The 1979 New York Rangers: Ooh, la, la — so close!

Boston had “The Big Bad Bruins”. Philadelphia boasted “The Broad Street Bullies”. Montreal produced the latest dynasty in its storied history. Together in the 1970s, they played Keep Away with the Stanley Cup, shutting out the competition, including some strong New York Rangers teams.

The memory of those Bruins, Flyers and Canadiens championship clubs might make it easy to forget that the New York Rangers had some potent clubs that came very close to winning it all. In the first two parts of our series on great Rangers squads that almost won hockey’s Holy Grail we looked at the powerhouse teams of the early 1970s.

Part three of our series focused on the 1950 Rangers, who had a losing season, but shocked the hockey world in the playoffs, upsetting Montreal and taking the powerhouse Detroit Red Wings to a seventh game in the Finals.

Which brings us to part four of our series and the 1978-79 Rangers, who like their 1950 brethren, made an unexpected run to the Finals.

The surprise wasn’t because the Blueshirts lacked talent. They didn’t. In fact, with a 40-29-11 record and 91 points, they were the fifth Rangers team of the decade to win at least 40 games. This group wasn’t superior to their contemporaries of the early-1970s, but they  didn’t win by accident, either.

The problem for the Rangers that season was bad timing. To win the Cup, they had the  misfortune of having to go through one team on the verge of becoming a dynasty, and another approaching the end of one.

The NHL at the time had 17 teams split into four divisions, two apiece for the Campbell and Wales conferences. The Rangers were in the Patrick Division of the Campbell Conference with the Flyers, New York Islanders and Atlanta Flames.

The Patrick Division was by far the strongest in the NHL in 1978-79.

How strong? Well, as good as the Rangers were, they still finished behind the New York Islanders (51-15-14, 116 points) and the Flyers (40-25-15, 95 points). Even last-place Atlanta (41-31-8, 90 points) made the playoffs.

Thus, the Rangers sweep of the mediocre Los Angeles Kings in the best-of-three preliminary round barely raised any eyebrows.

In the quarterfinals against the Flyers, the Rangers dropped the opener, but then turned heads by winning four straight to eliminate their hated rivals.

The Blueshirts’ encore in the semifinals would open even more eyes.

A welcomed (and desperately needed) reprieve

The Rangers didn’t win the Stanley Cup in the 1970s, but if nothing else the decade was a nice respite for the team and its fans. By the time 1972 rolled around, the Blueshirts hadn’t appeared in the Finals in 32 years and missed the playoffs 18 times.

The foundation for the Rangers’ turnaround began in the mid-1960s under the direction of general manager and coach Emile “The Cat” Francis. His forward thinking led to a revamped minor league system, dedicated on-ice structure, and opportunities for youngsters Jean Ratelle and Rod Gilbert.

Francis’ work ethic and hockey sense paid off for the Broadway Blues.

The 1971 team earned 109 points, becoming the first in franchise history to post 100 points in a season since the NHL moved to a 70-game format in 1950. They lost to the Chicago Blackhawks in the semifinals in seven games as Bobby Hull potted the winners in Games Five and Seven.

The 1972 team posted 48 wins, 109 points, and advanced to the Finals before losing in six games to Bobby Orr’s Bruins. The following season, the Rangers earned 47 victories and 102 points, giving New York three straight 100-plus point seasons, still a franchise-best.

The Rangers notched a 40-24-14 record for 94 points in 1974, giving the franchise its fourth consecutive season with at least 40 wins.

The only other Rangers teams to duplicate that feat were those of 2006 through 2009, although the Blueshirts squads of 2011 through 2017 likely would’ve established a new franchise benchmark if not a lockout-shortened schedule of 48 games in 2013.

The Rangers had a winning record in 1974-75 but were upset by the upstart Islanders in the preliminary round. Francis stepped down after that series and the Blueshirts fell off, posting three straight losing seasons under as many coaches.

The bad times wouldn’t last long, however.

“Murder”

Right wing Don Murdoch made the Rangers in 1976 as a 20-year-old after tearing up Canadian juniors with 170 goals, 306 points and 285 penalty minutes in just two seasons with the Western Hockey League’s Medicine Hat Tigers.

Chosen sixth overall by New York in the 1976 Amateur Draft, the British Columbia native made a spectacular debut on Broadway, scoring twice in his first NHL match to fuel a 6-5 win over the Minnesota North Stars on October 6, 1976 at Madison Square Garden.

Less than a week later in Minnesota, he recorded a team-record five goals in a 10-4 win over the North Stars. (Only two other Blueshirts have scored five times in one game: Mika Zibanejad last March in a 6-5 overtime conquest of the Washington Capitals and Mark Pavelich in 1983 in an 11-4 victory over the Hartford Whalers.)

An all-star in his first NHL season, Murdoch used his speed to dust flatfooted defensemen and sneaky shot to beat goalies. He scored a franchise rookie record 32 goals, and that total almost certainly would’ve been higher if he wasn’t limited to just 59 games due to a season-ending injury suffered in February.

Murdoch was killing opponents with his skating and scoring, and thus earned the nickname “Murder”. However, with the benefit of hindsight, “Flash” might’ve been a more appropriate moniker, for his NHL career would last only five years beyond his rookie season.

Some believe his downward spiral started on Valentine’s Day of his rookie campaign, when he tore an ankle tendon in practice and required multiple surgeries to correct. Others say his penchant for partying and enjoying the nightlife of New York City was his downfall.

There’s probably truth in both.

Murdoch was arrested in August 1977 at Pearson Airport in Toronto when customs agents found more than four grams of cocaine in his sock. The case was tied up in courts for about a year, so Murdoch played in 1977-78, scoring 27 goals.

However, after receiving a suspended sentence and fine from a Brantford, Ontario court, Murdoch was suspended by NHL President John Ziegler suspended for the entire 1978-79 season for substance abuse (which Murdoch later admitted included a drinking problem).

On January 3, 1979, the ban was lifted on appeal after 40 games, allowing Murdoch to play in the Rangers’ final 40 matches and all playoff contests.

The right winger put up 15 goals and 22 assists for 37 points in the Rangers’ final 40 matches, then notched seven markers and five helpers in 18 playoff contests that spring.

The following season, Murdoch scored 23 goals in 56 games for the Rangers before getting traded to Edmonton in March 1980 for right wing Cam Connor and the Oilers’ third-round choice in the 1981 entry draft.

After scoring 15 goals in 50 games for Edmonton (including 40 contests in 1980-81), Murdoch’s rights were traded to Detroit for the 1981-82 season. He scored nine times in 49 matches for the Red Wings and never played another NHL game.

Nobody knows how long or productive Murdoch’s career might’ve been without interference from injuries and his personal demons. What is certain is that a talented young player’s career was over before his 26th birthday. Gone in a flash.

Espo and the two Dons

According to reports at the time, Esposito believed Shero was trying to “bury” him by putting Murdoch and rookie Don Maloney on his line midway through the season.  He had a point.  Maloney had spent the first half of the season in the AHL and Murdoch had been sitting out his drug suspension.

Team brass backed Shero and agreed to trade the future Hall of Famer to Chicago for Jimmy Harrison. However, the swap fell through when Harrison failed a physical because of back problems.

The nixed deal worked out for both the Rangers and Espo as the threesome became the top line on the team.  Shero knew what he was doing, putting the 36-year old veteran with the 20-year old Maloney and the 22-year old Murdoch. With Maloney getting Esposito the puck, the veteran center potted more than 30 of his team-best 42 goals after the switch.

They continued their fine play in the playoffs with Maloney setting a record for rookie scoring with 20 points, tying Esposito for the team lead.

Swedish savvy

Before the season, the Rangers made Ulf Nilsson and Anders Hedberg the highest-paid players in the NHL, signing them from the disbanded World Hockey Association for a combined $2.4 million.

Hedberg and Nilsson had combined with Bobby Hull to form one of the most potent lines in the WHA.   The pair gave the Rangers a nice return on their lucrative investment. Hedberg tied Esposito for the team lead in points with 78, and his 33 goals were third-most behind Esposito (42) and Pat Hickey (34).

Nilsson started slowly, going scoreless in his first five games. He scored in his sixth match, a 5-2 win over Toronto at the Garden and settled in thereafter. In fact, he was performing well on Broadway, with 27 goals and 39 assists for 66 points in 59 games before he (and the Rangers) caught a terrible break.

On February 25, 1979, in the Rangers’ 59th match of the season, Nilsson suffered a broken ankle on a hit from New York Islanders defenseman and future Hall of Famer Denis Potvin. Nilsson’s skate got caught in a rut in the Garden ice on the hit.

The Swedish pivot missed the remaining 21 games that season and all but two playoff tilts, and was never the same player after returning. To illustrate how good Nilsson was, his 27 goals still tied Ron Duguay for fourth-most among Rangers while his 66 points ranked third.

To his credit, Nilsson never blamed Potvin for the injury. However, many Rangers fans (and some teammates) sure did. As a result, the famous “Potvin S**ks!” chant was born and is still heard at every Blueshirts game at the Garden regardless of the opponent.

Battle of New York

The Rangers weren’t given much of a chance to beat the Islanders in the playoff semifinals. And, really, who could blame the doubters? Long Island’s franchise finished the season with a league-best 116 points as well as 51 wins, second only to Montreal’s 52.

What’s more, the Islanders won five of eight meetings against the Rangers during the season.

However, for their playoff series, Shero devised a two-part strategy: One, hit hard and often the Islanders’ top line of Mike Bossy, Bryan Trottier and Clark Gillies. Two, get pucks in deep and force Denis Potvin to work harder.

Shero’s plan and his players’ discipline worked. The Rangers won in six games and advanced to the Finals.

Trottier scored once in the series after winning the league’s scoring title with 134 points. Bossy also had just one goal after posting 69 during the season, while Gilles was held to a lone assist.

Davidson did his part, yielding just 13 goals and stopping 21 shots in a series-clinching 2-1 win at the Garden.

The series had four games decided by a goal, including two in overtime by the Islanders. The widest margin of victory came in Game One, a 4-1 Rangers win at Nassau Coliseum.

All Ranger fans remember the image of a stunned Denis Potvin, crumpled to the ice after the Rangers had clinched the series.

Au revoir

If the Rangers were going to win their fourth Cup in franchise history (and first since 1940), they’d have to conquer three-time defending Cup champion Montreal.

The Canadiens were loaded with nine future Hall of Famers and gunning for their sixth Cup title of the decade.

The Rangers managed a 4-1 win in the series opener at the Montreal Forum. According to Phil Esposito, several teammates celebrated by partying hard into the wee hours in the Old City.

Some say the Rangers never recovered from their wild night and ran out of gas in Game Two after Anders Hedberg and Ron Duguay gave New York a 2-0 lead. The Canadiens scored the next six goals to even the series before winning the next three contests to secure the Cup.

But others pointed to the physically exhausting and emotionally draining series against the Islanders. Davidson later acknowledged that his knee pain worsened in that series and grew progressively worse in the Finals. He had major knee surgery afterward. Meanwhile, Nilsson told reporters “the battle with the Islanders took a lot out of” his teammates.

The other big reason was the Canadiens’ situation in goal.  Their starting goalie was Ken Dryden, an All-Star who would win the Vezina Trophy that season.   However, Montreal coach Scotty Bowman pulled Dryden in the third period of the first game of the Finals after he gave up four goals, replacing him with Michel “Bunny” Laroque.

After Laroque shut the Rangers out in the third period, Bowman gave him the nod to start Game Two and the Rangers had to think they were fortunate to not have to face Dryden.  But it was not to be.  In pre-game warmups, a shot from teammate Doug Risebrough hit Laroque in the mask forcing him to be taken to the hospital.  To boos from the crowd, Dryden replaced him.

The boos grew louder when the Blueshirts scored their two quick goals to take the lead, but Dryden shut them out the rest of the way and allowed only five goals in the next three games.

Whether it was Nilsson’s broken ankle or Davidson bum knee or Dryden’s fortunate break, bad luck continued to dog the Rangers in their quest to end their Stanley Cup drought.

Although they fell short of winning it all, the 1978-79 Rangers remain one of the most unique and fun teams in franchise history.

Next, part five of our series will look at a Rangers team whose dream season wound up on ice at the Igloo.