January 24 in NYR history: #2 raised to the rafters

What happened on January 24 in the history of the New York Rangers

On this date in 2008, Brian Leetch joined the ranks of New York Rangers immortals as his #2 was raised to the rafters at Madison Square Garden,   Leetch was the fifth Ranger to be honored this way following in the footsteps of Rod Gilbert, Ed Giacomin, Mike Richter and Mark Messier.

Many members of the 1994 team joined Leetch for the ceremony and the emotional night brought teammate Mark Messier to tears as he spoke about his colleague and friend.   Leetch retired having played 1,129 games in New York, second only to Harry Howell.  He is the career franchise leader in assists, shots on goal, power play points and assists and is second overall in points. The irony is that he would have held those franchise records if he had not been traded to Toronto in the great purge of 2004.  He finished his Rangers career just 31 games behind Howell and 40 point behind franchise leader Rod Gilbert.

One of the highlights of the evening was when Leetch announced that Adam Graves’ number nine would be retired the next year, an honor that Graves didn’t expect.

As for the game, the Rangers took on the Atlanta Thrashers and won 2-1 in a shootout.   It’s fitting that a defenseman, Michal Rozsival, scored the only Ranger goal.  Brendan Shanahan was the only player who scored in the shootout.

Back to Atlanta

Atlanta has had two NHL franchises and both of them didn’t last.  On this date in 2000, the Rangers made their return to Atlanta for the first time since the Atlanta Flames moved to Calgary in 1980.  It was their first game in Atlanta since March 28, 1980.

The Rangers beat the expansion Atlanta Thrashers 6-3.  The Thrashers lasted in Atlanta until 2011 when they relocated to Winnipeg.

The Great One is MVP

Wayne Gretzky played in the 49th NHL All-Star Game on this date in 1999 and was named MVP.   Gretzky suited up for the North American squad that played  the World team and won 8-6.   Gretzky was the only representative from the Rangers at the game and served as captain of the North American team.  He finished with a goal and two assists.

It was Gretzky’s last All Star game appearance.  In a wonderful gesture, the starting center for the N.A. team, Eric Lindros asked the coaches to let Gretzky start the game in his place.  For Gretzky, it was a very special night as his idol, Gordie Howe, was in Tampa at the game.

A sad story

On this date in 2000, Rangers left winger and alternate captain Kevin Stevens was arrested and charged with soliciting a prostitute and possessing drug paraphernalia. The 34-year-old Stevens was arrrested in Collinsville, Illinois, a suburb of St. Louis and admitted that he had been smoking crack cocaine.  The arrest came hours after the Rangers had beaten the Blues 4-1.

A two-time 50 goal scorer and Stanley Cup champion with the Penguins, Stevens was in his third season in New York, but had been benched in recent games.  He was in the lineup that night because Adam Graves had returned to New York for the birth of his child.  The Rangers left Stevens behind and issued a statement pledging to support him in any way.  Meanwhile, the NHL and the NHLPA issued a statement that he had been placed in the league’s substance abuse program.

Stevens never played another game for the Rangers, but did make a return to the NHL the next season with the Flyers and Penguins.  He battled addictions for over 20 year before he was arrested in 2016 for conspiring to sell opioids.  He served three years probation and has become a leader in spreading the word about the dangers of opioid addiction.

Here’s a link to an excellent story about Stevens and his substance abuse battles. Click here.

Today’s birthdays

There were 20 NHL players born on January 24.  Four former Rangers were born on this date along with a set of twins and one prospect who hopes to be a Blueshirt someday.

Forward prospect Leevi Aaltonen was born on this date in 2001, in Mikkeli, Finland.  Aaltonen is currently playing in the Finnish Liiga after being drafted by the Rangers in the fifth round of the 2019 Entry Draft.

The only set of twins to play for the Rangers were born on this date, Chris and Peter Ferraro were born in 1973 in Port Jefferson on Long Island.   Peter was drafted in the first round and Chris in the fourth round.  Chris Ferraro played 14 games in the 1995 and 1996 seasons.  Though picked higher in the draft, Peter played only seven games for the Rangers but in the same years as his brother.   The Ferraros were the second set of twins to play for the same team in NHL history, following Peter and Patrik Sundstrom who played together with the Devils.

Matt Puempel was born on January 24, 1993 in Windsor, Ontario.  He played for three years in Ottawa before the Rangers claimed him off the waiver wire.  He played 27 games for the Rangers in the 2016-17 season, scoring six goals.  He did make Blueshirt history on December 29, 2016, scoring a hat trick and becoming only the third Ranger to get all three goals on the power play, joining Mark Messier and Mike Gartner.

Chick Chalmers was born on this date in 1934 in Stratford, Ontario.  The center played only one game in the NHL, for the Rangers in 1953.  He spent the next 14 years in the International Hockey League.

The numbers

The Rangers have played 34 games on January 24 and have split the results down the middle, with 13 wins and 13 losses.

Games: 34
Regulation wins:  13
Regulation losses: 13
Ties: 5
Overtime wins:  1
Shootout wins: 2
Points percentage: .485