1979 Challenge Cup (ice hockey)


The 1979 Challenge Cup was a series of international ice hockey games between the Soviet Union national ice hockey team and a team of All-Stars from the National Hockey League. The games were played on February 8, 10, and 11 at Madison Square Garden in New York City. It replaced the NHL's all-star festivities for the 1978–79 NHL season. The Soviets defeated the NHL All-Stars 2 games to 1.
The team of All-Stars from the National Hockey League included 23 Canadians and 3 Swedish players. Bobby Orr commenting in the post-game interviews after Game 2, accidentally called the NHL All-Stars "Team Canada". The Challenge Cup, unlike its predecessor, the Summit Series, included non-Canadian born players in the NHL rosters.

NHL All-Stars roster

The NHL vastly simplified their white All-Star uniforms, removing most of the striping and stars. The NHL shield on the front was enlarged, while the logos on the shoulders remained the same. The striping was reduced to two thin stripes, orange over black, separated by a thin white stripe. The names on the back remained in black with orange trim, and the numerals remained orange with black trim.
The Soviet team used their standard red national uniforms, which they also used when touring against the teams of the World Hockey Association. The jerseys featured two white stripes at the waistline - one thin stripe over a wider stripe studded with red diamonds. The sleeve stripes followed a similar pattern, but without the diamonds on the wide stripes, and an additional white stripe below the wide band. While the Soviet team normally used Cyrillic script on its uniforms, the names on the back of the jerseys for the Challenge Cup were romanized for the event. The front of the jerseys retained the Cyrillic СССР initials.

Game log

Game 1

1st Period

1st Period

1st Period