The Dusters were founding members of the North American Hockey League in 1973. The rough-and-tumble NAHL became the inspiration for the 1977 Paul Newman comedy Slap Shot and its member teams served as farm clubs to the World Hockey Association, a 1970’s rival to the National Hockey League. The Dusters had affiliation deals with both the San Diego Mariners of the WHA and the Boston Bruins of the NHL.