1970–71 WHL season

The 1970–71 WHL season was the 19th season of the Western Hockey League. Six teams played a 72-game schedule, and the Portland Buckaroos were the Lester Patrick Cup champions, defeating the Phoenix Roadrunners four games to one in the final series.

1970–71 WHL season
League	Western Hockey League
Sport	Ice hockey
Games	72
Teams	6
Regular season
Season champions	Portland Buckaroos
Season MVP	Art Jones (Portland)
Top scorer	Art Jones (Portland)
Lester Patrick Cup
Champions	Portland Buckaroos
Runners-up	Phoenix Roadrunners

Art Jones of Portland led the league in scoring and was named the most valuable player.

Teams

1970–71 Western Hockey League
Team	City	Arena	Capacity
Denver Spurs	Denver, Colorado	Denver Coliseum	8,140
Phoenix Roadrunners	Phoenix, Arizona	Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum	12,371
Portland Buckaroos	Portland, Oregon	Memorial Coliseum	12,000
Salt Lake Golden Eagles	Salt Lake City, Utah	Salt Palace	10,594
San Diego Gulls	San Diego, California	San Diego Sports Arena	12,920
Seattle Totems	Seattle, Washington	Seattle Center Coliseum	12,250

Map of teams

Spurs

Road
runners

Buckaroos

Golden Eagles

Gulls

Totems

WHL Teams

Final Standings

WHL Standings

R	Team	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	Portland Buckaroos	72	48	17	7	306	210	103
2	Phoenix Roadrunners	72	36	27	9	271	234	81
3	San Diego Gulls	72	33	27	12	248	223	78
4	Denver Spurs	72	25	31	16	242	253	66
5	Seattle Totems	72	27	36	9	223	260	63
6	Salt Lake Golden Eagles	72	18	49	5	217	327	41

bold - qualified for playoffs

Playoffs

	Semifinals					Finals
	1	Portland Buckaroos	4
	3	San Diego Gulls	2
						1	Portland Buckaroos	4
						2	Phoenix Roadrunners	1
	2	Phoenix Roadrunners	4
	4	Denver Spurs	1

The Portland Buckaroos defeated the Phoenix Roadrunnrers 4 games to 1 to win the Lester Patrick Cup.

Bibliography

• Stott, Jon C. (2008), Ice Warriors: The Pacific Coast/Western Hockey League 1948–1974, Surrey, British Columbia: Heritage House Publishing, ISBN 978-1-894974-54-7