1977-78

• During the off-season, the Calgary Cowboys, Phoenix Roadrunners and San Diego Mariners fold, leaving the WHA down to eight teams. As such, the league did away with the divisional alignment, grouping all teams together instead.

• The Howe clan -- dad Gordie and sons Mark and Marty -- leave the Houston Aeros and join the New England Whalers.

• For the first time in a major sports league, international teams play in games that count in the standings. National teams from the Soviet Union and Czechoslovakia played each team once on the WHA team's home ice. The Soviets went 3-4-1, while the Czechs went 1-6-1.

• Six out of the eight teams qualified for the playoffs, which had a unique format. All six teams played in the quarterfinals. The highest seeded team among the quarterfinal winners then got a bye into the finals, with the other two teams vying for the other spot. The Winnipeg Jets, the regular-season points champion, earned the semifinal bye and watched the New England Whalers oust the Quebec Nordiques in five games. The Jets then won their second Avco Cup title by sweeping the Nordiques in the finals.