Historical Hockey and Sports Memorabilia Auction April 2024
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 4/30/2024
Enjoying a complete lifetime in hockey, Max McNab would do it all during his career, everything from winning a Stanley Cup as a player in the National Hockey League to serving as Vice President of Hockey Operations with the New Jersey Devils. Also having served as a long-time coach in the old Western Hockey League as well as General Manager of the NHL's Washington Capitals and New Jersey Devils along with Team Canada at the 1982 IIHF World Championships, offered here is this collection of memorabilia from McNab's personal collection revolving around the 1976 apan Series Coca-Cola Bottler's Cup.
Taking place in April 1976 after the conclusion of the 1975-76 regular season, the Coca-Cola Bottlers’ Cup, a four-game exhibition series was played in Japan to drum up interest in hockey in Japan. For the two (2) teams that would take part, the NHL selected the Washington Capitals and the Kansas City Scouts as the participants, as it was unlikely that either team would make the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the 1975-76 season. Both teams were second-year expansion teams and had been the two worst teams in the NHL for the 1974-75 season. The Scouts went 15-54-11 and finished in last place in the Smythe Division. The Caps went 8-67-5 and finished in last place in the Norris Division, a record that still stands as an NHL-worst record. With two (2) games taking place in Tokyo and two (2) games taking place in Sapporo between April 14th and April 18th, the Capitals would claim the series over the Scouts by a record of 3 games to 1 with the contests marking the final four (4) games for the Scouts before moving to Colorado and becoming the Rockies.
Including a commemorative award that stands 12" tall and has a diameter of roughly 7 1/4", the white porcelain piece has been hand painted with "Tea Cup Playoffs 1976" at the top as well as "Capitals 3 - Scouts 1" and the names of the host cities and all the Capitals staff and players. Remaining in excellent condition overall, it is worth noting that some light wear is observed to the hand painted notations on the front including some scratching and paint flaking. Of note, this is not the actual trophy that was presented to the team, rather a commemorative award. Additionally, accompanying the award is a burlap 1976 calendar that lists the months as well as the days and has the logos of all the NHL's teams around the edge. Displaying the NHL and Gerry Cosby logos at the bottom as well as "1976 National Hockey League", the piece is in excellent condition and measures roughly 29" x 17". Lastly, also included are a pair of tie clips and a souvenir puck from the event that are both in excellent condition overall though the logo on the puck does show moderate-to-heavy toning. A McNab Family LOA will accompany.
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