Emile "The Cat" Francis G (1948-1952) Don Simmons G (1965-66,1967-1969)
Today in NYR History 9/13:
1968: Rangers Acquire left wing Ron Boehm from the California Golden Seals (Oakland) for cash considerations.
1978: The Hockey Hall of Fame inducts Rangers Alumni Jacques Plante and Andy Bathgate .
Plante, Inventor of the modern goaltender`s mask and first player to wear a mask regularly in NHL was Traded to Rangers by Montreal with Don Marshall and Phil Goyette in exchange for Gump Worsley, Dave Balon, Leon Rochefort and Len Ronson on June 4, 1963.
He retired from hockey after spending end of 1964-65 season in minor leagues. He returned to the NHL three years later.
Hall of Famer Andy Bathgate did it all for the Rangers in a remarkable 12-year span that saw him captain the team, win the NHL`s Hart Trophy as league MVP, play in eight NHL All-Star Games and tie for the league scoring lead.
Bathgate joined the Rangers organization as a 17-year-old in 1949, when he began playing for the Guelph Biltmores, the Rangers` junior team in Ontario. Bathgate dominated the OHA over three seasons in Guelph, and by the time he was 20, he got his first call-up to the Blueshirts early in the 1952-53 season.
Bathgate played parts of the 1952-53 and 1953-54 seasons with the Rangers, shuttling between New York and the minors. During those years, Andy`s brother Frank also played in the Rangers farm system and with the parent club.
Bathgate broke away from all other prospects after being loaned to the AHL`s Cleveland Barons for part of the 1953-54 season. He scored 32 points in 36 games at the highest minor-league level — ensuring his permanent spot on the Rangers roster for the 1954-55 season.
He responded with 20 goals in his first full season in the NHL, and over the next decade, he led the Rangers in scoring eight times. His most magical season was 1958-59, when he became the first Rangers player to net 40 goals in one season and earning NHL MVP honors. Three years later, in 1961-62, he tied Bobby Hull for the NHL scoring title, only to lose the Art Ross Trophy because he had fewer goals.
Named team captain in 1961, Bathgate helped the Rangers snap a four-year playoff dought that season. He remained captain right up until he left the Rangers in February 1964 — as the owner of every major team scoring record. Those marks have since been broken, but Bathgate`s legacy lives on as one of the greatest Blueshirts of all time.
Bathgate had a major impact on the adoption of goalie masks. He had badly injured two other NHL goalies with his slap shot. Famed for that slap shot, Bathgate that night hurt Plante with a backhander, firing the shot from close range into the goalie's face, badly splitting his upper lip. Plante went to get stitches and returned wearing the mask nearly 25 minutes later.
A Bathgate shot on Nov. 1, 1959 at Madison Square Garden, sent Montreal Canadiens goaltender Jacques Plante to the dressing room for seven stitches. The goaltender returned wearing a mask, but not without a fight. Canadiens coach Toe Blake, who didn't want his goaltender using the newfangled contraption, protested Plante's plan. The goalie insisted, won out, won the game and the Canadiens went on to win 17 more consecutive games, so the mask was on board for good.
"When he came out with the mask on, we were surprised that he'd gone that far," Bathgate remembered. "He was very innovative when it came to goaltending, so it wasn't surprising he'd be the one to try it. We had heard he had one, but we were surprised it covered his whole face."
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