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The best and worst draft classes of the 1970s

By Scott Esposito

Don Maloney of the New York Rangers (Photo by Bruce Bennett Studios via Getty Images Studios/Getty Images)
Don Maloney of the New York Rangers (Photo by Bruce Bennett Studios via Getty Images Studios/Getty Images) /
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Ron Duguay of the New York Rangers (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images)
Ron Duguay of the New York Rangers (Photo by Jim McIsaac/Getty Images) /

Worst: Class of 1977

Standouts

Lucien Deblois (1st round, 8th overall, forward)

Ron Duguay (1st round, 13th overall, forward)

Analysis

DeBlois and Duguay gave the Rangers talented and depth up front.  The forward the Islanders picked at No. 15 gave Long Island a dynasty.

Duguay played well in New York, posting 340 points (164 goals) in 499 games and joining some teammates in a commercial for Sasson jeans. DeBlois? Not so much. A top-10 draft pick needs to do better than the 136 points (57 goals) he gave the Rangers in 326 games. They did use him as part of the package to obtain defenseman Barry Beck from Colorado.

In all, the pair combined for NHL totals of 523 goals and 1,145 points in 1,857 games.

By contrast, Mike Bossy, taken at No. 15, led the Rangers’ blood rivals to four Stanley Cup titles with 1,126 points.  In 10 seasons with the Islanders, he had nine seasons with at least 51 goals, including five years with 60 goals or more.

Bossy had seven seasons with 100 points or better (he had 92, 91 and 75 in the other three). He led the NHL in goals in 1979 and 1981, with 69 and 68, respectively.

The second round wasn’t any better for the Rangers, who took forward Mike Keating with the 26th overall pick.  He played one game in the NHL.

Seven picks later, the Islanders got rough-and-tumble forward John Tonelli, while the Montreal Canadiens took defenseman Rod Langway, who spent the majority of his Hall of Fame career with the Washington Capitals.

The Rangers used the 44th overall pick on goalie Steve Baker who posted a pedestrian 20-20-11 record, 3.71 goals-against average, and .872 save percentage in 57 games across four seasons in New York.

With the 62nd overall selection, the Rangers took Mario Marois. The defenseman had a respectable NHL career, finishing with 433 points (76 goals) and 1,746 penalty minutes in 956 games.

Unfortunately for the Rangers, Marois’ best seasons were with the Quebec Nordiques and Winnipeg Jets.  For the Blueshirts, he had 67 points (15 goals) and 356 penalty minutes in 166 games.

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