Detroit Cougars                The club that would eventually become the Detroit Red Wings got its start in 1926 when a pair of Detroit sports promoters, Morris Caplan and Morris Friedberg, purchased the Stanley Cup-winning Victoria Cougars team from the Western Hockey League. They successfully petitioned the NHL an expansion club in Detroit, and in 1926 the Detroit Cougars become the newest member of the NHL. The Cougars struggled in their first year, going 10-21-2 and finishing last in their division. The team didn’t even play in Detroit, as they lacked an arena and so were forced to play “home” games in Windsor, Ontario. The Cougars’ fortunes dramatically improved in 1927: they finally got a lease to play at the brand new Detroit Olympia Stadium, and the legendary Jack Adams became their head coach and general manager, a position he would occupy until 1962-63 - over 35 years! The Cougars quickly improved and even made it to the playoffs in 1928-1929, where the efforts of high-scoring forward Carson Cooper could not prevent a sweep at the hands of the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Cougars were renamed the Falcons in 1930, and then upon the purchase of the team by grain merchant James Norris in 1932 received the name they would carry on through history - the Red Wings.