• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

MayorsManor.com

NHL blog, LA Kings hockey news and interviews from The Mayor

  • Radio Replay
  • Prospect Rankings
  • Podcast
  • Contact Us
You are here: Home / HockeyBlog / July 4th – An LA Kings Birthday Story

July 4th – An LA Kings Birthday Story

July 4, 2013 By John Hoven


We begin today with a special thank you to all the men and women who have bravely volunteered for military service. You’re a big reason why friends and families all across the country can safely gather tonight and enjoy spending time together. We truly appreciate all that you’ve done for us!

Now, we’d like to share a 4th of July tale with an LA Kings twist. While the primary figure may not be a household name in LA, he has ties to several prominent figures you’re probably familiar with.

Long before Teemu Selanne was The Finnish Flash, the Kings had a center known as The Flying Finn…Juha Markku Widing, born July 4, 1947.

He led the Kings in scoring three straight seasons in the early ’70s, playing on teams that included the more popular Cowboy Bill Flett, Eddie Joyal and Butch Goring. However, we’ll get to that in a minute, let’s start at the beginning…

Like Tomas Sandstrom, Widing was born in Finland but actually raised in Sweden. He came to North America as a teenager to play for the Brandon Wheat Kings – a club where several top NHL prospects have honed their skills, including former LA prospect Brayden Schenn.

Furthering his parallel with Sandstrom, Widing started his pro career with the New York Rangers – back in 1969, when Tomas was only 5 years old.

After just one season in the Big Apple, Widing was traded to Jack Kent Cooke’s three-year old Los Angeles Kings franchise in February 1970. Who went back the other way in the deal? Ted Irvine – better known today as the father of Chris Jericho, a six-time WWE world champion and lead singer of the rock band Fozzy.

Widing LA Kings MayorsManor
Check out the skates Widing was wearing (photo courtesy of Splatched.com)

The Flying Finn went on to play six full seasons with the Kings, leading the team in scoring from 1970-73. According to various reports, Widing was very quick on his skates too and was even clocked as the fastest skater in several Kings training camps. He averaged 24 goals in his first five years in LA, yet netted only seven goals in the ’75-76 season and promptly was traded to the Cleveland Barons.

On a side note, Widing often played on a line with Bob Berry during his time in LA (known as the ‘Bee Line’ with Mike Byers as the third member). Berry went on to coach the Kings from 1979-81 and many years later served as an assistant coach under Darryl Sutter in San Jose. Although Kings GM Dean Lombardi was running the show up north at the time, perhaps the recommendation to hire Widing came from Bob Pulford (Lombardi’s father-in-law). Pulford had played with Widing for two years before stepping behind the bench to coach him and the Kings for the next five seasons.

After leaving the NHL, Widing played one year in Edmonton (a WHA club at the time) and then called it a career in the summer of ’78. The following season, that Oilers team featured the debut of a 17-year old kid named Wayne Gretzky. As is the custom in hockey, young Wayne was assigned a veteran player as his roommate on the road. Who did Wayne get? Garnet ‘Ace’ Bailey. Yes, the same Ace Bailey who would go on to be a scout for the LA Kings. Along with Mark Bavis (a fellow scout), the two were among the nearly 3,000 lives that were taken from us on September 11, 2001.

Today would have been Widing’s 65th birthday. Unfortunately he passed away back in 1984, suffering a heat attack at the young age of 37.

When gathered to celebrate our freedom and share in the tradition of fireworks this evening, if you happen to see a little purple and yellow among the bursts of light, it’s probably just Juha, Ace and Mark smiling down on you from up above.

Follow @mayorNHL

RELATED ARTICLES:

Throwback Thursdays – Cowboy Bill Flett

Kings GM Dean Lombardi with thoughts at the halfway point

POLL: Who is the best U.S. born Kings player of all-time?

VIDEO: Kings pay tribute to Ace Bailey and Mark Bavis

Ted Irvine helps MayorsManor preview the Kings playoff series

MayorsManor presents the Eddie Joyal Award

Premium Shirt (American Apparel)
Premium Shirt (American Apparel) by MayorsManor
I Love LA (w. long slv) Tees
I Love LA (w. long slv) Tees by MayorsManor

Filed Under: HockeyBlog, Kings, NHL Tagged With: Goring, Gretzky, hockey, Kings, Lombardi, Los Angeles, Mayor, MayorsManor, NHL, Selanne, Sutter

About John Hoven

John Hoven is a former member of the Professional Hockey Writers Association and co-hosts Kings of the Podcast. He's also the founder and editor of MayorsManor.com, which has been named Best Sports Blog in Los Angeles and Hockey Blog of the Year. Click "ABOUT OUR TEAM" below for a full bio.

Primary Sidebar

Kings Of The Podcast

Kings Of The Podcast: Ep. 126 – Playoff Preview with Jason Gregor, Plus Dustin Brown Bonus

This week’s Kings Of The Podcast episode is beyond special. Not only is it the 2022 Stanley Cup Playoff Preview edition — which features the LA Kings for the very first time in KOTP history – but we also have bonus coverage from the Dustin Brown retirement press conference. Hear exclusive conversations with Brown, Rob […]

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube

Recent Posts

  • 2022 NHL Draft Preview: Owen Pickering, Canadian Defense
  • Kopitar and Quick Share Parting Thoughts on This Season, Look Ahead to Next Year
  • Danault on Jonathan Quick, Regression Next Season, and Bringing a Third Stanley Cup to LA
  • Kempe on His Next Contract, the Kings Home Record, and Playing With Kopitar
  • Dustin Brown on His Future and Current State of the LA Kings
  • May 2022: LA Kings Salary Cap Update – What Can They Afford to do This Summer?
  • Drew Doughty: Full Transcript of 2022 Postseason Exit Interview
  • VIDEO: Todd McLellan Closing Media Session on Kings 2021-22 Season
  • VIDEO: Rob Blake Closing Media Session on Kings 2021-22 Season
  • Ontario Reign Projected Lineup vs. Colorado Eagles in Game 3; Plus Update on Kings Prospects Returning for AHL Playoffs

Tweets by mayorNHL

Footer

Archives

Tags

AHL Blackhawks Brown camp Carter Clifford coach comments Doughty draft Ducks history hockey interview Kings Kopitar lineup Lombardi Los Angeles Manchester Mayor MayorsManor Monarchs Murray NHL Ontario Penner Playoffs Prospect Quick quote Radio Reign Richards roster Sharks Stanley Cup Stoll Sutter Toffoli trade video WCB West Coast Bias Williams

MayorsManor

  • About Our Team
  • Contact Us
  • Store

© 2022 MayorsManor.com