattle Ironmen? 

Scrappy. Gritty. Steely. “Rough and tumble”. It would be difficult to describe The Seattle Ironmen without some variation of these words. Part of the Pacific Coast Hockey League (PCHL) in the 1940s and 50s, the Ironmen were rightfully nicknamed “The Bad Men of the Pacific Coast”. Though the entire PCHL was rough, the Ironmen were among the roughest teams.

In the midst of World War II, a group of men working for Isaacson Steel decided to form a hockey team. The NIHL was comprised of various teams that all represented some field of wartime industry. Hockey was a great distraction from the war. Men who worked in these wartime industries probably needed a mental escape from war manufacturing and talk. Their entire lives revolved around prepping for it. 

The 1976-77 Philadelphia Firebirds with the Lockhart Cup Trophy they won the prior season. Some serious mustaches and long hair in there.
Image source: Wikipedia

Coach Gregg Pilling

If there’s anything that can be said for certain about Gregg Pilling, it’s that he didn’t care what anyone else thought and always did what he assumed was best. That immediately became apparent when he opted out of the NAHL draft by very publicly announcing that not only did he think “drafts are a joke” but that he could do better recruiting on his own. Throughout the season, he continued to frustrate team owners, fans, and opponents. More than once, he took his team to the locker room and refused to go out on the ice because he felt conditions were unsafe for his players. The first time he refused to let his team play was after Reggie Lemelin was injured and the referee wouldn’t give his replacement, Dan Sullivan, his allotted 2 minute warm-up time. The ref refused to concede to Pilling’s demands and forced the Firebirds to forfeit the game. Team President Robin Roberts was furious, saying that Pilling disrespected paying fans by allowing the forfeit. He suspended Pilling for 5 games and fined him $1000.

Coach Pilling continued his antics, though. Toward the end of the season, he again protested allowing his players to take the ice because it was full of holes and divots. This time, the referee agreed and sent both teams to their locker rooms and attempted to cancel the game. It wasn’t until the Firebirds had enjoyed a few drinks and loaded the bus that word came in from the commissioner: the game had to continue. After an hour of futile attempts to repair the ice (and some time for the Firebirds to sober up), the game was played. Its end validated everyone’s concerns when Pierre Henry tripped over a divot in the ice, lost control of the puck, and the Cougars scored a game-winning goal. Pilling also messed with the Cougars by creating a few newspaper headlines. He said their team was going out of business and couldn’t afford to pay their players. He later laughed when telling the story to reporters saying he was just trying to mess with the Cougars and throw them off their game.The funny thing was though, in this case, Pilling wasn't wrong! The Cougars would run out of money at the end of the season and move to Erie, PA to become the Blades. The Cougars former coach and GM, Gerry Lamorouex, would be indicted for allegedly embezzeling team funds and would serve time. 

But back to Pilling. He was notorious for being late as well, and made no exception for the final game of the Firebird’s ‘74-75 season. With the game scheduled to start at 8:00pm, the Firebirds finally arrived at 8:25. Pilling casually exited the bus with a sly smile saying they, “Couldn’t get the damn bus over 45 miles an hour. The wind was blowing us all over the place”.

The Bad Men of the Pacific Coast

The Ironmen were naturally tough both on and off the ice. Most of the players still worked for Isaacson Steel, which fabricated parts used in naval shipyards during World War II. In 1947-48 they amassed 1200 in 66 games, far and away the most in the league that season. This ultimately dubbed them “The Bad Men of the Pacific Coast”. One player, Vern Kaiser, was also suspended for throwing his stick at an opponent which cost the player his vision in one eye. 

Notably, Fred Shero, was part of the Ironmen during his playing career before becoming the coach of Philadelphia’s “Broad Street Bullies”. Stanley Cup Winner Al Rollins also spent time with the Ironmen, though you rarely see the Ironmen noted on their resume.

Roller Coaster Inaugural Season

The hills and valleys of a roller coaster are the perfect metaphor to describe the Firebird’s first season. They had stretches of 6 losses, 7 wins, and 5 losses again. They sat at the bottom of league standings at one point, first place for months, then dropped to second place just before playoffs. They had bench-clearing brawls, a game resulting in 130 penalty minutes, and yet Bobby Collyard found himself tied for first in league points by the end of the season. They went through periods when their franchise was bleeding money and times when the stadium was packed with fans. In their final home game, a record-breaking crowd of 9,184 showed up for the Firebirds. They repaid their fans with a shut-out win of 5-0 and Roberts released a statement to the press saying, “I think we have proven that there is room for the Firebirds in Philidelphia”. Those who questioned their motives in the beginning became supporters by the end of the regular season.

Seattle Ironmen 1951: The End of an Era

Though the Ironmen had some good years, their unpredictable and violent reputation left fans leery of attending games. With a history of cross-checking officials, female fans nearly getting struck by opposing teams, and riots in the stands, attending games became more of a liability than entertainment for fans. The team also lost many of its Isaacson Ironmen crew over time, with only a handful of the original players sticking around for the last season in 1954-55. 

Today, the NHL's Kraken sit in Seattle's hockey spotlight. Admirably, the Kraken franchise has made several “hat tips” to their Ironmen ancestors. Their 2022 retro-block jersey honored the Ironmen and their contribution to Seattle hockey. Even now, the Kraken perform best when they play hard and show a little of that classic grit that was such an iconic characteristic of the Ironmen. 

Seattle Ironmen Jerseys

A Wild Ride & The Philly Firebird Legacy

While their inaugural season was definitely eventful, the Firebirds sustained their fair share of exciting moments throughout the rest of their time in the NAHL as well. They eventually found their stride and won the Lockhart Cup in 1976, compiling an impressing 45-20 regular season record and defeating the Beauce Jaros in the playoff finals. The following season, 1976-77, was a good one as well although they didn't win any titles.

Unfortunately, as the Firebirds’ luck was at an all-time high, the NAHL couldn’t say the same. The league collapsed before the 1977-78 season could begin. The Firebirds hustled to join the American Hockey League (AHL), but it was also struggling at the time and was also a significant step up in play. The Firebirds weren't terrible, but they didn't finish above .500 in either of their two AHL seasons. They both of their AHL seasons in Philadelphia, but continued to lose money and saw their fan attendance dip. Their last “Hail Mary” attempt at survival was to move to upstate New York and become the Syracuse Firebirds. Unfortunately, that move failed and the Firebird franchise ended in the spring of 1980. 

As far as famous Firebirds go, Reggie Lemelin went on to attain great success after goaltending for the Firebirds. He stayed with the Firebirds all 5 years they were in Philadelphia and joined the NHL in 1978. He had a 15 year professional career with the Atlanta/Calgary Flames and Boston Bruins. Interestingly, Lemelin was drafted by the Flyers in 1974, so there's a photo out there of him in a Flyers uniform, but he never played for them. Lemelin would return to Philly to be a goalie coach for the Flyers in the late 1990s and early 2000s. 

Mike Eruzione, a 1980s Olympic hero, also had a brief stint with the Firebirds. He joined them for their last six games during their final season in Philly.

The infamous hockey film Slap Shot was also heavily influenced by the Firebirds and the rest of the NAHL. It is rumored that Paul Newman attended several Firebird games in order to prepare for his role in the movie. Mark Bousquet, who is 3rd from the right in the second row in the picture above, played an important role in the movie as Andre "Poodle" Lussier of the Syracuse Bulldogs. 

While the Firebirds were a quick and tumultuous roller coaster of a hockey franchise, they proved that Philadelphia could support two pro hockey teams. The Philadelphia Phantoms also spent more than a decade as an AHL team in the city during the 1990s and 2000s.