George Grimm

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

  The equipment that goaltenders use has undergone quite a few style and design changes through the years. The pads and gloves are lighter and certainly more colorful than they were just a few decades ago. But the biggest changes occurred in the late 1940’s....

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Hail to “The Chief”

Jim “The Chief” Neilson was one of the most dependable yet underrated defensemen the Rangers ever had. Neilson wasn’t flashy but he got the job done and his teammates certainly appreciated his skill and steady approach to the game. When asked about Neilson, Rangers...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: More Trade Talk with Emile Francis

“What if” scenarios have always intrigued me, especially in sports. It’s always interesting to imagine how the history of the Ranger franchise as well as some of its players would have been changed had different trades been made over the years. Below are three...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Emile Francis on the Park-Esposito Trade

On November 7th 1975, Emile Francis and his Boston Bruins’ counterpart, GM Harry Sinden pulled off a blockbuster trade. The Rangers sent Jean Ratelle, Brad Park and minor leaguer Joe Zanussi to the Bruins for Phil Esposito and Carol Vadnais. It was one of the biggest...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Reminiscing with Bob Wolff

Bob Wolff is a legend among sportscasters. To list all of his accomplishments and awards, as well as the many historic moments in sports that he has covered, would more than fill this column. It has also been noted that Wolff has always been very generous with his...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Talking Trades with Emile Francis

I’ve always loved hearing Emile Francis tell hockey stories. First, of course, there are the stories, and Emile’s got a million of them, but then there’s the voice, the cadence, the feistiness and the feeling that the Cat was always looking for that angle to put...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Stemmer’s Goal

After beating Toronto four games to two in the opening round of the 1971 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Rangers next opponent was the Chicago Black Hawks who had finished first in the Western Division with 107 points. The teams had split the season series with three wins...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Keep the Mask!

Win or lose, the Rangers have given their fans countless Stanley Cup playoff memories that will last a lifetime and the 1970/71 postseason was no exception. In fact two of the most memorable episodes in Ranger playoff history occurred that spring at Madison Square...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Plante Didn’t Bloom on Broadway

Jacques Plante was one of the greatest goaltenders to ever strap on a pair of pads. But when he came to the Rangers in a blockbuster 1963 trade it became all too apparent that on most nights, he like any other goaltender is only as good as the team in front of him....

Retro Rangers: Remembering Vic Hadfield

Retro Rangers: Remembering Vic Hadfield

March 21, 2011 “Metamorphosis” is a word that is often used to characterize Vic Hadfield’s hockey career. How else would you describe a guy who started out as an awkward skating tough guy and through a lot of hard work and determination became an All-Star, a 50-goal...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Remembering Chuck Rayner

The Rangers have had their share of great goaltenders in their 85-year history and Chuck Rayner was one of the best. Claude Earl Rayner, was born on August 11, 1920, in Sutherland, Saskatchewan. “Chuck” as he had been know since childhood, played junior hockey for the...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers Camille “The Eel” Henry

Camille Henry was born in Quebec City, Quebec, on January 31, 1933. He originally had hopes of becoming a professional baseball player but that dream soon gave way to another when his outstanding hockey skills became apparent. After rising through the local youth...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: The Autograph Collection

I can’t really call myself an avid autograph collector. Frankly I couldn’t tell you where most of them are anymore. For me it’s always been more about the memory of meeting the players. And most of those memories are as vivid as if they happened yesterday. I guess it...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Top Four Picks of ’71

If you recall, a few weeks ago in my Steve Vickers' article  I noted that all of the top four picks of the 1971 amateur draft — Guy Lafleur (Montreal), Marcel Dionne (Detroit), Jocelyn Guevremont (Vancouver) and Gene Carr (St. Louis) — ended up playing for the Rangers...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Can These All-Time Records Be Broken?

The old saying “Records are made to be broken” has been proven to be true many times over. Numerous records that were once considered unreachable have been surpassed in recent years. Who would have thought that a number of bulked up sluggers would have hit more than...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Remembering Steve Vickers

Of all the players of the Emile Francis era, I identified most with Steve Vickers. We were the same age and weight and although I was a little taller, he had that moustache and much better hair. But it was easy to picture myself with a number 8 on my back, hanging out...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Kocur’s “Impossible” Goal

Never let it be said that Joey Kocur couldn’t shoot the puck. The burly winger accomplished the seemingly impossible on November 11, 1991 when he drilled the 3” x 1” puck through one of the 2½ “ diamonds in the nylon mesh that drapes the net. The goal proved to be the...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: The Rangers’ Worst Season

With the Rangers off to another bumpy start to their season, it’s important that fans remember that it could be worse. Much worse. The 1943-44 Rangers lost their first 11 games of the season. Thankfully it’s a Ranger record that still stands today. The streak was...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: October 31, 1975

This month marks a sad anniversary in Ranger history because 35 years ago on October 31, 1975, Ed Giacomin suddenly became a member of the Detroit Red Wings. Ask any long-time Ranger fan about that night and they’ll probably tell you a story about where they were and...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: Blue Shirts First U.S. Goalie

Pop Quiz time: Quick, who was the Rangers first American born goaltender? Fans of a certain age might guess 1960 Olympian Jack McCartan. That would be a good guess but it would also be wrong. McCartan played his first game as a Ranger on March 6, 1960, but Joe...

Retro Rangers: Emile’s Glove Story

Retro Rangers: The Old Smoothies

They weren’t really that old, but they were experienced and they played like they had been line mates for decades. Together they formed one of the Rangers most famous and effective lines of the 1960’s. Actually each of “The Old Smoothies” – Bob Nevin, Phil Goyette and...

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