It’s American Bicentennial time on NHL Saturday! We’re looking at the 1976 WHA season, which turned out to be the mountaintop, really, for the league. The Winnipeg Jets ramped it up to win the first of three titles in the final four years of the upstart hockey contender to the NHL. But fading finances already taking their roll on the WHA, and a lot of these seasons came down to some patchwork, creating chaos and fun on ice.

1976 Gordie Howe Trophy: Marc Tardif, LW, Quebec (original, confirmed)

Quebec Nordiques left wing Marc Tardif dominated the league (tops in PPG and GCPG), and as a result, he won the vote here. He had healthy leads in both statistical categories over veteran star Bobby Hull, the Jets’ legendary LW. Cardif was an age-26 veteran who had won two Stanley Cups with Montréal prior to jumping to the WHA in 1973. He topped the league here in assists, goals, and points, so this is an easy call.

1976 Dennis A. Murphy Trophy: Paul Shmyr, Cleveland (original, confirmed)

He was our pick for this award in 1974, but this time he won the vote: Cleveland Crusaders blueliner Paul Shmyr (50 points, 101 PIMs). His team had just a four-point cushion in the standings for the postseason, too. Meanwhile, no one else really came close at the defensive position in terms of that statistical combination and playoff value impact—not that we can tell, at least. We will confirm his second trophy.

1976 Ben Hatskin Trophy: Michel Dion, Indianapolis (original); Joe Daley, Winnipeg (revised)

Indianapolis Racers goaltender Michel Dion posted just a 14-15-1 record for a division winner, but his 2.74 GAA topped the WHA. He won this vote, despite not being named to the league’s first or second team of All Stars. We are more inclined to give this nod to Jets goalie Joe Daley, who finished second in wins, second in GAA, and first in shutouts. No other netminder in the league can match that, although Winnipeg was good.

Dion didn’t have a single shutout, and he wasn’t really close to the Top 10 in wins, either. And how can a guy with a losing record really take home this trophy? Daley really is the only answer here, even if his team was the best in the league standings. After playing for three NHL teams in four years (1968-1972), he jumped to the WHA and spent seven seasons with Winnipeg; this was probably his best one of that bunch at age 32.

1976 Lou Kaplan Trophy: Mark Napier, RW, Toronto (original); Dion (revised)

The ROTY vote went to Toronto Toros right wing Mark Napier (93 points), but his team finished last in its division with the second-worst overall record in the league. Not much value there, right? This is where Dion gets his due, as a rookie goaltender who had just a single WHA appearance prior to this season. Topping any league in a category like GAA as a rookie on a division-winning team is good enough for us.

Dion would go on to win our Vezina nod in 1982, as well, which is impressive.

1976 WHA Playoff MVP: Ulf Nilsson, C, Winnipeg (original, confirmed)

The Jets went 12-1 in the postseason, sweeping the two-time defending champion Houston Aeros in the Finals. Center Ulf Nilsson topped the league in postseason assists (19) and points (25). No one else on the team had more than 20 points, while in net, Daley only could manage an .886 save percentage. He did post one shutout, but giving up 29 goals in 12 games was not a worthy effort here. Nilsson’s vote win is confirmed.