Established
1967
City
San Francisco – Cleveland – Bloomington – Dallas
League History
1967 – Present / National Hockey League
Team History
1993 – Present / Dallas Stars
1967 – 1993 / Minnesota North Stars
1976 – 1978 / Cleveland Barons
1970 – 1976 / California Golden Seals
1967 – 1970 / Oakland Seals
1967 / California Seals
Nickname
North Stars – The Minnesota North Stars are an iconic part of the National Hockey League’s history, having been a franchise from 1967 to 1993. The team was initially founded as the California Golden Seals in 1966 and relocated to Minnesota for the 1967-68 season, where they were renamed as such. But why did they choose this name?
The answer lies in two parts: location and symbolism. In terms of location, it is no secret that hockey is hugely popular throughout Canada - particularly within provinces like Ontario and Quebec - so by choosing a moniker with ‘North’ in its title (even though technically located south of both), it was hoped that fans from those regions would be drawn towards them due to their shared geography.
Additionally, there was also some symbolism behind the choice too; namely, those stars have long been associated with hope and ambition – something which any sports team needs if they are going to succeed! This idea has since become even more embedded into their identity thanks primarily to its use on their logo design, featuring 11 white stars representing each member state or province found along America’s northern border (including Manitoba).
All things considered then, while we may never know exactly what inspired management when coming up with this nickname back all those years ago – one thing is certain: It certainly worked! After all these years later, people still remember fondly upon hearing about “the North Stars."
Championship
Stanley Cup 0
1999
Arena
2001 – Present / American Airlines Center
1993 – 2001 / Reunion Arena
*Bloomington*
1967 – 1993 / Met Center
*Richfield*
1976 – 1978 / Richfield Coliseum
*Oakland*
1967 – 1976 / Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum Arena
Owner
2011 – Present / Tom Gaglardi
1995 – 2011 / Tom Hicks
1991 – 1995 / Norman Green
1989 – 1991 / Howard Baldwin and Morris Belzberg
1967 – 1989 / Walter Bush, Jr. and John Driscoll
1976 – 1978 / Melvin Swig and George Gund III
1970 – 1975 / Melvin Swig (California Golden Seals)
1967 – 1970 / Barry Van Gerbig (California Seals)
- 1967
- 1978
- 1993
-
Minnesota North Stars Team Formation
On March 11, 1965, NHL President Clarence Campbell announced that the league would expand to twelve teams from six through the creation of a new six-team division for the 1967 – 1968 season. In response to Campbell’s announcement, a partnership of nine men, led by Walter Bush, Jr. and John Driscoll, was formed to seek a franchise for the Twin ... -
Merge with Cleveland Barons
By 1978 the North Stars had missed the playoffs in five of the previous six seasons. Attendance had tailed off so rapidly that the league feared that the franchise was on the verge of folding. At this point, Gordon and George Gund III, owners of the equally strapped Cleveland Barons, stepped in with an unprecedented solution—merging the North Stars with ... -
Moving to Dallas
By 1992, Norm Green was arranging a deal to turn the team into the L.A. Stars, playing at a new arena under construction in Anaheim, California. However, as The Walt Disney Company was already in negotiations with the NHL to create an expansion team in the area, the league instead asked Green to let Disney create the Mighty Ducks of ...
To qualify as the greatest player for this team, the player must have played one season for this team. If not, we will remove the player.
* verifies that player has played for this team as an added player by a fan.
History of the North Stars
The North Stars had some success early on with players such as Bill Goldsworthy, Lou Nanne, and Cesare Maniago leading them to their first playoff appearance in the 1968–69 season where they lost to St Louis Blues 4 games straight in quarterfinals. They continued making playoffs for 7 more years before finally reaching the Stanley Cup finals against New York Islanders during the 1980-81 season but unfortunately ended up losing the series 4 games straight yet again due to lack of experience at the highest level of play at that time. Despite this setback, the North stars kept pushing forward, winning the Norris Division title during the 1984-85 season only a year after moving the home arena from Met Center To Target center. Unfortunately, it would be the last successful run by the north stars who eventually relocated themselves becoming Dallas Stars following the 1992–93 NHL Season.
In conclusion, Minnesota north stars provided many memorable moments throughout its existence which will never be forgotten by fans all over the world even though they are no longer around today under the same name or city location thanks largely to due strong fan base created over 26 years period along with great players like bill goldsworthy lou nanne cesare maniago, etc who helped shape legacy left behind by this iconic franchise.
Sports Fan Products
Retired Number
7 / Neal Broten
8 / Bill Goldsworthy
9 / Mike Modano
19 / Bill Masterton
26 / Jere Lehtinen
99 / Wayne Gretzky
*Blue is this team’s history