So Close: Ch. 1 – Beginning of Change

Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, welcome to TXHT’s most ambitious project ever. What started as an idea for a documentary film or docu-series for TV that involved a couple of meetings with the Washington Capitals, then sitting dormant for over a decade, and after much thought and deliberation, we have decided to revive this special project as a docu-series blog. A special one of a kind blog series chronicling the Washington Capitals 1997-98 season. Now I will admit that this docu-series will be very different from most normal docu-series. For one, we will not be conducting any interviews with anyone from the 1997-98 team. We will be grabbing all of our quotes from members of that team from articles written in The Washington Post, The Hockey News, and Sports Illustrated. We will also be relying on a lot of research from those three sources, particularly from The Washington Post since we won’t be conducting interviews for this project.

Without further adieu, TXHT presents “So Close: The Story of the 1997-98 Washington Capitals”.

End of the 1996-97 Season

After making a blockbuster trade that would ship Vezina winning goaltender Jim Carey to the Boston Bruins for forwards Adam Oates and Rick Tocchet and goaltender Bill Ranford, the Washington Capitals would still fall on hardships during the 1996-97 season. With a record of 33 wins, 40 losses, and 9 ties, the Capitals would fail to make the playoffs for the first time in 15 years.

After the season was over, team president Dick Patrick made it known that he and team owner Abe Pollin would not make any major decisions in regard to the team’s future for a few days or even longer. “No, nothing will happen immediately,” Patrick said on April 13th, 1997 from Washington. “This is the same as if we were in the playoffs and we’d lost. We want to wait a few days or a few weeks and wait for the emotions to die down.”

General Manager David Poile, whose job had been under much scrutiny during the season, spoke with Patrick and Pollin on the phone that day. “He told me he spoke with Abe and, as per the past 14 years, it’s always an emotional time when the season ends,” Poile said. “He said we’d meet in two or three weeks, but there was no firm timetable. That’s the way we usually [meet to talk about the season], because we all need to get past the emotion.”

Patrick made it known that he and Pollin would be the ones responsible for any decision being made on Poole’s contract, as well as any move concerning coach Jim Schoenfeld. “We’re going to look at the whole organization, the whole season,” Patrick said. “Obviously, Mr. Pollin’s disappointed and I’m disappointed. Really, the whole year’s been a big disappointment.”

One move the Capitals would make though is guarantee the return of their captain Dale Hunter for the 1997-98 season. The team would exercise their option to extend Hunter’s contract for another year. Hunter, 36 at the time, always considered his career “year-to-year” as he was nearing the end of his playing days. When he was asked about the motivation to return instead of retiring Hunter would go on to say “I wouldn’t want to retire on a note like that. I would not want to end my career by not making the playoffs.”

Time For a Change

On May 12th, 1997, Capitals owner Abe Pollin and president Dick Patrick held a meeting with then current general manager David Poile to inform him that they would not be renewing his contract, and thus the search for a new general manager began.

While Pollin did not make himself available to reporters, he would release a statement that said: “It is time for a new guiding hand for the Washington Capitals. Our team is prepared to move into a new era, and I feel it is time to make a change. I want to publicly thank David Poile for his 15 years of service.”

Poile had compiled a record of 594 wins, 454 losses, and 132 ties in 15 years with the organization. Regarding head coach Jim Schoenfeld, Patrick said “there’s been no discussion on any changes there” when he was asked about a potential change behind the bench.

Capitals forward Kelly Miller, who had played with the Capitals since the 1986-87 season, said about Poile that “the teams were always competitive. Guys on the team gave 100 percent. … I will miss having him around. He’s a classy guy who ran a classy organization, one which I was very proud to play for.” “Anyone who has put a team in the playoffs for 14 straight years has done a hell of a job,” Miller said. “… He made a great trade near the season’s end that I thought would put us in the playoffs, but we could never shake the injury bug.”

Poile left a very solid organization for the new general manager to inherit saying “I think I leave with the future firmly in place for the next several years. I wish everyone associated with the Capitals good luck in the future, and although I hope to be getting another job in hockey, I know I will be cheering for the Capitals.”

The New GM Search

With the Capitals moving on from Poile, their search for a new general manager would begin. One particular name that made his intentions known that he was interested in the position was former St. Louis Blues coach/general manager Mike Keenan. While in Toronto when the news broke of Poile’s release, Keenan would go on record saying “I am sorry about what happened to David because I have always respected him, but I’m definitely interested in the opportunity. Having coached in New York and Philadelphia, the familiarity of the division would be an advantage, and I understand Mr. Pollin is looking to go in a new direction.” Keenan was fired in St. Louis during the 1996-97 season after being involved in a long confrontation with star winger Brett Hull, as well as making a series of controversial decisions when it came to personnel.

Among the other potential candidates for the vacant position, the Capitals would interview an in-house option as they would discuss the possibility with Jim Schoenfeld. Schoenfeld would express interest in the general manager position, but it would not be clear if he was interested in switching from coaching to being the general manager, or if he would retain his coaching duties. “Jim and I have talked about it,” Patrick said. “He had interest, and it’s something we’ll talk about next week.”

However, the Capitals would also grant the Buffalo Sabres, who had just fired their general manager John Muckler two days after the Capitals moved on from Poile, permission to interview Schoenfeld for their open general manager position. “I gave permission because I think so highly of Jim Schoenfeld, and the job in Buffalo is a general manager’s position, which is considered a step up for most people,” said Capitals president Dick Patrick, who also mentioned that he waited a week before granting the Sabres permission.

The Capitals would reach out to former coach, and at the time broadcaster for Canada’s TSN, Gary Green, and recently fired coach of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Ron Wilson about the open position. Larry Pleau, who was Vice President of Player Personnel for the New York Rangers at the time, and former Toronto Maple Leafs general manager Cliff Fletcher would also interview for the position. “I would call it more of a social meeting than a business meeting,” Fletcher said. “There are great possibilities with this club, and there’s also the excitement of a new building opening up in the beginning of December, so there’s going to be a lot of hot action around here in the next year or so.”

“We’ve interviewed some people and I think in the next week to 10 days we’ll make a decision,” Capitals owner Abe Pollin said when asked about the interviewing process. “There are some very qualified people out there.” When asked about what quality he was looking for the most in a new general manager, Pollin would have a simple answer. “Someone who can win the Stanley Cup.”

One person the Capitals had no interest in would be Mike Keenan. The Capitals would not ask him to interview for the opening. Dick Patrick would go on to say about the process “You have to remember that the last person who held this job had it for 15 years. So we obviously have to be careful when making this decision. So far, we’ve found that there are a lot of qualified people out there, it’s just a matter of finding the right fit for this job.”

As interviews got accelerated, then Vancouver Canucks Vice President of Hockey Operations George McPhee would become one of the newest candidates for the vacant general manager position.

Closing in on Their Guy(s)

On June 2nd, 1997, the Washington Capitals would bring back two candidates for a second round of interviews. They would be Ron Wilson and George McPhee. The possible scenario with McPhee and Wilson being the only two being brought back for the second round of interviews would be having McPhee as general manager, and Wilson as head coach.

Then on June 3rd, 1997, the Washington Capitals would fire head coach Jim Schoenfeld, completing a management overhaul that began back in May with the ouster of David Poile as general manager. Schoenfeld would issue a statement about his firing. “I am extremely grateful to Dick Patrick, Mr. Pollin and especially David Poile for the opportunity to have been the head coach of the Washington Capitals. I received tremendous support not only from the top, but from my coaching staff, Tod Button and Keith Allain; the players; and the entire organization.”

At the news conference announcing Schoenfeld’s firing, Capitals Owner Abe Pollin would have the following to say about Schoenfeld. “He is one of the finest gentlemen I’ve ever known, a class act. Obviously he didn’t succeed. He worked very hard, but I guess in this business success is the determining factor.”

Meanwhile in Vancouver, Canucks general manager Pat Quinn would intimate at his own press conference that McPhee was already heading to the Capitals as their new General Manager. “We’re going to have to do some retrenching,” Quinn would say when asked about McPhee going to Washington. “I’ll have to step in [on the contract negotiations]. We don’t have anyone internally to do that anymore.” McPhee assisted Quinn with contract and scouting decisions while with the Canucks.

One interesting tidbit that would come out of Pollin’s news conference was his admission to becoming more involved with the Capitals day-to-day operations. “The Washington Capitals this coming year will be my number one priority, possibly equal to finishing the MCI Center,” Pollin said. ” The Washington Capitals are entering a new era, and I plan to be involved totally in everything that happens with the Washington Capitals.” Pollin would also go on to say that the new coach and general manager would be making the personnel decisions, he would be working more directly with Dick Patrick in the daily operation of the team noting Patrick’s position “will not be diminished, mine will be more enhanced.”

The New Regime

On June 5th, 1997, the Washington Capitals reached a tentative agreement with Vancouver Canucks Vice President of Hockey Operations George McPhee to become the team’s new general manager. Then on June 6th, 1997, the Capitals reached a basic agreement with Ron Wilson to become the team’s new head coach.

Wilson and McPhee had worked together previously for 3 years when Wilson was with the Canucks as an assistant coach from 1990-93. With the NHL Draft coming up, Abe Pollin commented on the pending hires, “If we’re going to hire two guys and they’re going to work together, if they know each other and like each other, that’s a plus because they won’t have much time.” When discussing Wilson and McPhee, Pollin also said “I’ve checked personally with lots of folks around the country, including the league office, and they’re pretty high on [McPhee and Wilson]. George has had a tremendous amount of experience as the No. 2 man in Vancouver, and he has an impressive background.”

Wilson, who was in Colorado Springs, CO for USA Hockey’s annual congress, said in a phone interview, “I was just with [Pittsburgh Penguins general manager] Craig Patrick, and told him I’m done interviewing — as long as everything works out, I’ll be in Washington. My gut said I wanted to go {to Washington} since the first time I met with [the Capitals officials].”

When discussing the changing philosophy for the team, where defense and conservatism reigned, Wilson said, “Everyone knows you have to play defense to win in the playoffs, but you can’t play defensive, grind-it-out hockey through an entire 82-game regular season, because it gets very boring and you lose your creativity. I would like to think I’m flexible and could coach whatever kind of team I have, so all I plan to do is come in, read the talent, and coach the system that the players will do best in. This isn’t about abandoning defense at all, you just have to let people grow and play to their strengths.”

During his time as the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim’s first head coach in franchise history, Wilson would gain popularity in Southern California, but due to a series of conflicts with upper management he was fired in late May of 1997. Wilson left the Ducks with a record of 120 wins, 145 losses, and 31 ties from the inaugural 1993-94 season through the 1996-97 season. The Ducks steadily improved, and made the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in 1997, and advanced to the second round in their lone playoff appearance to date.

“Dick was actually the first person to call me after I was fired, and that said something to me,” Wilson said. “You find out when you go through something like this that there are all kinds of interviewing techniques, and I was very comfortable with the Capitals’ style.” In a final note about his coaching style, Wilson said “The bottom line is that I don’t think coaching is a lot of X’s and O’s. It’s managing people, getting guys to trust one another. It’s creating a real environment so that a guy doesn’t want to let his teammates down.”

With the official announcement looming closer, keeping a secret in the NHL proved difficult as people around the league were aware both Wilson and McPhee would be heading to the Capitals. So much so, Wilson’s contract numbers became public knowledge in both California and Washington, with the deal expected to be for 3 years, with an option for a fourth, and an average salary of about $700,000 per year.

Though in an interesting note when discussing Wilson’s contract, former Capitals coach Jim Schoenfeld was hired by the Phoenix Coyotes, making roughly $400,000, which was the same amount he was making in Washington during the 1996-97 season. However, in an unusual arrangement, per a source with the Coyotes, some of Schoenfeld’s money would come from the Capitals. When the Capitals fired Schoenfeld, he had 2 years remaining on his contract.

On June 9th, 1997, the Washington Capitals formally introduced Ron Wilson as the team’s new head coach, and George McPhee as the team’s new general manager. The introductions of both McPhee and Wilson were done at a press conference at the then-still under construction MCI Center. Abe Pollin had glowing things to say about Wilson and McPhee at their introductory press conference. “We were convinced that these two young, vibrant people were going to be a great addition to our club,” Pollin said, “George and Ron have all the tools necessary to take the Capitals to new heights.”

Echoing sentiments from Wilson from a few days earlier, McPhee also noted how the team’s philosophy will change for the better. “You can get to the playoffs with a grinding team and you might win a round, but you have to have speed and skill and balance to win the Stanley Cup,” McPhee said. “You can teach good players to play well defensively, but you can’t teach defensive players to score.” McPhee said he wanted a team that would have an emphasis on speed and skill, but that he’ll take some time before making changes to the roster. With the NHL Draft 11 days away, McPhee also planned to leave the scouting staff intact for the time being.

When discussing assistant coaches for Wilson’s coaching staff, McPhee said “My preference in that area is to let Ron pick his first guy and then his second guy we’d have to agree on.” Keith Allain and Tod Button were assistant coaches under Jim Schoenfeld, and Allain had coaching experience with Wilson on the international level. However, Tim Army, an assistant coach for Wilson in Anaheim, was considered a top candidate for a job in Washington.

Putting focus on the Capitals current roster, Wilson referred to the roster as the “gem job” of the NHL’s current openings. “What I like about the Capitals is that there is potentially a lot of offense at the blue line,” Wilson said. “We’ve got great goaltending and great defense that can get the puck up, so our focus is going to be spending less time in our own zone. Of course, its going to take some time, because players have to learn to trust me and break [a] lot of habits.”

Wilson also mentioned he intended to change the Capitals’ practice style by shortening the duration and number of practices while making them more action-oriented. One thing Wilson planned to focus on was team-building, which was a skill which won Wilson praise during the 1996 World Cup with Team USA. During the 1996-97 season, several Capitals players had complained about the lack of team cohesiveness. With the hiring of Wilson, both Pollin and Patrick looked to address the issue for the players.

Immediate Fallout

Two days after officially announcing Ron Wilson as head coach and George McPhee as general manager, the first important decisions would be made as the Washington Capitals would relieve both Keith Allain and Tod Button of their duties as assistant coaches. Both had 1 year left on their contracts.

Immediately, Tim Army, an assistant for Wilson in Anaheim, was expected to be the Capitals’ first new addition. “I haven’t talked to [general manager George McPhee] yet, so it’s not certain, but I think things will work out,” said Army. He spoke to Wilson after both Wilson and McPhee were hired. “I just missed a call from George [yesterday] and I hope we can get it done [today].” Army was fired along with Wilson back in late May by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, and both Wilson and Army had known each other since their days at their alma mater, Providence College. Army would take on the duties Button performed for the Capitals.

Another name being floated around was Paul Holmgren, who was a pro scout for the Philadelphia Flyers at the time. Holmgren also served as an assistant for Wilson during the previous summer’s World Cup of Hockey. At the time of the news breaking about Allain and Button’s firing, Holmgren had not been contacted by the Capitals, but would be approached about filling the role Allain previously held. Allain had been with the Capitals since 1990, and was popular among the team’s players. Button had also been with the Capitals the past 7 years.

“We recognize and appreciate the contribution these two men have made to the Capitals organization,” McPhee said in a statement. “Nevertheless, it is important that we provide Ron Wilson the flexibility to select his own staff.”

On June 18th, 1997, the Washington Capitals would hired Tim Army as an assistant coach for Ron Wilson’s coaching staff. Then on June 27th we learned that Holmgren turned down the Capitals offer to remain with the Flyers.

On the player side of things, McPhee would have his work cut out for him as he would need to see if he could sign forward Rick Tocchet to a new deal and renegotiate a new contract with forward Adam Oates, which Dick Patrick promised when Oates was acquired via trade on March 1st, 1997 from Boston.

On June 14th, 1997, Rick Tocchet made it known he was leaning towards free agency. McPhee offered Tocchet a 2-year contract extension, however, despite the offer, Tocchet was not hopeful about remaining with the Capitals. “He made somewhat of an offer, but I’m disappointed,” Tocchet said. “The second year is substantially less money, so it’s not a good deal for me. I’m looking for a three year deal.” Tocchet had an option in his existing contract which gave him the ability to extend his contract through the 1997-98 season. By not choosing to pick up the option year, Tocchet would become a free agent.

“I’d probably have to say I would definitely go the free agent route [if a three year deal is not agreed upon],” Tocchet said. “I’m confident in myself. I’m healthy. If I wasn’t, I’d say it’s better [to] grab the deal while I can.” On the matter, McPhee said “We’re very interested in keeping Rick here. But we have to make sure we do what’s right for the club and what’s right for Rick.”

On June 15th, 1997, unhappy with the contract negotiations, Tocchet exercised his option to declare for free agency. “We just couldn’t work anything out with Washington,” said Tocchet’s agent Steve Mountain. “Their offer was not sufficient for us, so at this point, Rick will become a Group 3 [unrestricted] free agent for the purposes of talking to other teams.”

As a result of Tocchet not remaining with the Capitals, the team retained the 1998 second round pick which was originally sent to Boston as part of the March 1st trade which brought Tocchet, Oates, and goaltender Bill Ranford to Washington.

To learn about the contract negotiations for Adam Oates, stay tuned for Chapter 2 – The Adam Oates Saga.

TXHT may earn an Affiliate Commission if you purchase something through Cool Hockey and Dr. Squatch ads/links in this article.

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