On April 10 in NYR history: Messier ties a record that Panarin will break

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

On this date in 1993,  Mark Messier had two assists, getting helpers on the only two goals scored by the New York Rangers in  4-2 loss to the Pittsburgh Penguins.  It was the 18th time that Messier had two or more assists in a game that season, tying a Rangers record that was held by his teammate, Brian Leetch, and Jean Ratelle.

18 may seem like a lot, but consider this.  Wayne Gretzky had 11 seasons with 31 or more gamed with multiple assists with thte most being 44 games in 1985-86.  Only Jaromir Jagr and Mario Lemieux did is as many as 30 times and they each did it once.

Why are we so sure about Artemi Panarin? He tied the franchise record yesterday when he had a goal and two assists against Ottawa and with nine games left this season, he should be a lock to set a new record.  He had 15 multi-assist games in the COVID shortened 2019-20 season and he did it 14 times in 42 games last season.  It’s just a matter of when.

The longest winning streak ever…at the Rangers’ expense

After setting the record for the longest winning streak in NHL history, the Pittsburgh Penguins added to it by beating the Rangers 4-2.  It was their 17th straight win and the record was set at the Pittsburgh Civic Arena is the second game of a away and home series with New York. It happened in the same game in 1993 that Mark Messier tied the multi-assist record.

They had broken the NHL record of 15 straight wins, held by the 1981-82 New York Islanders.  The streak came to an end in their next game when they were tied 6-6 by the New Jersey Devils in the final game of the season.

Today’s birthdays

26 NHL players have been born on April 10.  Seven New York Rangers can this date their birthday including one player who was one of the most controversial NHL players ever.

Sean Avery was born on this date in 1980 in Pickering, Ontario.   Undrafted, he was signed by the Detroit Red Wings in 1999.  He played only 75 games in Detroit before being traded to the Kings where he led the NHL in penalty minutes twice. The Kings swapped him to New York in February 2007.   He played one full season in New York and became famous for the “Avery Rule,” adopted when he blocked goalie Martin Brodeur’s vision in the playoffs.

He went the free agent route and signed with Dallas where he was mired in controversy and they waived him with the Rangers picking him up again. He played two seasons before the team grew tired of his antics and placed him on waivers. When no team would pick him up, he decided to retire.

Dutch Gainor was a center born in 1905 in Calgary, Alberta.  He played four years in Boston before being traded to the Rangers where he played for one season.  After New York he played for the Ottawa Senators and Montreal Maroons.

Chris Kenady  was born on this date in 1973 in Mound, Minnesota.  He was a right winger who played two of his seven NHL games in New York in the 1997-98 season.  He had a long career in the minor leagues.

Brandon Pirri was born on this date in 1991 in Toronto, Ontario.  The center is a gifted scorer who played one season for the Rangers in 2016-17.  After New York, he spent parts of three seasons in Vegas and most recently played for the Blackhawks.

Ron Murphy was born on April 10, 1933 in Hamilton, Ontario.  He was a left winger who played 18 seasons in the NHL.  He started his career in New York, playing parts of four seasons with the Rangers.  Traded to the Black Hawks in 1957, he played seven years in Chicago before finishing his career in Detroit and Boston.

Mel Read was born in 1922 on this date in Montreal, Quebec.  He played six games for the Rangers, his only games in the NHL in 1946-47.  The center was scoreless  in his NHL career.

Dennis Vial was born on this date in 1969 in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario. Drafted in the sixth round of the 1988 NHL Entry Draft by the Rangers, Vial played both defense and left wing. He was traded at the deadline in his rookie season to the Detroit Red Wings in a deal that brought the Blueshirts tough guy Joe Kocur.

The numbers

More playoff games than regular season games played by the Rangers on April 10.

Games: 7
Regulation wins: 2
Regulation losses: 4
Shootout losses: 1
Points percentage: .428

Playoffs games: 10
Wins: 5
Losses: 3
Overtime losses: 2
Winning percentage: 50%