 With a combined 30 teams between the NHL and the World Hockey Association (WHA), the available talent was stretched thin.The Capitals had few players with professional experience and were at a disadvantage against the long-standing teams that were stocked with veteran players.Like the other three teams who joined the league during the WHA era—the Scouts (later the Colorado Rockies and now the New Jersey Devils), Atlanta Flames (now playing in Calgary), and New York Islanders—the Capitals did not factor the survival of the rival league into their plans.