Bathgate-Howell: Moment No. 2
The fourth of five top moments
Posted on Friday, February 20, 2009 at 5:20 PM
ANDY BATHGATE
MOMENT NO. 2: MASKING THE UNMASKED GOALIE
On November 1, 1959, the Rangers hosted Montreal at the old Garden on Eighth Avenue between 49th and 50th Streets.
Early in the game, Canadiens goalie Jacques Plante wandered out of his net to field a puck, just as Andy Bathgate was skating by. Jake The Snake, as the Habs netminder was known, had a nasty habit of jabbing opponents in such situations; only this time, he caught Andy by surprise and opened a cut under his eye.
Bathgate went off for repairs and was soon well-stitched.
Not long after that, Andy skated down the right side and fired the puck at Plante's head. Jacques was not nimble enough to avoid the rubber.
Since no goalies wore masks then, the puck hit him smack in the cheek, sending him to the ice in a pool of blood.
Carried off the ice, Plante, too, had to be repaired; only he warned coach Toe Blake that he would only return if he could wear a plastic protective mask that he had designed. Blake reluctantly agreed, and thanks to Bathgate's shot, the masked-goalie era was upon us.
HARRY HOWELL
MOMENT NO. 2: CATCHING SPIDERMAN
During Harry Howell's prime, some of the Rangers' best games were played against the Montreal Canadiens.
One of the Habs' most dangerous forwards in that era was a huge center named Eddie Mazur; otherwise known as "The Spider."
One of the most over-looked aspect of Howell's game was his body-checking ability. And one of the best of all time was delivered by Harry against Montreal's Spiderman.
Here's how Harry described the episode to me:
"One night, he comes down my side, throws a deke, but I get him good with my shoulder – clipped him right in the teeth – and half his molars fall on the ice. I had a notion he might be going. He then looked up at me with the sorriest look you can imagine and said, 'Geez, Harry, I wish you hadn't done that.'"
Actually Howell had done it over and over again to the biggest opponents in the league.
MORE:
