International Hockey League

I was not under an NHL contract.

I was paid every two weeks by the Toledo Golddiggers in the International League.

I actually ended up making, I think, my first year, 3,500 bucks.

Not a lot of money playing 80 games.

They haven't expanded like every year they're adding a team, but expansion can be a little bit of fool's gold.

I remember in my years in the American Hockey League, you know, kind of the rival league was the International Hockey League, which was more of a veteran league.

It was more of, like, guys who'd been pro players for 10 years or had been in the NHL, were no longer in the NHL, but really farther along as a player than some 20-year-old, you know, who was a prospect.

The 20-year-old prospects went to the AHL.

So I got called out of the blue.

I was going to retire, actually, and I got a call from Bob Strum, who was putting in a new team in the International Hockey League.

And basically a lot of guys who played in the NHL, like Clinton Miloszak and Pokey Reddick were going to be the goalies.

And I said, okay.

Just wasn't a fit for whatever reason.

From there, he went to, here's a name from the way back machine, the Minnesota Moose of the International Hockey League.

They were the so-called replacement after the North Stars left.

We had an IHL team for two years.

Today I am privileged to have Jeff Christian as my guest.

Jeff, a longtime NHL, AHL, IHL, international hockey player.

We're going to have some great stories today.

Jeff, welcome to the show.

Like Lou knew what he was doing.

Obviously, they won a Stanley Cup in 95.

But what happened to me was I actually went from Utica to Cincinnati, which was in the IHL, and then to Hamilton.

So I had a real kind of rough year going.

I believe he wore number one.

I seem to remember him having some spectacular year with San Diego back in the old International Hockey League.

Um, so I think it's Rick Knickle.

Uh, I feel, I feel okay about that one.

The coach of Owen Beck spent three full seasons in the minors, two in the American Hockey League.

Marty St. Louis played a full year back when they had the International Hockey League, the Cleveland, I think it was the Cleveland Lumberjacks.

Marty St. Louis spent three full seasons in the minors.

Another member of the Canadiens family, Alex Burroughs, He played two seasons with the Manitoba Moose after he played two seasons in the East Coast League.

They used to bring guys up from the minors.

I was working in the International Hockey League and the American Hockey League, and, you know, you're so happy to, to go stand by an NHL game.

And I didn't want to tell anybody.

I was too busy grabbing the treats in the press box.

And they brought some NHL teams in.

And then they were the ones that got the license to bring in the Atlanta Knights hockey team, which was in the International Hockey League.

And one of the events that I had no knowledge of until Richard Adler agreed to give me some of the items, and I'm going to roll a little because right behind me is the International Hockey League All-Star jersey of the game that was played in 1992, which was just before the Knights came into existence.

But they hosted the All-Star game.

And this is an actual game jersey that's been signed by everybody.

But that's two of the four.

Who else do you believe belongs on the Mount Rushmore? Are there any other characters that come to mind?

Well, of the people that I've actually personally known, I'm still very, very dear friends with the gentleman who coached the Atlanta Knights when they won the International League Turner Cup.