The Indianapolis Capitols/Cincinnati Wings were a professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

team that operated for one season in the

Central Professional Hockey League Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

(CPHL). Originally named the

Indianapolis Capitals The Indianapolis Capitals were an American Hockey League professional ice hockey team based in Indianapolis, Indiana, from 1939 to 1952. The Capitals were a farm team for the Detroit Red Wings. Indianapolis won the Calder Cup in 1942 and 1950. T ...

, the team started the 1963–64 season playing out of the

Fairgrounds Coliseum The Corteva Coliseum is a 6,500-seat indoor multi-use arena, located on the Indiana State Fairgrounds in Indianapolis. It was originally called the Indiana State Fairgrounds Coliseum and later the Pepsi Coliseum, Fairgrounds Coliseum, and Indi ...

Indianapolis Indianapolis ( ), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Indiana, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana, Marion ...

, but only nine games into the season a gas explosion during an ice show destroyed the Indianapolis Coliseum. The Capitols' parent club, the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

, terminated their lease on the rink and moved the franchise to

Cincinnati Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking River (Kentucky), Licking and Ohio Ri ...

Ohio Ohio ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Erie to the north, Pennsylvania to the east, West Virginia to the southeast, Kentucky to the southwest, Indiana to the ...

, to become the Cincinnati Wings.
The Wings played the remaining games of that season at the

Cincinnati Gardens Cincinnati Gardens was an indoor arena located in Cincinnati, Ohio, that opened in 1949. The 25,000 square foot (2,300 m2) brick and limestone building at 2250 Seymour Avenue in Bond Hill had an entrance that was decorated with six three-dimensio ...

and relocated to

Memphis, Tennessee Memphis is a city in Shelby County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. Situated along the Mississippi River, it had a population of 633,104 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, making it the List of municipalities in Tenne ...

, for the 1964–65 season to become the

Memphis Wings The Memphis Wings were a professional ice hockey team in Memphis, Tennessee. They played from 1964–67 in the Central Professional Hockey League. As their name suggested, they were a farm team of the NHL's Detroit Red Wings. History The Red ...

. In 1963–64 the combined Indianapolis/Cincinnati team had a record of 12-53-7-31 and finished in 5th (last) place in the CPHL.

Indianapolis Capitols/Cincinnati Wings roster

Tony Leswick Anthony Joseph Leswick (March 17, 1923 – July 1, 2001) was a Canadian ice hockey forward who played mostly for the New York Rangers and Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League (NHL). Nicknamed "Tough Tony" and "Mighty Mouse", he was kn ...

(Head Coach) *

Alex Faulkner Selm Alexander Faulkner (May 21, 1936 – April 7, 2025) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player and was the first National Hockey League (NHL) player from Newfoundland and Labrador. He played in the NHL from 1961 to 1964 with the Toronto M ...

* Barrie Ross *

Bert Marshall Albert Leroy "Moose" Marshall (born November 22, 1943) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who played in the National Hockey League for the Detroit Red Wings, Oakland Seals/California Golden Seals, New York Rangers and New Y ...

* Bill Mitchell *

Bob Champoux Robert Joseph Champoux (born December 2, 1942) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey goaltender. He made his National Hockey League (NHL) debut with the Detroit Red Wings on March 29, 1964 when he replaced an injured Terry Sawchuk in a 5� ...

(goalie) *Bob Cox * Bob Wall * Bryan Campbell *

Dennis Kassian Dennis Kassian (born July 14, 1941) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. During the 1972–73 season, Kassian played 50 games in the World Hockey Association with the Alberta Oilers, recording six goals and seven assists to go al ...

* Dennis Rathwell * Don Chiz * Doug Messier * Earl Heiskala * Frank Hincks * Hank Bassen (goalie) * Harrison Gray (goalie) * Howie Menard *

Irv Spencer James Irvin Daniel Spencer (December 4, 1937 — October 22, 1999) was a Canadian ice hockey player who played 73 games in the World Hockey Association and 230 games in the National Hockey League between 1959 and 1974. Spencer played for the Phi ...

Jack Faulkner Jack Faulkner (April 4, 1926 – September 28, 2008) was an American football coach and administrator who most prominently served as head coach of the American Football League (AFL)'s Denver Broncos from 1962 to 1964. He also has been an integr ...

* Jack McIntyre * Jim Peters * Jim Watson * Joe Daley (goalie) * Ken Laufman *

Max Mestinsek Max or MAX may refer to: Animals * Max (American dog) (1983–2013), at one time purported to be the world's oldest living dog * Max (British dog), the first pet dog to win the PDSA Order of Merit (animal equivalent of the OBE) * Max (gorilla) (1 ...

* Nick Libett *

Norm Beaudin Norman Joseph Andrew Beaudin (born November 28, 1941) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward. Between 1962 and 1979, he played two short stints in the National Hockey League and spent most of his major league career in the World Ho ...

* Pete Shearer * Ray Ross * Richard "Chick" Balon * Roger Lafreniere * Ron Harris * Ron Leopold * Sid Finney * Stuart "Butch" Paul * Wayne Muloin

References

External links

Team profile at Hockeydb.comSCSR / Cincinnati Wings
Sports clubs and teams in Cincinnati Defunct ice hockey teams in Ohio Central Professional Hockey League teams 1963 establishments in Indiana 1964 disestablishments in Ohio Ice hockey clubs established in 1963 Ice hockey clubs disestablished in 1964 {{Ohio-sport-team-stub