Schoenfeld Gets Last Laugh With Job Coaching Capitals

The hiring of Jim Schoenfeld as coach of the Washington Capitals last week brings to mind his first brush with national fame.

It was May 8, 1988, and Schoenfeld was coaching the New Jersey Devils in a playoff game against the Boston Bruins. The Bruins won, 6-1, and Schoenfeld believed that the officiating had something to do with it.

He confronted referee Don Koharski in the hallway and yelled, “Have another doughnut, you fat pig.” Koharski responded by saying, “You won’t work in this league again.”

The NHL responded by suspending Schoenfeld. He responded by getting an injunction that would allow him behind the bench. The referees responded by boycotting the next game. Amateur officials were used.

Team player: Kevin McHale’s No. 32 was retired at Boston Garden on Sunday at halftime of the game between the Celtics and the Phoenix Suns. McHale’s style of play seemed out of place in the era of unselfish players such as Larry Bird and Magic Johnson.

Wrote Michael Arace of the Hartford Courant: “In this setting, Kevin McHale played out his career. Kevin McHale, who never met a pass he didn’t like--as long as he was on the receiving end. Kevin McHale, who never met a shot he didn’t like--as long as he was on the shooting end.”

Trivia time: How many times has Jack Nicklaus won the Vardon Trophy, given to the PGA Tour player with the lowest scoring average?

More McHale: The retirement of McHale’s jersey brings to mind that he was indirectly involved in one of the biggest swindles ever perpetrated by Red Auerbach. In 1980, Boston sent its top draft choice to Golden State for Robert Parish and the No. 3 pick. Golden State used that pick to take Joe Barry Carroll, whose career was unmemorable. The Celtics used the No. 3 pick to take McHale.

Religiously correct: The Catholic aura of Notre Dame is apparent from the grotto to Touchdown Jesus overlooking the football field. But Irish football is nondenominational. Last week, Gus Ornstein from Tenafly, N.J., said he would attend Notre Dame, where he would be its first Jewish quarterback.

“Religion didn’t play a part in my decision,” Ornstein told Taylor Bell of the Chicago Sun-Times. “I’m a reform Jew. I observe Jewish holidays. They said there would be no problem with a Jewish kid on campus. They made me feel very welcome.”

Bad feeling: So what does it feel like to lose to the Clippers? Shaun Powell of Newsday described the Seattle locker room after the SuperSonics lost to the Clippers last week: “Inside the team’s Coliseum locker room, things were about as lively as a mausoleum. The boom box sitting catty-corner to Shawn Kemp’s cubicle, starved for a cassette tape. Michael Cage shuffled by and uncharacteristically said nothing. Other players whispered their responses to the mini-cams and note pads. Only the canary-yellow blazer hanging in Gary Payton’s locker spoke loudly.”

Add Clippers: In that game, Clipper Ron Harper made 15 of 21 shots and Seattle’s Nate McMillan had this to say: “Michael Jordan is gone. He’s the only guy who should be capable of doing that to us.”

Stranger than fiction: Phil Jackman of the Baltimore Sun, predicting the CBS promotions of its coverage of the Winter Olympics: “. . . look to CBS to go to commercial for nine days with the tease. . . . ‘And coming up after this break will be the Nancy Kerrigan story.’ ”

Trivia answer: None.

Quotebook: New Fox football commentator John Madden, on all the hype surrounding his leaving CBS: “If I got caught up in that stuff about myself, I wouldn’t like myself.”