Thanks for your interest in my book "The NHL's Mistake By the Lake: A History of the Cleveland Barons." In 201 pages with pictures, I tell the story of the two-year existence of the Cleveland Barons, who came into being when the California Golden Seals were hastily transferred to northeastern Ohio in July of 1976. The Barons were such a disaster, they were merged with the Minnesota North Stars less than two years later, after winning just 47 of their 160 games and finishing last in the league in attendance both years. The Barons came close to being liquidated before the 1976-77 season ended, only to be saved from extinction by an infusion of cash from the NHL and the league's player's union. The team was purchased by George Gund III and his brother Gordon, two wealthy native Clevelanders in the summer of 1977, who vowed to give their hometown three years to warm up to, and support,
the team. They pulled the plug after just one year, during which they lost a reported three million dollars operating the Barons. Few Clevelanders attended the games, and few cared when the Gund brothers merged the team with the North Stars in June of 1978. The story of the Barons is a case study in how NOT to re-locate a sports franchise in an effort to save it. The book is available from the publisher, McFarland and Company, and from Amazon.
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