Obscure goals or games that you remember from long ago

[SnowblindNYR]

OK guys, going to drop a real oldie on you.

Sunday, Oct. 23, 1967 at the old MSG. Rangers vs. Toronto and I'm sitting in the end balcony in a seat that I purchased with a school discount ("G.O.") for a think 75 cents.

Rangers had played in Toronto the night before (lots of home and home in those days) and had tied 4-4. Ranger goalie situation was unsettled with two young goalies, Eddie Giacomin and Caesar Maniago battling for the job. Maniago had started on Saturday but had asked out of the game in the 2nd period because of injury. Coach/GM Emile Francis was not happy as he didn't think the injury was all the serious.

Giacomin got the start on Sunday. Third period, score 0-0. Red Berenson, one of the Rangers extra forwards (teams only dressed 11 forwards and 5 D in those days and yes the same guy who is the college coach) cleanly wins the faceoff and gets it back to Dman Wayne Hillman who blasts the puck beyond Leaf HOF goalie Johnny Bower. Rangers win 1-0.

First shutout of Giacomin's career and the launching point for this career. From that point on, the #1 job is his. Rangers get hot and go on to make the playoffs for the first time since 61-62.

Can still see the puck hitting the twine.

Dude, I feel old on this board with these kids who were preteens when we signed Drury. I don't know how you do it.

 

[NHRangerfan]

Not really obscure, but I was little and I'll never forget the first game of the 1990 playoffs vs. the Islanders. The crowd was insane a half hour before the players even came out for warmups.

Bernie Nicholls scores the first goal and I could not believe how much louder the already loud building became. Richter stops Randy Wood on a penalty shot. Then James Patrick almost kills Fat Lafontaine with a shoulder check to the head, and of course the face off at the end of the game when Vukota and Baumgartner are chasing Rangers down the ice because Roger Neilson did not send his players to the faceoff.

So much emotion! It was one of my first games ever (the first one I remember specifics of) and I thought all games were like that!

That was typical Al Arbour bush league crap...Vukota wailing on Bloomberg who had said he would never fight.

 

[E-Train]

Not really obscure, but I was little and I'll never forget the first game of the 1990 playoffs vs. the Islanders. The crowd was insane a half hour before the players even came out for warmups.

Bernie Nicholls scores the first goal and I could not believe how much louder the already loud building became. Richter stops Randy Wood on a penalty shot. Then James Patrick almost kills Fat Lafontaine with a shoulder check to the head, and of course the face off at the end of the game when Vukota and Baumgartner are chasing Rangers down the ice because Roger Neilson did not send his players to the faceoff.

So much emotion! It was one of my first games ever (the first one I remember specifics of) and I thought all games were like that!

Of course, the only game I went to in that series was the game 3, 2 OT loss on a school night. Still was great to knock them out in 5. April 9, 1990.

 

[E-Train]

OK guys, going to drop a real oldie on you.

Sunday, Oct. 23, 1967 at the old MSG. Rangers vs. Toronto and I'm sitting in the end balcony in a seat that I purchased with a school discount ("G.O.") for a think 75 cents.

Rangers had played in Toronto the night before (lots of home and home in those days) and had tied 4-4. Ranger goalie situation was unsettled with two young goalies, Eddie Giacomin and Caesar Maniago battling for the job. Maniago had started on Saturday but had asked out of the game in the 2nd period because of injury. Coach/GM Emile Francis was not happy as he didn't think the injury was all the serious.

Giacomin got the start on Sunday. Third period, score 0-0. Red Berenson, one of the Rangers extra forwards (teams only dressed 11 forwards and 5 D in those days and yes the same guy who is the college coach) cleanly wins the faceoff and gets it back to Dman Wayne Hillman who blasts the puck beyond Leaf HOF goalie Johnny Bower. Rangers win 1-0.

First shutout of Giacomin's career and the launching point for this career. From that point on, the #1 job is his. Rangers get hot and go on to make the playoffs for the first time since 61-62.

Can still see the puck hitting the twine.

Great stuff. Love hearing about the pre-80s Rangers. Didn't start following until the '81 playoffs.

 

[Florida Ranger]

I was at these games...

2006-2007 opening night against the Capitals. Jagr was coming off his shoulder injury from the playoffs the year before and everyone was wondering if he was the same player. Then Jagr comes out and scores on the very first shift and his/team's first shot of the year. Shanahan scored two goals which were career goals 599 and 600.

In the same year, it was a rare bad year for the Flyers. Orr knocked out Fedoruk in the opening minutes and Lundqvist ended up shutting them out, 5-0.

In the next season opener against the Panthers, Rozsival scored on the first shot of the season. First game for Drury and Gomez as Rangers... Marc Staal's too. They were down 2-1 going into the third. When the second period ended, nothing but boo's...after chanting numerous "We want the Cup" chants... The Rangers were outshot 21-9 or something like that. I know the Rangers didn't even hit double digits in shots. Then they took off. I belive Prucha scored then a young Callahan within seconds of each other. The Rangers ended up winning 5-2.

Then in the 2008-09 home opener against the Blackhawks - Wade Redden's first game as a Ranger - he scores. Aaaaand it was all downhill from there for him. Rangers won 4-2.

 

[Appleyard]

Flyers fan in peace (I clicked on the Rangers instead of Flyers and this thread title sparked a memory... I usually never comment outside of Flyers area.)

A Rangers game I remember vividly is Rangers vs Montreal 2003... it was the last game of the season and on TV in europe... which was rare at the time.

The reason I remember it was for something that did not happen as opposed to something that did.

Lindros was held to 19 goals in the season (came in on 18 and scored one) after posting 20 every year up until then.

It was a sad moment for my 11 year old self and one of the only times I have willed the Rangers on!

I also remember Sandy McCarthy looking like he was an MVP that game!

 

[SwedeAmerican]

January 15th, 1989. My first game at MSG. Rangers down 3 goals twice to Pitts but come back and win 6-4. Leetch scored the first goal on a shorthanded breakaway. I remember the Garden going crazy when they came back. Anybody remember that one?

 

[SnowblindNYR]

I remember a 6-2 win against the Islanders in the 05-06 season when we quickly fell behind 2-0 in the first period and I think tied it before the end of the period and then scored 4 goals in the 3rd, including 1 by Poti.

 

[mrhockey193195]

Flyers fan in peace (I clicked on the Rangers instead of Flyers and this thread title sparked a memory... I usually never comment outside of Flyers area.)

A Rangers game I remember vividly is Rangers vs Montreal 2003... it was the last game of the season and on TV in europe... which was rare at the time.

The reason I remember it was for something that did not happen as opposed to something that did.

Lindros was held to 19 goals in the season (came in on 18 and scored one) after posting 20 every year up until then.

It was a sad moment for my 11 year old self and one of the only times I have willed the Rangers on!

I also remember Sandy McCarthy looking like he was an MVP that game!

For me, the sadness of that season with regards to Lindros was him scoring 53 points in 81 games and not being a PPG player for the first time in his career. For whatever reason, I am extremely obsessed with the idea of a player having a PPG by the end of a year. It makes a big difference to me if a guy scores 81 points in 80 games versus 79 points in 80 games...don't ask why.

 

[Petemo]

I always bring this up but nobody ever seems to remember it.

It was Messier's last season I believe, and it was when Jan Hlavac was on that misssseerrably long cold streak, hitting posts and couldn't put one in to save his life. We're winning the game, and the other team's net is empty. Hlavac and Messier have basically a 2 on 0 on the empty net AND MESSIER DIDN'T PASS THE PUCK TO JAN. It was one of the most hilariously non-leader things I've ever seen. I felt SO bad for JH27.

 

[alkurtz]

Dude, I feel old on this board with these kids who were preteens when we signed Drury. I don't know how you do it.

Well, I was a young fan once also. That young fan is still inside of me.

Plus there's continuity to being a Ranger fan: from then to now almost feels seamless. I'm sure when I was at the old Garden for that game in 1967 there were older fans in the stands who had been to the very first game the Rangers had ever played. My Dad used to tell me about going to Ranger/NY Americans games in the early 30s. He took me to my first Ranger game (also against the Leafs) in 1961.

I took my two sons, both hardcore Ranger fans, to their first game in 1993. One of them is a regular poster on these boards and has even posted to this thread (not going to tell you who, our secret).

The game has changed and as a fan, you need to change with it. Kind of my philosophy with everything: you must embrace change. Life, and sports doesn't stand still. If you stand still, you get old in your thinking. To me, that's like death.

At the same time, to be a fan of an Original Six team means to embrace the traditions it has developed, to embrace its history. The Rangers have brought me a lot of grief and frustration but they have brought me more joy then anything else.

So give the young guys on the boards a break. They may not want to hear it, but one day they will be veteran fans too: hopefully passing on their knowledge of this team we all love.

 

[patnyrnyg]

I remember a 6-2 win against the Islanders in the 05-06 season when we quickly fell behind 2-0 in the first period and I think tied it before the end of the period and then scored 4 goals in the 3rd, including 1 by Poti.

I believe that was around Christmas. I remember watching it at my friend's parents house. He no longer lived in the area, was in town visiting his parents and my wife and I headed out there.

 

[duffpm1]

I remember being at a game that Sandy McCarthy went around a defender by passing to himself off the boards and going on a breakaway, he also got into a fight and i think ejected as well