On Feb. 4, 1978, Hockey Corridor of Famer and a member of the 100 Best NHL Gamers membership, Mike Bossy, recorded the primary hat trick of his NHL profession because the New York Islanders received 6-1 over Washington.
In honour of that first of many accomplishments, we have now pulled this nugget from the THW Archives, written by former THW contributor Anatoliy Metter and initially printed Sept. 24, 2012.
Many hockey followers would possibly bear in mind the New York Islanders of the Eighties due to their assortment of Stanley Cup championships, however these championships had been constructed by cautious drafting and key acquisitions.
Gamers comparable to Mike Bossy, Denis Potvin, Bryan Trottier and Billy Smith had been just some of the Eighties Islanders that managed to carry a number of Stanley Cup championships to Lengthy Island whereas cementing their careers as among the biggest gamers to ever compete within the NHL. Different gamers comparable to Pat LaFontaine and Ed Westfall may not have skilled the Stanley Cup glory that the Islanders of the early ’80s loved, however they performed integral roles for the franchise throughout the ’70s and ’80s.
Whereas the New York Islanders of the late Seventies and early Eighties featured a plethora of future NHL Corridor of Famers, the group had plenty of gamers that did their greatest work when the strain was on. Though this listing would possibly solely comprise a choose few Islanders, all the people talked about beneath had been accountable for bringing prominence to Lengthy Island’s solely skilled sports activities franchise.
Right here they’re:
15. Patrick Flatley
Pat Flatley might need arrived one season too late for a Stanley Cup championship, however the ahead didn’t fail to impress the Islanders throughout his tenure with the group. Flatley’s 15 factors in 21 playoff video games throughout the 1984 postseason helped the fitting winger set up himself on a group that was already laden with superstars. Whereas Flatley was a gradual scorer for the Islanders from 1983-1994, the winger helped transition the group into the Nineties as its captain and was a key member of the Isles’ shocking playoff run in 1993.
14. Ed Westfall
Westfall got here to the Islanders from the Boston Bruins by advantage of the 1972 NHL Enlargement Draft and tremendously helped the group throughout his seven-season stint on Lengthy Island. Westfall was the primary captain of the New York Islanders and in addition scored the group’s first objective of their first sport as an NHL franchise. Whereas Westfall didn’t win a Stanley Cup Championship with the Islanders, he helped information the group to the playoffs in 1975 and was particularly dominant as he recorded 15 factors in 17 postseason video games performed.
Through the 1975 run to the semifinals, the Islanders captain helped his group make historical past as his lone tally towards the Pittsburgh Penguins in Recreation 7 of the quarterfinals was all that New York wanted to finish the first-ever comeback from a 3-0 playoff sequence deficit. Though Westfall wound up relinquishing his captaincy to Clark Gillies a few years later, the ahead was one of some “authentic Islanders” to have a drastic influence on the franchise when it first got here into the NHL within the early 70s.
13. Glenn “Chico” Resch
“Chico” Resch performed himself into Islanders lore in solely his first full season with New York. Resch had an excellent 1974-75 NHL season (12-7-5, 2.47 GAA), however the goalie’s largest contributions got here throughout the 1975 postseason as he relieved an inconsistent Billy Smith and was an instrumental a part of the comebacks towards the Penguins and Flyers.
Whereas Resch wasn’t a lifelong Islander, his title nonetheless carries large weight with the franchise and the fan base. To say that “Chico” Resch was an vital a part of the Islanders’ improvement as an growth franchise can be an understatement, to say the least. Billy Smith actually earned his accolades all through his profession with the Islanders, however Resch was actually simply as adored by followers and simply as integral to the success of the group throughout his tenure with New York.
12. John Tonelli
John Tonelli spent seven-plus seasons in an Islanders uniform and was round for all of New York’s 4 Stanley Cup championships. Whereas Tonelli was traded to the Calgary Flames throughout the 1985-86 season, the left winger was a family title for Islanders followers due to his clutch scoring within the playoffs. In spite of everything, it was Tonelli that arrange Bob Nystrom’s extra time objective towards Pete Peeters to provide the Isles their first of 4 straight Stanley Cups.
Tonelli’s potential to place the puck within the internet and make a crisp cross was not simply restricted to the postseason because the left winger put up 60 or extra factors in 5 common seasons for the Islanders. Along with being an adept scorer and exhausting employee, Tonelli was seemingly a participant that match into any position that head coach Al Arbour assigned him to. Like a lot of his teammates, Tonelli embodied the hard-working mentality that made the New York Islanders of the Eighties such a tough group to beat, each within the common season and playoffs.
11. Butch Goring
Butch Goring had fairly the observe report earlier than he joined the New York Islanders throughout the 1979-80 season as he had spent his whole NHL profession with the Los Angeles Kings up till that time. Goring’s common season offensive numbers might need waned with New York after he was traded from the Kings, however the middle’s worth to the Islanders was made clear throughout the 1980 and 1981 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Since Goring was a veteran by the point he was traded to New York in ’79-’80, his expertise and data of the sport had been undoubtedly an enormous assist for an Islanders group with its justifiable share of younger expertise. Goring’s 19 factors within the 1980 postseason and 20 factors within the 1981 playoffs got here in fairly helpful for the Isles and the ahead will proceed to be certainly one of Invoice Torrey’s most integral commerce acquisitions, in addition to one of the crucial revered people concerned with the Islanders group.
Not solely did the New York Islanders of the Eighties win championships in convincing vogue, they did so with the assistance of European gamers, and certainly one of their most notable contributors was Stefan Persson. The 6-foot-1 defender from Sweden was a member of all 4 Stanley Cup championship groups and was certainly one of Al Arbour’s most dependable blue-line choices. Persson may not have been the offensive juggernaut that Denis Potvin was for the Isles, however the defenseman greater than held his weight in New York.
Persson’s regular manufacturing and sound defensive play actually endeared him to his coaches and teammates because the defender was one more Islanders participant that confirmed up each evening to battle for the group’s two factors. Persson’s 15 factors throughout the 1980 and 1982 Stanley Cup Playoffs had been undoubtedly an enormous assist for New York and it’s secure to say that Persson was one of many first gamers to show the previous stigma of, “one can’t win with Europeans on their roster,” improper.
9. Pat LaFontaine
Pat LaFontaine by no means received a Stanley Cup with the Islanders, however he was one of many extra vital gamers that attempted to assist New York transition after its run of 4 straight championships. LaFontaine spent eight seasons on the island and was an absolute fan favourite as he averaged nearly a point-per-game tempo over the course of his profession with the Islanders.
Whereas LaFontaine was identified for his offensive prowess, he’ll without end be remembered for scoring one of the crucial memorable targets in Islanders historical past. The middle’s decisive objective within the fourth extra time of the 1987 playoffs (Easter Epic) towards the Washington Capitals all however cemented his title in Islanders historical past. Though LaFontaine was ultimately traded from the Isles and performed for the Sabres and Rangers, Islanders followers received’t quickly neglect the middle’s influence on the franchise.
8. Brent Sutter
Brent Sutter received two Stanley Cup championships with the Islanders and took over the Isles’ captaincy after Denis Potvin retired within the late Eighties. Whereas Sutter’s offensive manufacturing skyrocketed throughout the latter portion of his profession with the Islanders, the ahead was an integral a part of New York’s fourth straight Stanley Cup victory as Sutter, Bob Bourne and brother Duane Sutter fashioned one of many Isles’ greatest traces throughout the 1983 playoffs.
Maybe Sutter’s 1985-1986 NHL marketing campaign will likely be most remembered by Islanders followers as the middle, together with line-mates Mike Bossy and John Tonelli, managed to place up greater than 100 factors throughout the common season. Though Sutter wasn’t a lifelong New York Islander, he actually had fairly an influence on the franchise throughout his 10-plus seasons of donning the orange, blue, and white.
7. Bob Bourne
Bob Bourne was a speedy middle that was one other key member of the Isles’ 1983 Stanley Cup championship group. As an Islander, Bourne scored 50 or extra factors throughout the common season on six separate events, however certainly one of his most vital contributions got here within the 1983 season as he tallied 28 factors in 20 video games and led the Stanley Cup champion Isles in scoring. Bourne was one other vital piece of all 4 championship groups on Lengthy Island and will likely be remembered as comparable to his title was rightfully inducted into the Islanders’ Corridor of Fame in 2006.
6. Clark Gillies
Clark Gillies might need been the Isles’ robust man/enforcer throughout his tenure with the franchise, however he was additionally a proficient scorer. Gillies recorded 30 or extra targets in six of his twelve seasons with the Islanders and was additionally fairly helpful throughout the group’s playoff runs of the Eighties. Throughout New York’s first three championship runs, the left winger registered 16, 15, and 14 factors respectively and was repeatedly used as a bodily presence all through his years with the Islanders.
Whereas Gillies’ greatest post-season (21 GP, 12 Targets, 7 Assists) in an Islanders uniform would come throughout the group’s dynasty-ending loss to the Edmonton Oilers in 1984, the ahead was enshrined into the Hockey Corridor of Fame and Islanders Corridor of Fame due to his play and affect on the Islanders of the late Seventies and early Eighties.
5. Bobby Nystrom
What extra will be stated concerning the man dubbed “Mr. Islander”?
Once I was rising up and Islanders broadcasts had been nonetheless performed on AM 1050 ESPN Radio, the pre-game present would all the time begin with an audio replay of Nystrom’s extra time objective. Whereas this audio clip was just some seconds, I didn’t perceive the depth and which means of the objective till I watched video footage of the play and noticed the jubilation of the group after Bobby Nystrom potted the Cup-clinching objective.
Nystrom’s crowning second as an Islander was undoubtedly his Stanley Cup-winning objective towards the Philadelphia Flyers, nevertheless it was the Swede’s demeanor that made him the right embodiment of a Eighties Islander. Nystrom introduced grit and dependable two-way play to the ice when his quantity was referred to as upon and was a gradual offensive contributor within the playoffs throughout the Isles’ dynasty run. Though Nystrom by no means topped the 60-point mark in his 13-plus seasons in New York, the ahead’s title will proceed to be synonymous with the success of the Islanders groups of the early Eighties.
4. Billy Smith
Billy Smith was not solely an authentic Islander, however he was maybe among the finest clutch goalies to play the sport of hockey. Smith was one of the crucial important parts of the dynasty years because the goalie all the time delivered when playoff time rolled round.
Whereas Smith may not have had the workload of a modern-day netminder, incomes deserves such because the Vezina Trophy, Conn Smythe Trophy, and the William M. Jennings Trophy can communicate for itself. Gamers comparable to Mike Bossy, Denis Potvin, and Bryan Trottier had been among the important weapons for the Islanders of the 70s and 80s, however it could be exhausting to confidently state that New York may have replicated their immense playoff success with out Smith between the pipes.
3. Bryan Trottier
Bryan Trottier was one of many core items for the New York Islanders throughout the late Seventies and early Eighties and his numbers are an ideal illustration of what “Trots” dropped at the franchise. From 1977-1982, Trottier recorded 100 or extra factors over 5 straight seasons and acquired plenty of awards throughout his illustrious profession such because the Calder, Artwork Ross, Hart, and Conn Smythe Trophies.
Very similar to Bob Nystrom, Trottier’s dedication to taking part in successfully on each ends of the ice set him other than a few of his different teammates. Whereas Trottier put up large numbers whereas taking part in alongside different legends comparable to Mike Bossy and Clark Gillies, the middle was one more Islander that echoed the hard-working mentality that made New York the group to beat throughout the early Eighties.
2. Mike Bossy
If continual again ache didn’t finish Mike Bossy’s profession, then one may solely think about what number of extra targets and assists the right-winger might need compiled. Bossy had 9 consecutive seasons the place he scored 50 or extra targets and will have supplied Wayne Gretzky with some vital competitors if his again had held up.
Throughout his ten seasons with the Islanders, Bossy recorded 100 or extra factors on seven separate events and all the time carried his offensive play over into the postseason. Over the course of the Isles’ 4 Stanley Cup victories, Bossy managed to amass 111 postseason factors (61 Targets, 50 Assists) and was arguably one of many important causes for the Isles’ continued common and postseason success. Though Bossy by no means received the Artwork Ross and Hart Trophies, the winger’s 1,126 profession factors and a number of accolades and accomplishments would make Islanders followers of any age appreciative of what the ahead did for the franchise.
1. Denis Potvin
Denis Potvin actually lived as much as his billing and gave the New York Islanders all the things that they’d hoped for after they chosen him with the primary total choose within the 1973 NHL Novice Draft. Whereas Potvin’s offensive and defensive prowess was a key element of the Isles’ Stanley Cup days, one is aware of that the defenseman made a reputation for himself within the hockey world after they can nonetheless hear chants of “Potvin Sucks!” coming from modern-day Rangers followers.
Not solely did Potvin draw the ire of Rangers followers over his illustrious profession, however he additionally drew simply as a lot respect from across the league for being a bodily, hard-working, and offensively proficient participant that would assist his group on each ends of the ice. Though accidents wound up hindering Potvin’s manufacturing throughout the latter portion of his profession, the longtime Islanders captain must be revered as one of many biggest defensemen to ever play the sport of hockey.
Structure & Teaching
Whereas Invoice Torrey and Al Arbour didn’t play for the New York Islanders, they each cemented their legacies with Lengthy Island’s solely skilled sports activities franchise. Torrey, higher often known as “Bow-Tie” Invoice, constructed up the Islanders from an growth franchise within the early Seventies to a dynasty group in only a decade. Torrey was accountable for drafting cornerstone gamers comparable to Mike Bossy, Bryan Trottier, and Denis Potvin, and the Basic Supervisor undoubtedly earned his stripes and due recognition by quite a lot of smart draft alternatives and shrewd trades.
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Then again, Al Arbour was the legendary head coach of the New York Islanders that led his group to 4 straight Stanley Cup titles. Arbour’s tenure behind the Isles’ bench lasted 18 seasons (’73-’74 – ’93-’94), however the coach made one last look behind the New York bench throughout the 2007-2008 NHL season and the Islanders rewarded the long-time bench boss along with his 740th victory and 1,five hundredth sport coached with the Isles. Not solely did Arbour carry status and a successful perspective to Lengthy Island, the coach additionally caught round previous the Islanders’ glory years and was as devoted a coach as a participant may have.
Having Torrey and Arbour on the helm undoubtedly helped the Islanders accumulate a considerable amount of success throughout the ’70s, ’80s, and 90s, and the franchise’s longtime coach and common supervisor had been simply as vital to New York’s success as its lengthy line of legendary star gamers. Whereas hockey followers is likely to be fast to recollect names comparable to Bossy, Potvin, Trottier, Smith, and Nystrom, the New York Islanders of the Seventies and the Eighties completed their feats as a collective unit, one which correctly acquired the deserves that it was due.
Take pleasure in extra nice hockey historical past and ‘Better of’ posts within the THW Archives
