Ranking the "Original Six"

In the race for most forgotten big four sports franchise of the past 50 years, I have to think the barons and the kansas city scouts are the leaders.

 

As a guy who has done a lot of digging through the NHL archives over the last two years I will add the Colorado Rockies to this list.

 

Do we count the Scouts and Rockies as two separate franchises?

 

Barons used to be the Seals.

 

Scouts and Rockies are now the Devils.

I know it's longer than 50 years, but I find NFL forgotten franchises to be quite interesting. The New York Bulldogs of '48, the New York Yanks of '49-51, which you often read about them when it's some team, such as the Rams, throwing 8 TD passes against them or something, and the '52 Dallas Texans, which had Hall of Famers Gino Marchetti and Art Donovan on them, but won just one game..

 

Ah, the texans. Even less remembered is they essentially relocated mid year to Hershey, pa. Never played a home game, but practiced there after owner lost money/ cotton bowl kicked them out.

 

At least they had Don Cherry.

 

NHL has loads of forgotten teams: Pittsburgh Hornets, Pittsburgh Pirates, Philadelphia Quakers, St. Louis Eagles, Hamilton Tigers....

 

Yeah, I could see Meloche topping the list. With all the rubber he saw in Oakland/Cleveland, it's a wonder he didn't become a basketcase. Pretty darn good goalie and I was happy to see him eventually play on some decent Minnesota and Pittsburgh teams.

IIRC, Meloche started his NHL career backing up Tony Esposito in Chicago.

EDIT: Actually, some of those North Stars teams were good. Lost to the Islanders in a Final.

 

For some reason as a kid, I was fascinated with the Seals/ Barons and I really think it had a lot to do with their uniforms.

On a list of the best to ever play for the Kansas City Scouts, off the top of my head, I would go with Gary Bergman at No. 1, Guy Charron second and Denis Herron third. I'd love to put my old friend Lynn Powis on the list but can't. Pretty sure the trade that sent him to Kansas City resulted in St. Louis getting a second-round draft pick that turned into Brian Sutter.

EDIT: Looked it up and Powis was actually traded to St. Louis with Kansas City's 1976 second rounder which the Blues used to select Sutter. In return, the Scouts got Craig Patrick (yes, that Craig Patrick) and Denis Dupere.

I still have a Topps card with Patrick wearing the gold and green of the California Golden Seals.

 

I had no idea Meloche has been the Pens' goalie coach for a number of years. He appeared in two games for the Hawks as a rookie in 1970-71.

Any list of great Scouts has to include Wilf Paiement.

 

Me neither. Recently? Meaning he's coaching Fleury?

Nice catch on Paiement, Huggy. I've got a Topps card of him wearing a Scouts jersey, thought it is prior to the second and final year in Kansas City. The Scouts ownership group always claimed the bidding war between it and the WHA for Paiement led to the budget problems right off the bat that ultimately resulted in the sale to the Vickers group in Denver.