#1 Brian Leetch and Jeff Beukeboom
The greatest pairing in Rangers history is an obvious one. It’s the only pair on this list to win a Stanley Cup and the duo played a crucial role in winning that championship.
Brian Leetch was the best player to ever wear a Rangers jersey and is one of the greatest American born players in NHL history. He was a two-time Norris Trophy winner and a five-time first or second team all star. He won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the best top playoff performer in 1994. While Leetch was a superstar, he was able to accomplish these feats because he had Jeff Beukeboom as his partner.
The duo played together for eight seasons from 1991 to 1999. Beukeboom was a towering 6’5″, 230 pound player who threw massive hits and looked out for his smaller partner. Five inches taller than Leetch, Beukeboom made sure that no one took liberties with the Rangers’ best player, peaking with 220 penalty minutes in 1995-96.
Beukeboom was sucker punched by Matt Johnson of the Los Angeles Kings in a 1998 game and that started a series of concussion related injuries that forced him to retire after the 1999 season when he was only 33 years old. Johnson was suspended 12 games for a punch that ended Beukeboom’s career.
After Beukeboom’s retirement, Leetch played with a round robin of defense partners, but no one was as effective a mate as Beukeboom. It was a joy to see the pair on the ice together again this weekend at the Rangers Alumni Classic.
What’s ahead?
Defense pairings become a catchphrase. The ones that live on in Ranger lore are “Park and Rolfe” or “McDonagh and Girardi” or “Leetch and Beukeboom.” The Rangers have to hope that in their pipeline they have a future catchphrase in “Hajek and Trouba” or “Fox and Lindgren” or maybe it will be “Miller and Keane” or “Robertson and Lundkvist.” We shall see.
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