7 - Yvon Labre, Heart of the Capitals (1974-81)

Perhaps you’ve stared at the “Labre 7” banner hanging from the Verizon Center rafters and wondered, “Who’s that?”

Even those who know he was an Original Capital may wonder, “Why is he up there?”

Bill Simmons of espn.com noted (obnoxiously) that the retired numbers in Capitals history included "Some guy named Yvon Labre, who was apparently the team chef back in 1978.”


Eh, no. As you’ll discover, Labre richly deserves his recognition, although achieved in a most unorthodox fashion.

99 percent of athletes have their numbers retired for superior achievement or tragic circumstances. Yvon himself would tell you he didn’t fit into either category, despite 7 seasons of reliable defense in D.C. “Thank God there are guys who don’t use their abilities,” he once observed, “so guys who don’t have much – guys like me – can stay in this great game.”

Happily, Labre has also prospered into middle age - although he played a punishing game when saner mortals would have waved the white flag. Labre, describing one shoulder injury: “It sounded the way it does when you crack your knuckles.”

So, what elevated Yvon Labre to the rafters?

“Labre wouldn’t quit. There may be those with more talent, but few with as big a heart.”
(Russ White, Washington Star)

“He threw every ounce of his heart into clearing creases and engaging in fights.”
(legendsofhockey.net)

“The guts of a burglar, the heart of an elephant.”
(Robert Fachet, Washington Post)



The heart Labre exhibited wasn’t just admirable; on the 1970’s Caps, it was
super-human. Wrote Fachet, “In sports history, few franchises match the Capitals for ineptitude. With very few exceptions – Labre is an obvious one – the Capitals were saddled with malcontents and fringe players. While teammates often went through the motions, Labre skated at full speed on every shift. Patrons at Capital Centre were guaranteed of one thing – a 100 percent effort from the man with the No. 7 and the “C” on his chest.”

Purists (snobs) will argue this still doesn’t merit a place in the rafters. Hogwash! Labre earned immortality for surviving, under conditions few athletes could have endured.

Yvon first demonstated that toughness early in life. After his father died in a mining accident, he supported three brothers as an electrician, at the same time playing junior hockey. While injuries finally forced him to retire in 1981, Labre worked in the Capitals front office through the rest of the 20th century.

For anyone still unconvinced, Brian Costello of The Hockey News provides an elegant rebuttal. "The franchise retired Labre’s No. 7 long ago because of his resilience and unconditional dedication on a bunch of dreadful teams.

"Retiring or honoring players and their sweater numbers is all about the passionate feeling between the team, the player and the fans, not about Hall of Fame standards."

Now, as generations of 21st century Caps followers look up at “Labre 7”, I like to think it’s also a tribute to the fans who bravely stuck with the team from its most humble of beginnings. Yvon, Washington’s hockey ambassador, would surely agree.

5 - Rod Langway, Secretary of Defense (1982-1993)

Unlike the obscure entries elsewhere on this site, Rod Langway's heroics are known to even casual Caps fans.

He was a two-time Norris Trophy winner as best defenseman, longtime captain, a 2002 Hall of Fame inductee, and the Capitals averaged a robust 92 standings points during his 10 full seasons.

Yet none of these represent Langway's greatest achievement. After the 1981-82 season, financial woes caused owner Abe Pollin to consider moving or folding the team.

That triggered a "Save The Caps" ticket-selling campaign.

Then, newly-hired G.M. David Poile engineered a blockbuster offseason trade with Montreal for Langway,
Brian Engbloom, Doug Jarvis, and Craig Laughlin.

Dividends were immediate. In 1982-83, wins went up by 13. Not coincidentally, goals-against went down 55. In 1983-84, wins increased by another 9, while goals-against decreased a staggering 57. Langway's leadership and skill had provided the rising tide that lifted all his teammates.

"He recognizes what he does best," coach Bryan Murray told Sports Illustrated . "He doesn't gamble. He plays very safe.

"He'll go back and make the pass to the same winger time after time if the guy's open, and he's so strong that even when he's being leaned on he can get the puck to his man. He never gets in trouble in his own end."

Even in the '80's, Langway considered himself a throwback. "My style is physical and simple," he wrote in a washingtonpost.com chat. "I focused on clearing the puck and quick transitions from defense and offense.

"I consider myself a proud hockey player. I honor the game and the people who played before me. I like the physical hooking and holding. You made people work to score."

Rod had a similar no-nonsense reaction to stardom. "It was simply my time," he told legendsofhockey.net.

"If I had stayed in Montreal, I would have been the same player, but I wouldn't have received the accolades. Larry (Robinson) was there, and was put on the ice during certain situations that I was getting in Washington.

"Being the captain and being recognized as a key player with the Capitals, along with the way I played, helped me win the Norris Trophy."

As wins increased, so did sales. Attendance peaked in 1989-90 at 17,251 per game - just a few hundred under capacity. And hockey in D.C. was safe.

Laughlin later told sportsfanmagazine.com, "Rod Langway just about single-handedly saved the Washington Capitals. He put hockey on the map here."

Hockey observers around the NHL agree. In his book, "Who's Who of Hockey", Stan Fischler calls Langway no less than a "Majestic franchise-saver."

11 - Mike Gartner, Mr. Consistent (1979-89)

Mike Gartner was the opposite of Forrest Gump's box of chocolates. With Mike, Caps fans always knew what they were going to get: 35 goals or more.

In nine full seasons in Washington
(after being chosen 4th overall in the 1979 draft),
Gartner's goal totals are staggering:
36, 48, 35, 38, 40, 50, 35, 31, 48.

After Gartner and Bobby Carpenter combined for 103 scores in the '84-'85 season, they were dubbed the "Goal Dust Twins."

His main weapon was blazing speed - Gartner won the All-Star skills competition for fastest skater three times, even in 1996 at the age of 36.

The only thing Gartner couldn't chase down was a championship, never making it to the Stanley Cup finals during a 19-year career.

In his decade in D.C., the Capitals won just three playoff series - and Mike's scoring touch sometimes eluded him in crucial situations.

That said, Gartner was a first-ballot Hall of Fame selection in 2001.

His durability, his work ethic, and, oh yes, being one of just a half-dozen players in NHL history to score more than 700 goals, made his selection a lock.

And his retired #11 reminds fans of his other notable numbers with the Capitals - 397 goals, 392 assists.

32 - Dale Hunter, "Tough, Talented, Allergic to Quitting" (1987-99)

One of the all-time great Capitals memories will always be Dale Hunter's overtime series-winning goal in Game 7 against the Flyers in the 1988 playoffs.

Hunter was an agitator par excellence. Other terms used by opposing players and fans - not without admiration - included "pest", "warrior", "menace", and "dirty."

Hunter is the only player in NHL history with more than 300 goals, 1,000 points, and 3,000 penalty minutes.

Goalie Bill Ranford had a unique perspective, as both an opponent and teammate of Hunter's.

Ranford's assessment, as quoted by washingtoncapitalslegends.blogspot.com:

"I assumed Hunter picked his spots to play the way he does because nobody can play that way all the time.

"Then I found out he plays that way every game, every rink,
against everybody."

And Dale was clutch - 4 overtime goals in the Stanley Cup playoffs. The New York Times labled him, "Tough, Talented, Allergic to Quitting," after Hunter's OT winner in '88.

For much more about that game, select the "Hunter's Shot" link from the main page index.

37 - (Pending) Olaf Kolzig, "Olie The Goalie" (1989-2007)

Olaf Kolzig earned a proud legacy during two decades in the Capitals organization - great performance on the ice, great class off of it.

The NHL certainly took note of that rare and remarkable combination.

Kolzig won the Vezina Trophy in 2000 (top left) as the league's best goaltender.

He won the King Clancy Trophy in 2006 (bottom) as the "player who exemplifies leadership and made a humanitarian contribution in his community."

It's no exaggeration that Kolzig embodied what we wish for
in our sports heroes.

A winner - 301 wins, to be exact; a vocal locker room presence; articulate with the media; generous with the fans; loyal to the organization; a devoted family man, who founded "Athletes Against Autism" on behalf of his son.

Longtime Washington Post Sports Editor George Solomon said it best, calling Kolzig "The Ultimate Mensch."
(For those of you not versed in Yiddish, mensch, n., a person of integrity and honor.)

Just one eentsy-weentzy detail; Kolzig's number hasn't been retired. That, however, is just a matter of timing.
#37 will surely join the other retired greats in the rafters.
















Since this site is largely devoted to the Caps of the '70's and '80's,
we've showcased photos of Early Olie - as a promising #1 draft pick in 1989.

Size Matters (On Logos)

The Capitals in 1974 adopted a “crew cut” mentality for their debut logo. No style, no flair, not even originality.

Two years earlier, the WHA’s Blazers introduced one quite similar.


Yet the wordmark also sported a crew cut’s positives: it was clean, crisp, neat, the words and art fitting together like jigsaw pieces.

Stylistic heavy lifting was carried by the stars, stripes, and shoulder color, so maybe the no-nonsense logo was sensible.

In any case, the logo on the ‘70’s Caps sweaters was superior to the alterations made for the 1980’s through 1995.

It's relevant to remember that in the early ‘70’s, the Orioles removed “Baltimore” from their jerseys – a play for the hearts (and dollars) of the baseball-starved D.C. metropolitan area.

The Capitals apparently felt that what worked for one Maryland-based sports franchise would surely work for another. So, hoping to tap into – oh, I don’t know, hockey-crazy Towson and Ellicott City? – the Caps used a shrink ray on the word “Washington.”

Beginning in the 1980-81 season, the city name became microscopic.

It would have made more aesthetic sense to completely remove it – no one could read it anyway.

Check out the closeups of three game-worn Capitals sweaters. The miniscule lettering appears weightless. It floats aimlessly, sometimes near the nickname, sometimes above the top of the hockey stick. Yuck.

That’s why the screaming eagle and capitol dome designs adopted in 1995 were as much a relief as an improvement.


It’s only fair to report that the original 1970’s Capitals sweaters had their own issue. Namely, names.

The first season started without names on either home or road uniforms. According to capsjerseys.com, home whites finally got nameplates in January, 1975.

Road uniforms still lacked names in Season 2. (The intentional omission supposedly spurred sales of scorecards.) Oddly, the home unis again lacked nameplates until November.

The sewing department wasn’t ready for the 1976-77 campaign, either. Even though the NHL mandated names on road uniforms, the Caps red sweaters didn’t comply until well after the season started.

Caps, Capitals, and Capitols

Trivia doesn't get more trivial than this: 4 previous D.C. franchises have been Caps, Capitols, or Capitals.

The Washington Capitols disbanded in 1951 after 2 seasons in the fledgling NBA. That beat the one season (1969-70) for the ABA's Washington Caps.

When the World Football League awarded a Washington franchise in 1974, its name was originally Capitals (later changed to Ambassadors). Either way, the team never played a game before moving to Florida.

Finally, there's Washington's National League baseball team - of the 19th century. Nicknames were sporadically used in those days, so some records retroactively named the team the Nationals. But Kerry Keane's book, 1951, has this reference to the playing career of legendary manager Connie Mack: Mack's first season "as a catcher with the National League's Washington Capitals in 1888."

As recently as 2008, the original Capitals logo was still in use, 2,944 miles away.

At right is the former logo of the Cowichan Valley Capitals of the British Columbia Hockey League. (They've since adopted the current Caps logo.)

They Could Have Been "The Pandas"

Speaking of the nickname for the new NHL franchise... The Washington Pandas? The Pink Violins? The Slapsticks?

Those were among 12,000 submission in a 1974 team-naming contest. According to a 20th Anniversary gameday program, "Comets" was the most popular, with 250 entries, compared with 88 who wrote in "Caps" or "Capitals."

That's what owner Abe Pollin settled on, explaining, "The names were novel, clever and original. I felt 'Washington Capitals' best described our entry."

"It took me 8 to 10 hours," Abe added, "but I looked at every one." Now you can, too: Domes, Cyclones, Streaks, Blades, Cheetahs, Turtles, Koo-Koos, Ice Skins, Snowflakes, Mosquitoes, Dum Dums, Chimney Sweeps, Watergate Bugs, Wing Pings, Cold Cuts, Catfish, Isms, Apes, Delegates, Whips, Lizards, Toppers, Troopers, Whippers and Colonials.

Back to the "Pandas," just think of it. Instead of Winger, the mascots could have been Ling-Ling and Hsing-Hsing, famously gifted by China to the National Zoo in 1972.

Early on, the pair met with about as much success as the '70s Caps. "Hsing-Hsing attempted to mate with Ling-Ling's ear, wrist and foot." (animalplanet.com)

Four Of A Kind

Three Capitals stand above all the rest in popularity – with stadium scorecard vendors.

The common thread among Rick Bragnalo, Doug Patey, and Mark Lofthouse, is that their threads were constantly changing. After recall from the minors, and another player using their former number, they’d have to get a new one.

Rick, Doug, and Mark each wore four different numbers during their time with the Caps in the 1970’s. Not at the same time, despite the jersey sleeve evidence at right.

For Patey (#10, 23, 12 and 16), his moment in the sun came in the ’76-’77 season, when Doug played 37 games with Washington, and scored 3 of his 4 NHL goals.

Bragnalo (#18, 27, 12 and 8) shined brightest during that same ’76-’77 campaign, playing all 80 games and scoring 11 goals, two of them shorthanded.

Lofthouse (#11, 27, 20 and 8) had 13 goals in ’77-’78, following that up with 15 goals in ’78-’79.

The Google Machine also reveals a FIFTH number worn by Lofthouse, a supposedly game-worn number 28 sweater (at left). But it’s not listed by the official Capitals website, or hockey-reference.com. So that's mysterious.

No Cap beats Nelson Burton, though, for speediest sweater switches. Although playing just eight NHL games over two seasons, Nelson wore three numbers: 12, 27 and 8.

His most cherished number is 1 – the lone goal of his big-league career, scored against Tony Esposito, no less, in a 2-2 tie with Chicago in 1977.

These four players spent the bulk of their careers in the minors, working for a shot at The Show. Patey certainly spoke for all of them, quoted by greatesthockeylegends.com:
"I've been up and down. Up is better.”

Irregulars

Say, if you're the kind of collector who's on the lookout for oddities - like if you get all tingly when you see the famous old stamp with the upside down biplane - then have we got a couple of authentic hockey sweaters for you!

Our first item was made for Robert Picard, Caps defenseman from 1977-80.

We can guarantee that his 1978 NHL All-Star Game sweater has no game-worn marks or tears. We confidently make this claim because Picard wasn't named as an All-Star in 1978. The Capitals' rep for the game in Buffalo that year was Bob Sirois.

This site that sold the sweater, classicauctions.net, offered this explanation: "The NHL at times, would do up jerseys for players who were on 'standby' because of injuries to players originally selected to play in the All-Star game."

For the record, Picard would later legitimately be a Capitals All-Star, named to the team for the 1980 game.

The same site also showcased the sweater to the left, worn (we hope briefly) by Ron Lalonde, a center with the Capitals from 1974-79.

Notice that we wrote "Lalonde", not "Lalonnde" with an extra "n", as spelled on the nameplate. As if the Caps of the '70's didn't suffer enough indignities.

Happily, Lalonde is a rare positive trivia answer from the Capitals inaugural season. In a March, 1975 game against the Red Wings, he scored the team's first-ever hat trick.

Everything Old Is New Again

For their first two seasons, the Capitals sometimes wore red pants during home games (when the blue ones were in the wash?).

35 years after last donning them in game action, Yvon Labre modeled the retro uniform the Capitals used for the 2011 Winter Classic outdoor game in Pittsburgh.

The Caps also "Rocked The Retro" for a home game later that season.

Cue the lyrics from a song featured in the 1979 film, "All That Jazz."

"Don't throw the past away
You might need it some rainy day
Dreams can come true again
When everything old is new again."

White Wasn't Right

Everyone knows you don't wear white pants after Labor Day. Everyone, that is, except the 1974 Capitals.

No discussion of the team's uniform would be complete without mentioning the original road outfit, modeled here by Tommy Williams.

For some reason, baseball and football teams can get away with white pants. Not so for hockey players. Whether it's the different material, the moisture from the ice, the perspiration, or all of the above, white hockey pants just don't stay white. And that can be embarrassing. That's why they were abandoned midway through their first season of use.

For more on the look that makes regular appearances on lists of all-time worst sports uniforms, read the first entry on the "Strange But True" page.