Caputo, of Carnegie, Pa., is now 76. Back in 1984 he was a union representative for about two dozen members of the Teamsters Local 249. All were employees of the Firefighter Sales and Service Co. in Sharpsburg, Pa. Goodenow was the boss of that company.The time came to negotiate a new contact. Goodenow and Caputo met but accomplished little else.
"Bob was an obstructionist on every sentence," Caputo recalled. "He made me livid because I could see immediately that his sole purpose was to make sure no contract was enacted. He was successful [11 months later] because those guys couldn't hold out for long."
Caputo is livid once again, this time because Goodenow sits on the opposite side of a labor showdown.
"I look at the guy as an opportunist," Caputo said.
Told of Caputo's comments, Goodenow, in a phone interview last week, said: "He can say that. I was hired to do a job fairly. I still am. In that way I'm totally focused."
Goodenow won that battle, then joined the hockey agent business. By 1990, he had assembled a stable of about 20 clients, including Bob Mason, now the Wild goalie coach. Goodenow, then as now, was always about getting the best deal, a lesson Mason learned in the 1987 offseason.
Goodenow had Mason fly in to Detroit on the eve of the 1987 draft. Mason was a free agent, and Goodenow wanted to mediate any contact between teams and Mason. The goalie arrived, and Goodenow led him to a hotel room.
"He just said, 'Stay here, buy some beer,' " Mason said.
Goodenow came back intermittently holding a napkin with an offer scrawled on it. Four teams made bids, including Mason's most recent team, the Washington Capitals, Mason said. Mason instead signed with the Chicago Blackhawks.
The following day, to Mason's dismay, the Blackhawks signed college goalie Ed Belfour and picked goaltender Jimmy Waite eighth overall. Belfour's agent was none other than Goodenow.
"Goodenow kept that from me," Mason said. "He should have let me know. ... Knowing that, I might have stayed [with Washington]."