WHA game summary from December 23, 1976
| 1: |
SD , | Norm Ferguson 23 (Andre Lacroix, John French), 7:16 |
| 2: |
NE , | George Lyle 21 (Tom Webster, Mike Rogers), :14 |
| NE , | Danny Arndt 5 (Larry Pleau, Terry Caffery), 6:21 |
| SD , | Tony Cassolato 7 (Paul Shmyr, Andre Lacroix), 10:42 |
| SD , | Brad Rhiness 2 (Norm Ferguson, John French), 12:53 |
| 3: |
NE , | Ralph Backstrom 10 (Ron Busniuk), 4:48 |
| NE , | Larry Pleau 4 (Danny Arndt), 7:07 |
| NE , | Tom Webster 20 (Larry Pleau, Mike Rogers), 19:23 |
Penalties:
| 1: |
Cap Raeder, NE 1:28 |
| Andre Lacroix, SD 1:28 |
| Kevin Devine, SD 2:13 |
| Paul Shmyr, SD 3:56 |
| Ron Busniuk, NE 6:19 |
| Ron Busniuk, NE 16:47 |
| 2: |
Andre Lacroix, SD 0:56 |
| Gordie Roberts, NE 3:15 |
| Ralph Backstrom, NE 10:09 |
| Ron Busniuk, NE 13:31 |
| 3: |
Alan Hangsleben, NE 11:15 |
| Alan Hangsleben, NE 14:36 |
| Tim O'Connell, SD 14:36 |
Penalty time: NE : 16 minutes
SD : 10 minutes
Shots: NE : 8- 9-12-29
SD : 7-13- 9-29
Goalies: NE : Cap Raeder (W, 3-1-0)
SD : Ernie Wakely (L, 11-6-0)
Attendance: 5,346
New England Whalers (14-17-4)
San Diego Mariners (21-13-2)