On July 9 in Rangers history: Brendan Shanahan becomes a Blueshirt

What happened on July 9 in the history of the New York Rangers

On this date in 2006, the New York Rangers signed a player who had directly and indirectly tormented the Blueshirts for years.  They signed future Hall of Fame left winger Brendan Shanahan to a one-year, $4 million contract.  The 38-year-old had become a free agent after nine years in Detroit where he won three Stanley Cups.

Shanahan signed with the Rangers because he felt it was time to move from Detroit and the move was a good one. He scored 29 goals and 62 points in 67 games, despite missing 15 games after suffering a concussion in an on-ice collision with a teammate.

He got off to an auspicious start with the Rangers, scoring his 599th and 600th career goals in the season opener against Washington at the Garden. At the time he was the 15th NHL player to score 600 goals.  He played in the NHL All-Star Game that season and helped the Rangers get to the second round of the playoffs.

He re-signed for the 2007-08 season,  but started showing his age, scoring 23 goals, but only 46 points in 73 games, his lowest total since his rookie season in 1986-87. The Rangers chose to let him go after that season and he finished his career with the Devils.

Shanahan was originally drafted by the New Jersey Devils and when he was signed to an offer sheet by the St. Louis Blues, the Devils were awarded defenseman Scott Stevens as compensation.   While Shanahan scored over 50 goals twice in his first three years with the Blues, Stevens proved to be the final piece of the Devils’ championship puzzle and he tormented his cross river rivals for 13 years as they won three Stanley Cups.

Shanahan has been president of the Toronto Maple Leafs since 2014 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2013.

Today’s birthdays

19 NHL players have been born on July 9 including two former New York Rangers most fans would be hard pressed to remember.

Larry Molyneaux was born on this date in 1912 in Sutton West, Ontario. He was a defenseman who played for the Rangers over two season from 1937-39.  He played in 45 games for the Blueshirts with only one assist.  He spent most of his career with minor league teams in Philadelphia and Cleveland.

Bob Wood was a defenseman who played one game as a Rangers at the age of 20 in the 1950-51 season.  He was born on July 9, 1930 in Lethbridge, Alberta.  He spent most of that one season playing for the New York Rovers of the EHL.  He finished his career with the Brighton Tigers in the U.K.