December 10 in NYR history: The best rivalry in hockey begins

What happened on December 10 in the history of the New York Rangers

There is one team guaranteed to inflame the passions  of the Blueshirts faithful like no other when they come to play at Madison Square Garden.  That team is the New York Islanders and on this date in 1972 they played their first game against the New York Rangers at the World’s Most Famous Arena.

This was the first season for the expansion Islanders and the third time the two teams would meet.   The Rangers had won the first two meetings the Nassau Coliseum by a combined scored of 6-2.  But this was the first time the Islanders would come to Manhattan and little did anyone know what the future would hold for these two team.

The game was played one day after the Rangers had won 4-1 on Long Island and they won this game by the same 4-1 score.

Billy Harris would net the first goal ever for an Islander at the Garden, scoring at 10:42 of the first period.  Bill Fairbairn would knot the score and Vic Hadfield put the Blueshirts ahead for good in the second period.  In goal for the Rangers?  Goalie Peter McDuffe, making his only start for the Rangers in the1972-73 season.

McDuffe spent the entire season with the Rangers, but only played in this one game as Eddie Giacomin and Gilles Villemure played the rest.

Including that first game, the Isles have played 141 times in the regular season at the Garden.   Their all-time record is 56-72-11-2.   In the playoffs, the two teams have met at MSG 20 times and have split the games going 10-10.  Last season the Islanders won three of four at the Garden.  They have yet to meet this season.

Today’s birthdays

16 NHL players have been born on December 10 with only one of them a former Blueshirt.

Chris Kontos was born on this date in 1963 in Toronto, Ontario. He was drafted as a center by the Rangers in the first round of the 1982 NHL Entry Draft (15th overall)  after a 92 point season with the Toronto Marlboros of the OHL.  Unfortunately, he  never lived up to the promise as a first round pick, scoring 12 goals in 78 games as a Ranger over three seasons.  He went on to play five more seasons in the NHL.  In one of the most bizarre career turns, after scoring 27 goals in his first seven NHL seasons, he busted out in 1992-93 with 27 goals in one season for the Lightning.  He then walked away from the NHL at age 30 to play for the Canadian national team and in Europe.

The numbers

The Rangers have played 34 times on December 10 in franchise history.   It’s been a pretty even date when it comes to wins and losses.

Games:  34
Regulation wins:  12
Regulation losses:  13
Ties:  6
Overtime wins: 2
Overtime losses:  1
Points percentage:   .514