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The history of the New Jersey Devils National Hockey League team dates back to 1982, when the Colorado Rockies moved to New Jersey and became the Devils. Since 1995, the franchise has played in the Stanley Cup Finals five times, winning the Cup in 1995, 2000 and 2003. ==Kansas City and Colorado== In 1974, the NHL ended its first expansion period by adding teams in Kansas City, Missouri, and Washington, D.C. Due to a rodeo being held in Kansas City's Kemper Arena, the Scouts were forced to wait nine games before making their home debut. The Scouts won for the first time in Kansas City on November 3, 1974, against their expansion brethren, the Washington Capitals, 5–4. Kansas City struggled in their inaugural season as they garnered only 41 points in 1974–75. They regressed to 36 points 1975–76 as the Scouts won only 12 games, including only one victory in their final 44 games〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=Hockey-Reference )〕 – still the worst in franchise history as of the 2014–15 season. The Scouts failed to make the playoffs in either season in Kansas City and won only 27 of 160 games.〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=Hockey-Reference )〕 For their second season, the Scouts sold just 2,000 season tickets and were almost $1 million in debt. Kansas City's owners lost an estimated $5 million on the team and decided to sell after only two years. Following the 1975–76 season, the franchise was relocated to Denver, renamed the Colorado Rockies and played at the McNichols Sports Arena. The team made a fresh start in Colorado and won its first game, 4–2 over the Toronto Maple Leafs. They looked like a possible playoff contender in 1976–77 but a collapse featuring an 18-game losing streak caused them to finish the year with a record of 20–46–14, good for 54 points.〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=The Internet Hockey Database )〕 The Rockies improved to 59 points the next season but still had the sixth-worst record in the league. However, the Smythe Division was so weak that year—only the Chicago Black Hawks had a winning record—the Rockies were able to edge out the Vancouver Canucks for second place by two points.〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=The Internet Hockey Database )〕 The rules of the time guaranteed a playoff spot to the top two teams in each division.〔(【引用サイトリンク】publisher=National Hockey League )〕 The franchise's playoff debut did not last long, however, as the Philadelphia Flyers eliminated them in a two-game sweep. A lack of stability continually plagued the team. In their first eight years, the Scouts/Rockies went through ten coaches, none lasting more than one full season. While in Denver, the team changed owners twice. Amid this instability, they not only never had a winning season, but never even came close to a .500 record. The closest they would get would be in 1980–81, when they won 22 games. Prior to the 1978–79 season, owner Jack Vickers sold the team to New Jersey trucking tycoon Arthur Imperatore, who announced that he intended to move the team to the New Jersey Meadowlands in East Rutherford, across the Hudson River from New York City. The NHL vetoed the move since the Brendan Byrne Arena (now Izod Center) was still under construction and there was no suitable temporary facility in the area. In 1979, the team hired Don Cherry as head coach and traded for Maple Leafs star Lanny McDonald. Despite these moves, the Rockies still posted the worst record in the NHL. They played the next two seasons with the possibility of moving until May 27, 1982, when Imperatore sold the Rockies to another New Jersey millionaire, shipping magnate John McMullen (who also owned Major League Baseball's Houston Astros). McMullen's first act was to announce that the long-expected move to New Jersey would finally come to pass. The team's new home, right in the middle of the New York–New Jersey–Connecticut tri-state area, was home to the three-time defending Stanley Cup champion New York Islanders as well as the very popular New York Rangers. As part of the relocation deal, the Devils had to compensate the Islanders, Rangers and Flyers for encroaching on the established team's territory. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「History of the New Jersey Devils」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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