WHA Amateur Draft
The WHA Amateur Draft was the talent recruitment of professional hockey league World Hockey Association, which was founded in 1972 and due to financial problems in 1979 with the National Hockey League merged. The Amateur Draft was held once a year from 1973 to 1977, but since the NHL existed a traditional competitive league, little they drafted players played in the WHA and instead preferred before a career in the NHL. For example, playing only three of the 15 selected in the first round player of 1975 at all in the WHA. Some said they were tried the talents with very high salaries to lure as Pat Price, who received a starting salary in the amount of 1.3 million U.S. dollars, which is even today paid any league rookie in the NHL.
1977, the last Amateur Draft was held because the league decided that the team should commit to young players directly as free agents, thus the NHL teams outdo with lower salaries. Thus, the Indianapolis Racers 1978 Wayne Gretzky could undertake. In addition to that Gretzky was only 17 years old and the NHL teams were allowed to commit only players who are at least 18 years old.
From the first selected Bob Neely and Blair Chapman never played in the WHA, Pat Price left after only one year, the league only Claude Larose and Scott Campbell played a little longer in the WHA.