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Posted

If the NHL would have had a Memorandum of Understanding with the JIHL back then, Taro would not have returned to the Tokyo Katanas when the Sabres refused to renegotiate his contract. Another dark moment in Buffalo Sports History.

Posted

THE LEGEND OF TARO TSUJIMOTO

You may not have heard of him… Then again, who has?

 

He was drafted in 1974, 183rd overall, by the Buffalo Sabres, but never made it to the NHL.

 

Then again, he never had a chance.

 

Because it wasn’t his talent that prevented Taro Tsujimoto from breaking into the League – it was simply the fact that he never existed.

 

Courtesy of George ‘Punch’ Imlach, the first player selected from the Japanese Ice Hockey League lives on as one of the most peculiar storylines to ever emerge from the NHL draft:

Posted

This story is getting old.

 

There, there. It's a nice day.

How about a liverwurst and mustard sandwich with a plate of pickles followed by a nap in the backyard recliner?

Go on back. I'll bring it out for you.

 

Thataboy. There, there. That's better.

Posted

Edith and Josephine want to you to take them to the dance hall in the Hudson later.

 

They are a little too fast for me. They like all that loud foreign music that these kids like today; that Herb Alpert and Bert Kaempfert for starters, not a good influence.

Posted

There, there. It's a nice day.

How about a liverwurst and mustard sandwich with a plate of pickles followed by a nap in the backyard recliner?

Go on back. I'll bring it out for you.

 

Thataboy. There, there. That's better.

 

I don't like this kid Wieland, that's all. He's got his girl using that newfangled mimeograph machine all day. I don't like it! No sir!

Posted

I don't like this kid Wieland, that's all. He's got his girl using that newfangled mimeograph machine all day. I don't like it! No sir!

 

Those mimeograph machines break all of the time! What would happen if it broke near a deadline!?

Posted

I don't like this kid Wieland, that's all. He's got his girl using that newfangled mimeograph machine all day. I don't like it! No sir!

 

He's a nice lad at heart. I promise. He might hide your 8-track tapes for giggles, but he aint going to steal them or nothing.

Posted

A player that is rumored to be non-existant had the same offensive production as a player we're paying 1.3 a year for 6(?) years...Ville Leino eat your heart out

 

 

And to anybody that disputes his existence I have proof right here :bag: He posts rather frequently

Posted

I was watching a TV feature on the Taro Tsujimoto deal that Imlach and Co. cooked up and yes it's part of Sabre lore and it was a cute and clever way to pull the wool over the NHL's eyes on a cumbersome draft process. But there was a footnote to this light-hearted attempt at hockey humor that enraged me...I never knew that two Stanley Cup winners (Dave Lumley - 2 with Edmonton and Stefan Persson, 4 with the Islanders) were drafted after Tsujimoto, a fictional character, was taken by the Sabres.

 

So the Sabres squandered a draft pick for a joke...The club has an unfortunate history of soft-headed stupidity that I hope comes to an end with Tim Murray, who I feel is the hard-headed antidote to all that ails us as an organization.

 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Taro_Tsujimoto

Posted

Most teams just didn't draft NCAA players or Swedes in the 70s. There was so much confusion with the WHA that you weren't sure if even your first round picks would show up to camp. fwiw I think that draft went another 14 rounds. The Sabres and most teams were simply done. The draft basically went until teams stopped picking. It could have gone 50 rounds.

Posted

Most teams just didn't draft NCAA players or Swedes in the 70s. There was so much confusion with the WHA that you weren't sure if even your first round picks would show up to camp. fwiw I think that draft went another 14 rounds. The Sabres and most teams were simply done. The draft basically went until teams stopped picking. It could have gone 50 rounds.

The Sabres weren't done. They took Bob Geoffrion 13 picks later in the next round.

 

Always hoped somebody'd interview him and get his thoughts on being picked AFTER the imaginary guy. Talk about Mr. Irrelevant.

Posted

With the 40 year anniversary of the pick, the Sabres should really consider retiring his number (74) and putting a banner up at the arena. It's a great story from the teams history and should be honored as such.

Posted

With the 40 year anniversary of the pick, the Sabres should really consider retiring his number (74) and putting a banner up at the arena. It's a great story from the teams history and should be honored as such.

 

Great idea. We've retired worse candidates. Not really — cheap shot. I think I suggested a while back that the Sabres even hire a Japanese actor (or one of the Tsujimotos in the Buffalo area) to come onto the ice, make a few comments etc.

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