After finishing second in 1956-57, Indianapolis Chiefs coach Leo Lamoureux had a definite goal in mind - close the gap on the Cincinnati Mohawks.
The Mohawks were the IHL's greatest dynasty. In the 1957 Turner Cup Finals, the Mohawks swept the Chiefs in three games, outscoring them 16-2. In the Mohawks' five years in the league, they had never been challenged for first place and only once challenged in a playoff series - going seven games with Troy in the 1956 final.
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| The 1958 Turner Cup champion Indianapolis Chiefs. |
They were the team to aim for. And Lamoureux wasted little time trying to bridge the gap. Two weeks after the Chiefs had been swept out of the 1957 Turner Cup Finals, their coach was scouring Canada, looking for the half-dozen players who would turn the Chiefs from a good team into a Turner Cup contender.
Lamoureux knew championships. He had played on two Stanley Cup winners with Montreal in 1944 and 1946, leaving hockey to run a restaurant. He sold the restaurant in 1956 to take over the Chiefs, and he slowly built the team into his image.
