Weird New Jersey Devils History: When The Devils and Capitals Almost Merged

Remember the time the New Jersey Devils almost merged with the Washington Capitals?

In Weird New Jersey Devils History, we look back at the most bizarre occurrences in team history. In this edition, we look at the time the Devils almost merged with the Washington Capitals. In the summer of 1982, the Colorado Rockies moved from Denver to the Meadowlands and became the New Jersey Devils. Also in the summer of 1982, the Washington Capitals were in bad shape, and owner Abe Pollin had enough. Things needed to change, and he saw a possibility a few states north. But teams can’t just combine like that… right?

Yes, they can. And, by many accounts, almost did.

Tough Times In Washington

The Capitals and the Devils have a common origin point – they were the two teams brought into the league during its 1974 expansion. Back then, the Devils were the Kansas City Scouts, eight years away from moving to the Garden State. The Caps remain in the DC area to this day, but in 1982 they came real close to moving, or something stranger – merging.

Expectations for expansion teams are usually low – younger fans, know that the Golden Knights as huge outliers – but even by those standards early Caps seasons were horrendous. Their 8-67-5 debut season record for 21 points remains the worst record in NHL history. During their first eight seasons, the Capitals never reached the playoffs nor finished north of .500.

Worse than the on-ice performance was the team’s finances. It’s hard to grow new fans in a new market when your team isn’t worth paying to see. The arena had 63% attendance on an average night, and only two games all season were sellouts. By the summer of 1982, Pollin claimed he lost $20 million – around $53 million converted to 2020 standards – since the Caps entered the league. Pollin wanted to keep the team in the DC area, and he was ready to twist some arms to do it.

On July 20th, 1982, Pollin outlined four conditions for the Capitals’ continued existence:

1.       The sale of at least 7,500 season tickets

2.       Sellouts of the first 10 home games

3.       A reduction on the Cap’s rent to Capital Center from 15% to 10% of net receipts after taxes

4.       That Prince Georges County reduce their county amusement tax from 10% to 0.5%

The Save The Caps campaign was on, and fans started organizing. Local businesses pooled their resources to guaranteed sellouts and ticket sales were growing. The rent reduction occurred without much public fuss. Yet at this point you’re probably asking…

How do the Devils fit in?

Pollin was serious about “Save The Caps” – he was ready to pull the plug on the team. This could have meant dissolving the team outright. It also could mean he’d move the team. He put out feelers in Saskatchewan and in another Washington – Washington state, specifically Tacoma.

But the most credible threat was a merger with another team. Specifically, the newly relocated New Jersey Devils.

On August 21st, the New York Times broke a big story – the freshly relocated New Jersey Devils and Washington Capitals spent weeks talking about merging. Devils owner John McMullen went on record to confirm this, saying the two parties met multiple times. “We will definitely make the deal,” he said, “if Abe Pollin doesn’t get what he needs.” Pollin also confirmed, but noted his decision was still hinging on the PG County Council’s actions.

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As outlandish as this sounds now, it was credible and had precedent – the Minnesota North Stars and the Cleveland Barons merged four years earlier. The Caps also had enough talent that it’s easy to see why any team would consider it. Their roster included young stars like Mike Gartner and Bobby Carpenter, easy franchise cornerstones. They also had Dennis Maruk, who just had a 136 point season and was the fourth-highest scorer in the league. The closest thing the Devils had to a star was Chico Resch, maybe Aaron Broten – even one of those Caps stars would be huge. Which players would come over and where the rest would go would be up to the league.

A few days later, NHL President John Ziegler told the Washington Post that such a merger was unlikely. “People can get together and make whatever kind of deal they want,” he said, “but it must be approved by the league.” The league’s position on the Capitals was that they were obligated to play that season, in part because the league’s schedule was based on them playing in Landover. Ziegler acknowledged that it made sense Pollin was “keeping his options open” but was clearly eyeing the tax breaks first and foremost.

Pollin Gets What He Wants

On August 24th, Pollin met with the PG County Council and pushed for his tax cuts. He already got their attention due to some diligent campaigning and some behind-the-scenes finagling. Fans showed up and testified in favor of them. Ultimately, the council voted in favor of the tax breaks 10-1. The Caps were, as per the goal of the campaign, saved.

Not long after, on August 30th, Pollin hired David Poile as the new general manager. Just over a week later, Poile forever changed the Capitals with one move: the acquisition via trade of Brian Engblom, Craig Laughlin, Doug Jarvis and – most importantly – Rod Langway. In the short term, they were a big part of the Caps making the playoffs that year. In the long term, the kept Washington a playoff team for years upon years.

The Devils, on the other hand, remained a joke until 1988. Their ever-so-brief threat at merging with the Capitals was mostly forgotten. The Devils did get their hands on Bobby Carpenter years later, who helped them win their first Cup in 1995. Not exactly Mike Gartner, but can’t argue with the result.