CELEBRATING THE 40th ANNIVERSARY OF THE COCA-COLA BOTTLERS’ CUP The Washington Capitals and Kansas City Scouts’ Captivating, Long-Forgotten Foray into the Land of Sake, Sumo and Swimming Pool Skating Rinks By Steve Currier Quirky ideas are not always foolhardy, as you 1974 draft had a particularly shallow talent pool due to will soon discover. In fact, quirky ideas often lead to the fact that, by then, the NHL and WHA had swollen to wonderful, unexpected results. Some things just don’t a combined 32 teams. With the Iron Curtain still closed, a need to make sense as long as the outcome puts a smile dearth of American talent, and a slow willingness to accept on everyone’s face. When the National Hockey League European players, the Capitals and Scouts had little choice announced in March 1976 that its two worst teams, the but to dress the dregs of professional hockey. The giddy Washington Capitals and Kansas City Scouts, would be NHL pocketed a tidy $12-million in expansion fees, but traveling to Japan to play a four-game exhibition series the league’s two newest members suffered immensely. The for something called the Coca-Cola Bottlers’ Cup, almost Capitals set all kinds of futility records in their first year: everyone was baffled. “I think [the NHL] just wanted to 8 wins (including just one on the road), 67 losses, and 446 float a trial balloon and just see, because some people said goals against. Most players had plus-minus marks that that Japanese hockey was starting to come on,” said Scouts resembled the average winter temperature of Antarctica. winger Robin Burns. The decision to send the dregs of the The Scouts performed marginally better, finishing 15-54- NHL to Japan for the purpose of stirring interest in hockey 11 with 184 goals scored and 328 against. was met with snickers. The Medicine Hat News’ Pete Mossey had this amusing take on the tour: The U.S. State Department hasn’t always received top marks for intelligence, so it’s not surprising they are sending Kansas City Scouts and Washington Capitals to Japan for a series of exhibition games… sending these two clubs on a Japan tour, to build up the image of the NHL, makes as much sense as having the Broad Street Bullies… represent the NHL at a meeting of the Mothers For Clean Hockey Society.(1) In the end, the Scouts and Caps enthralled an entire nation with their gap-toothed smiles, bone-shattering body checks and deafening slap shots, but the media’s scepticism was justified. After all, the Capitals and The following season, the Scouts were led by high- Scouts had stumbled to a cumulative 46-236-38 record scoring centre Guy Charron (27 goals, 71 points) and All- their first two seasons. Surely, the league could have sent Star left winger Wilf Paiement (43 points in 57 games). better ambassadors to Japan, but the NHL’s reasoning Veteran Gary Bergman was brought in to steady the blue made sense. Everyone knew the cellar-dwellers would line and finished with a decent 38 points. Denis Herron’s be mathematically eliminated from playoff contention by 4.03 goals-against average in 64 games was more a Christmas, so it gave tournament organizers plenty of time reflection of the Scouts’ porous defence than his talent. to plan and promote the trip. Steve Durbano was acquired in mid-season and led the While expansion drafts are notorious for stocking new league with 370 penalty minutes. teams with minor-leaguers and washed-up veterans, the 1 CELEBRATING THE 40th ANNIVERSARY OF THE COCA-COLA BOTTLERS’ CUP Kansas City started the 1975/76 season 11-21-4, and wives and girlfriends were also invited along. Everyone were poised to make a run at the playoffs in the weak stayed in a first-rate hotel that was prominently featured Smythe Division, but they then went into a 1-35-8 tailspin, in the James Bond movie You Only Live Twice. During including a 27-game winless skid to cap off the season. their stay, the players took in some sumo wrestling, a traditional dinner at a grill house and watched a Kabuki theatre production. The wives and girlfriends were taken on a tour of Kyoto and also passed the time shopping and getting manicures at the hotel. The tournament itself cost a reported $400,000 and the Coca-Cola Bottling Co. of Japan reportedly forked over about 75 per cent of that total. Tickets weren’t cheap, costing up to $26 apiece. McVie expected his players to capture the Coca- Cola Cup. Before the series began, he admitted he would Although the Capitals were worse at 11-59-10, eight be “very, very unhappy if we don’t win all four with the of their wins came in the 44 games coached by Tom Scouts.”(4) Despite the wonderful accommodations and McVie, who had replaced Milt Schmidt in mid-season. the holiday atmosphere, the Capitals were going to work “He believed that our theme for the Caps was ‘hard work hard every day. “Right up until we left from Washington,” gets it done,’” remembered player Ron “Newsy” Lalonde. said player Ron Lalonde, “we continued to practise even “He put us through two-a-day practices and took away the though our season was over. We flew out to L.A. the night country club atmosphere [of] the first year.” Nelson Pyatt before and practised in the L.A. Forum before flying from led the way with 26 goals and 49 points while Hartland L.A. to Japan.” Monahan scored 46 points and Tony White had 25 goals On their way to Japan, the Capitals had a three- and 42 points. Gerry Meehan was acquired in mid-season hour layover in Hawaii because the plane just ahead of and scored 31 points in 32 games. Ron Low (6-31-2) split them had blown a wheel on the runway. Wolfe remembered the goaltending duties with Bernie Wolfe (5-23-7). the team got “a little bit wasted” at the bar. McVie was The Caps and Scouts may have been laughing stocks livid. As soon as the Caps landed in Japan, McVie called back home, but in Japan, they were treated like champions. a practice. “I’m not sure if Tommy was trying to impress “Yes, they are the two bottom teams in the league,” said anybody,” Wolfe said, “but there were just a whole bunch Jack Sakazaki, a Tokyo advertising executive promoting of Japanese reporters and fans leaning over the boards with the exhibition tour, “but it doesn’t matter because they their cameras, and I remember the workout was so hard, a are so much above the standards of everyone else playing couple of our players actually puked right over the boards here.”(2) Homer Simpson was right: default was indeed on cameras the Japanese reporters were holding.” “the two sweetest words in the English language,” because The atmosphere in the Scouts’ camp was far different. for once, being futile would lead to more benefits than While Henry Boucha did not go to Japan with the rest of the being successful.(3) team due to the impending birth of his son, he remembered Bernie Wolfe remembers the warm reception that the weeks leading up to the series. “I really don’t think awaited when the Caps’ plane touched down in Japan. anyone was that pumped about playing the games and “When we got off the plane, it said, ‘Welcome Washington certainly not performing to the best of their ability,” he Capitals: Team of beautiful women and brave men,’ and explained. “It was a vacation to most. However, once on my wife laughed because here she’s almost seven months the ice I am sure the pride took over and most hockey pregnant, and after 15 hours on a plane, she said she looked players want to play to win.” anything but beautiful.” Players from both the winning and While the energized Capitals were building losing squads would receive $1,250 for their efforts plus a momentum, the Scouts ended their season on a 27-game $45 per diem, and all expenses would be paid. The players’ 2 CELEBRATING THE 40th ANNIVERSARY OF THE COCA-COLA BOTTLERS’ CUP winless streak and were feeling somewhat demoralized. Game One: Wednesday, April 14, 1976 Henry Boucha remembered the terrible conclusion to the The series opened at the Tsukisamu ice rink in Scouts’ regular season: Sapporo, the site of the 1972 Winter Olympics, in front Most players went through the motions of trying but of 4,500 fans. “The arena was really chilly,” remembered we didn’t have the leadership or talent to win many games. the Caps’ Mike Lampman. “It almost reminded you of Some players took pride in their work, but were there only your childhood days in some of the old arenas.” In the first to achieve their personal goals and not the team goals. We period, during a scramble in front of Denis Herron, the were a cast of characters, and most were on their way out of Caps took a 2-1 lead on a goal by Mike Marson. At 12:17, the game and didn’t have much of a future. I think [coach] Bob Sirois made it 3-1 on an assist from Pete Scamurra. Eddy Bush was in the same frame of mind as most of the Washington beat Herron twice more in the second frame, players. He knew he was going after the season and had while Charron scored once on Wolfe.