When a major athlete retires from a major North American sports league, we always pay attention.  As such, the retirement of Henrik Lundqvist is major to us, and worth a dissection of the Swedish legend’s career.  

From Sweden, Lundqvist was drafted by the New York Rangers in 2000, which would be the only NHL team he ever played for.  

On Broadway, Lundqvist amasses a record of 459-310-96 and a 2.43 GAA and won the Vezina in 2012 with a GAA of 2.43.  In addition to his Vezina, from 2006 to 2014, he finished in the top six for that hardware, and was a First Team All-Star in 2012 and Second Team All-Star in 2013.  He also twice led the NHL in Goalie Point Shares.

Internationally, Lundqvist owns an Olympic Gold Medal (2008), Silver Medal (2014), World Hockey Championship Gold Medal (2017), Silver Medal (2003 & 2004), and World Cup of Hockey Bronze Medal (2016).

Lundqvist, who last played in the 2019-20 season, following have to sit out the last year due to a heart condition, is eligible for the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2023.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to wish Henrik Lundqvist the best in his post-playing career.

Winning the Calder Trophy in 1973, Steve Vickers would play his entire career with the New York Rangers.  Vickers would have three 30 Goal Seasons, his best being a 41 Goal campaign where he finished ninth overall and was named a Second Team All Star.  The Right Wing would play in two All-Star Games (1975 & 1976) and he would also be known for the effectiveness of his shot selection.  Vickers would lead the NHL in Shooting Percentage in 1979/80 and he would finish in the top six three other times.

Born in Berlin (Ontario, Canada that is) Ehrhardt “Ott” Heller played all of his Games in the National Hockey League with the New York Rangers.  Heller provided a solid defensive presence for many years helping the team from Broadway win the Stanley Cup in 1933 & 1940.  Heller was a Second Team All-Star in 1941 and there were few players back in the 30’s and 40’s who were as productive for 15 years like Heller did.

The Calder Trophy winner in 1954, Camille Henry would stumble afterwards and toiled in the AHL before coming back with a vengeance earning Second Team All Star honors along with the Lady Byng in 1958 where he accrued no penalty minutes.  In fact, the Centre had less than 100 Penalty Minutes over his 727 Game career!

Ron Greschner played 984 Games in the National Hockey League, all of which were the New York Rangers.  While the blueshirts were not always a star team when Greschner was there but the popular Ranger was more than capable of showcasing his exceptional skill against one in the league.  Greschner was at his best in the transition game and the blueliners blistering shot helped him be a 20 Goal scorer four times.  The 1980 All Star would score 610 Points overall in his career, an excellent number for a Defenseman.

The younger brother of Hockey Hall of Famer, Tiny Thompson, Paul Thompson was a star player in his own right.  Three times Thompson would hoist the Stanley Cup and he would be named to two post-season NHL All-Star Teams.  Thompson’s best seasons as a player were with the Chicago Blackhawks, where he would serve as the team’s Head Coach for seven years.

As most of the regular visitors to Notinhalloffame.com are aware we are (very) slowly putting together our top 50 players of every franchise in the “Big 4” of North American sports.  After that is completed we will take a look at how each organization honors their past players and executives.  

As such, it is important to us that the New York Rangers retired the number 11 yesterday of Vic Hadfield in a pre-game ceremony.

Hadfield was a member of the Rangers’ famed “Goal A Game” Line that also consisted of Jean Ratelle and Rod Gilbert, both of who already had their number retired so this is a reunion of sorts. 

As a member of the New York Rangers, Hadfield played 13 seasons where he scored 262 Goals and 310 Assists.  He was also the captain of the team from 1971 to 1974.

This marks the tenth time that New York has retired a number.  Hadfield joins Mark Messier, who also had the #11 retired.  This has happened before as the #9 was retired for both Adam Graves and Andy Bathgate. The other retried numbers are Ed Giacomin #1, Brian Leetch #2, Harry Howell #3, Rod Gilbert #7, Jean Ratelle #19 and Mike Richter #35.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Vic Hadfield for earning this prestigious honor.

Vic Hadfield had a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde career in the National Hockey League.  In his early years, Hadfield was an enforcer who in the 1963-64 season finished first Penalties in Minutes.   While he performed that role admirably he would be placed on a line later in the decade with Rod Gilbert and Jean Ratelle to form the “Goal a Game” line and his playmaking skills would come to the forefront. 

With over 600 NHL Points from the blueline in the NHL, James Patrick eclipsed the 50 Point mark four times.  Patrick was best known for his time with the New York Rangers where he would finish twice in the top ten in Norris Trophy voting and represented Canada in the Olympics and the Canada Cup.  Frankly, if you played for Canada in any Canada Cup, you must have been pretty good!

As most of the regular visitors to Notinhalloffame.com are aware we are (very) slowly putting together our top 50 players of every franchise in the “Big 4” of North American sports. After that is completed we will take a look at how each organization honors their past players and executives.

As such, it is important to us that last night the New York Rangers retired the number 19 of Jean Ratelle.

From Lac St-Jean, Quebec, Ratelle debuted for the Rangers in 1960 and by the 67-68 season had emerged as one of the top playmakers in the NHL. He would famously center the Goal-A-Game Line (The GAG Line) with Vic Hadfield and Rod Gilbert and in the 1971-72 campaign would score 109 Points while being named a Second Team All Star and winning the Lady Byng and Lester B. Pearson Award.  After sixteen years with the organization, he was traded to the Boston Bruins early in the 1975-76 season.

As a Ranger, Ratelle had seven 70 Point seasons and tallied 817 Points overall wearing blue and his 336 Goals are still good enough for second in franchise history.

Ratelle becomes the ninth player to have his number retried by New York following Ed Giacoin (1), Brian Leetch (2), Harry Howell (3), Rod Gilbert (7), Adam Graves (9), And Bathgate (9), Mark Messier (11) and Mike Richter (35). He would enter the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1985.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to congratulate Jean Ratelle for earning this honor.

It was announced today that Hockey Hall of Fame inductee, Andy Bathgate, died today at the age of 83. 

Bathgate began his 17 year career with the New York Rangers, and in the 1950’s, the forward would become the team’s star and primary scoring threat.  Bathgate would be a Second Team All Star in the 1957/58 season and was the runner-up for the Hart Trophy, but the season after he would win the Hart and would set a personal best with 88 Points. 

His star would continue to shine with the Rangers and he would tie for the league lead in Points scored (though losing the Art Ross, as he did not have the most Goals) in the 1961/62 season and would earn his second and final First Team All Star appearance. 

Despite his individual stardom in New York, the team around him was not great and a trade to the Toronto Maple Leafs paid dividends for both Bathgate and the Leafs as he helped them win the Stanley Cup in 1964.  Bathgate would finish his career with the Detroit Red Wings and the expansion team, the Pittsburgh Penguins, and a brief stint in the WHA following a retirement. 

Bathgate retired as a Point per Game player and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979.

We here at Notinhalloffame.com would like to extend our condolences to the friends and family of Andy Bathgate at this time.

John Vanbiesbrouck’s career may be best described by just “missing out”. He achieved great success as a New York Ranger was but outplayed by Mike Richter who won the starting job and “Beezer” was shipped out before he could see the Rangers win that elusive Cup. His best work was with the Florida Panthers where he gave that team “legitimacy” and actually took that team to a Stanley Cup berth where he again “missed out” on winning. John Vanbiesbrouck seemingly had many very good seasons but not exactly a great one, or a career-defining moment. His total of 374 career NHL wins is impressive, but he just lacked that intangible that makes it possible for the Hall to keep him out.

Known for his strong defensive skills as a hockey player, Don Marshall did not necessarily come by those skills naturally. Upon joining the loaded Montreal Canadians, he was asked to focus on the defensive and checking attributes. It worked, and as Marshall would venture across various teams he was able to use these new-found skills while still able to contribute on offense. A quiet leader and a dependable asset, he was always considered a great teammate. He won’t make the Hall, but at some point, it would be nice if he received a few props from some of the teams he played for in the past.

Although the bulk of the early era players are in the Hockey Hall of Fame, a case could be made for the talented Lorne Chabot. The Montreal native was successful everywhere he went, posting winning records and winning two Stanley Cups. Chabot’s career saw him get 201 over eleven seasons but as he played with six different teams he got labeled a journeyman despite the successful performances he showed.

A part of the Edmonton Oilers “Kid Line” (With Joe Murphy and Martin Gelinas), Adam Graves was part of the successful tonic that gave the Oilers their last Stanley Cup in 1990. It was, however, when Graves signed with the Rangers that he was removed from the checking line and was able to show what kind of sniper he could be. Graves was a vital cog in the Rangers Stanley Cup run of 1994 and was able to reach the elusive 50 goal plateau that season. Graves may have been known as one of hockey’s “Good Guys” as his efforts to giving back to the community are well documented. Although Graves was a reliable scorer, he likely lacked the overall points total to make the Hall.

During the mid 90’s, few goaltenders approached the level of success that Mike Richter did. After a few years of struggles, Richter took over the net in New York and embarked on a magical three year period. In the 1993-94 season, he posted 42 wins (and 16 more in the playoffs) and backstopped his the Rangers to their first Stanley Cup in forty five years. Richter’s finest performance may have occurred two years later outside of the NHL when he stood on his head and stopped the Canadian juggernaut in leading the Americans to a World Cup of Hockey victory in 1996 where he was subsequently named the tournament MVP.

With the distinction the first ever Russian born player to be drafted in the first round by a team in the National Hockey League, Alexei Kovalev did not disappoint. Kovalev would score over 1,000 Points in the NHL and is a winner of the Stanley Cup and a Gold Medal as a member of the 1992 Unified Team. The crafty forward was a three-time All-Star and would earn Second Team All-Star honors once in his career.

Along with Ulf Nilsson, Anders Hedberg would become one of the first European stars in the North America when the pair joined the Winnipeg Jets who were then with the World Hockey Association.  Hedberg would be named the Lou Kaplan Trophy winner as the WHA’s version of the rookie of the year and was a Second Team All Star who scored 53 Goals and an even 100 Points.  Hedberg would go on an incredible run as a Jet as their top goal scorer where he would put the puck in the net 50, 70 and 63 times in the next three years, the 70 being league leading.  The Swedish sensation would be a First Team All-WHA selection all three of those years and he is the all-time leader in the World Hockey Association in Goals per Game.