sentences.text: Taro Tsujimoto is an imaginary ice hockey player that was legally drafted by the National Hockey League's Buffalo Sabres in the 11th round of the 1974 NHL Entry Draft.
sentences.text: Taro
sentences.text: Tsujimoto
sentences.text: is
sentences.text: an
sentences.text: imaginary
sentences.text: ice
sentences.text: hockey
sentences.text: player
sentences.text: that
sentences.text: was
sentences.text: legally
sentences.text: drafted
sentences.text: by
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: National
sentences.text: Hockey
sentences.text: League
sentences.text: 's
sentences.text: Buffalo
sentences.text: Sabres
sentences.text: in
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: 11th
sentences.text: round
sentences.text: of
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: 1974
sentences.text: NHL
sentences.text: Entry
sentences.text: Draft
sentences.text: .
sentences.text: The Sabres' General Manager at the time, Punch Imlach, was reportedly fed up with the slow drafting process via the telephone.
sentences.text: The
sentences.text: Sabres
sentences.text: '
sentences.text: General
sentences.text: Manager
sentences.text: at
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: time
sentences.text: ,
sentences.text: Punch
sentences.text: Imlach
sentences.text: ,
sentences.text: was
sentences.text: reportedly
sentences.text: fed
sentences.text: up
sentences.text: with
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: slow
sentences.text: drafting
sentences.text: process
sentences.text: via
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: telephone
sentences.text: .
sentences.text: He decided to have some fun at the expense of the league and President of 28 years, Clarence Campbell, and contacted public relations director Paul Wieland for the translation of Sabre in Japanese and a common Japanese name.
sentences.text: He
sentences.text: decided
sentences.text: to
sentences.text: have
sentences.text: some
sentences.text: fun
sentences.text: at
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: expense
sentences.text: of
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: league
sentences.text: and
sentences.text: President
sentences.text: of
sentences.text: 28
sentences.text: years
sentences.text: ,
sentences.text: Clarence
sentences.text: Campbell
sentences.text: ,
sentences.text: and
sentences.text: contacted
sentences.text: public
sentences.text: relations
sentences.text: director
sentences.text: Paul
sentences.text: Wieland
sentences.text: for
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: translation
sentences.text: of
sentences.text: Sabre
sentences.text: in
sentences.text: Japanese
sentences.text: and
sentences.text: a
sentences.text: common
sentences.text: Japanese
sentences.text: name
sentences.text: .
sentences.text: When the 11th round surfaced, Imlach chose to select star center Taro Tsujimoto of the Tokyo Katanas, a team from the Japanese Hockey League.
sentences.text: When
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: 11th
sentences.text: round
sentences.text: surfaced
sentences.text: ,
sentences.text: Imlach
sentences.text: chose
sentences.text: to
sentences.text: select
sentences.text: star
sentences.text: center
sentences.text: Taro
sentences.text: Tsujimoto
sentences.text: of
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: Tokyo
sentences.text: Katanas
sentences.text: ,
sentences.text: a
sentences.text: team
sentences.text: from
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: Japanese
sentences.text: Hockey
sentences.text: League
sentences.text: .
sentences.text: The NHL made the pick official, and so it was reported by all major media outlets including reputable magazine The Hockey News.
sentences.text: The
sentences.text: NHL
sentences.text: made
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: pick
sentences.text: official
sentences.text: ,
sentences.text: and
sentences.text: so
sentences.text: it
sentences.text: was
sentences.text: reported
sentences.text: by
sentences.text: all
sentences.text: major
sentences.text: media
sentences.text: outlets
sentences.text: including
sentences.text: reputable
sentences.text: magazine
sentences.text: The
sentences.text: Hockey
sentences.text: News
sentences.text: .
sentences.text: Imlach did not clear the air about the fake draft pick until weeks later.
sentences.text: Imlach
sentences.text: did
sentences.text: not
sentences.text: clear
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: air
sentences.text: about
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: fake
sentences.text: draft
sentences.text: pick
sentences.text: until
sentences.text: weeks
sentences.text: later
sentences.text: .
sentences.text: He admitted that he had made up Taro Tsujimoto, based on a name he found in a Buffalo-area phone book, and the team name Tokyo Katanas translated loosely into English as Tokyo Sabres.
sentences.text: He
sentences.text: admitted
sentences.text: that
sentences.text: he
sentences.text: had
sentences.text: made
sentences.text: up
sentences.text: Taro
sentences.text: Tsujimoto
sentences.text: ,
sentences.text: based
sentences.text: on
sentences.text: a
sentences.text: name
sentences.text: he
sentences.text: found
sentences.text: in
sentences.text: a
sentences.text: Buffalo-area
sentences.text: phone
sentences.text: book
sentences.text: ,
sentences.text: and
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: team
sentences.text: name
sentences.text: Tokyo
sentences.text: Katanas
sentences.text: translated
sentences.text: loosely
sentences.text: into
sentences.text: English
sentences.text: as
sentences.text: Tokyo
sentences.text: Sabres
sentences.text: .
sentences.text: The NHL would eventually change the pick to an " invalid claim " for its official record-keeping purposes (Campbell not finding it nearly as funny as Imlach), but this was after Tsujimoto's name had appeared in several of NHL Guide and Record Books.
sentences.text: The
sentences.text: NHL
sentences.text: would
sentences.text: eventually
sentences.text: change
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: pick
sentences.text: to
sentences.text: an
sentences.text: "
sentences.text: invalid
sentences.text: claim
sentences.text: "
sentences.text: for
sentences.text: its
sentences.text: official
sentences.text: record-keeping
sentences.text: purposes
sentences.text: (
sentences.text: Campbell
sentences.text: not
sentences.text: finding
sentences.text: it
sentences.text: nearly
sentences.text: as
sentences.text: funny
sentences.text: as
sentences.text: Imlach
sentences.text: )
sentences.text: ,
sentences.text: but
sentences.text: this
sentences.text: was
sentences.text: after
sentences.text: Tsujimoto
sentences.text: 's
sentences.text: name
sentences.text: had
sentences.text: appeared
sentences.text: in
sentences.text: several
sentences.text: of
sentences.text: NHL
sentences.text: Guide
sentences.text: and
sentences.text: Record
sentences.text: Books
sentences.text: .
sentences.text: Tsujimoto is still listed among Sabres' draft picks in the Sabres media guide.
sentences.text: Tsujimoto
sentences.text: is
sentences.text: still
sentences.text: listed
sentences.text: among
sentences.text: Sabres
sentences.text: '
sentences.text: draft
sentences.text: picks
sentences.text: in
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: Sabres
sentences.text: media
sentences.text: guide
sentences.text: .
sentences.text: Taro quickly became an inside joke for Sabres' fans and staffers.
sentences.text: Taro
sentences.text: quickly
sentences.text: became
sentences.text: an
sentences.text: inside
sentences.text: joke
sentences.text: for
sentences.text: Sabres
sentences.text: '
sentences.text: fans
sentences.text: and
sentences.text: staffers
sentences.text: .
sentences.text: For years after the pick, fans would chant " We Want Taro " when games at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium got one-sided.
sentences.text: For
sentences.text: years
sentences.text: after
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: pick
sentences.text: ,
sentences.text: fans
sentences.text: would
sentences.text: chant
sentences.text: "
sentences.text: We
sentences.text: Want
sentences.text: Taro
sentences.text: "
sentences.text: when
sentences.text: games
sentences.text: at
sentences.text: the
sentences.text: Buffalo
sentences.text: Memorial
sentences.text: Auditorium
sentences.text: got
sentences.text: one-sided
sentences.text: .
text: Taro Tsujimoto is an imaginary ice hockey player that was legally drafted by the National Hockey League's Buffalo Sabres in the 11th round of the 1974 NHL Entry Draft. The Sabres' General Manager at the time, Punch Imlach, was reportedly fed up with the slow drafting process via the telephone. He decided to have some fun at the expense of the league and President of 28 years, Clarence Campbell, and contacted public relations director Paul Wieland for the translation of Sabre in Japanese and a common Japanese name. When the 11th round surfaced, Imlach chose to select star center Taro Tsujimoto of the Tokyo Katanas, a team from the Japanese Hockey League. The NHL made the pick official, and so it was reported by all major media outlets including reputable magazine The Hockey News. Imlach did not clear the air about the fake draft pick until weeks later. He admitted that he had made up Taro Tsujimoto, based on a name he found in a Buffalo-area phone book, and the team name Tokyo Katanas translated loosely into English as Tokyo Sabres. The NHL would eventually change the pick to an " invalid claim " for its official record-keeping purposes (Campbell not finding it nearly as funny as Imlach), but this was after Tsujimoto's name had appeared in several of NHL Guide and Record Books. Tsujimoto is still listed among Sabres' draft picks in the Sabres media guide. Taro quickly became an inside joke for Sabres' fans and staffers. For years after the pick, fans would chant " We Want Taro " when games at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium got one-sided.