On this day – October 20 – in 1926, right wing Bill Cook was named the captain of the New York Rangers, becoming the first captain in franchise history.
A few weeks later, on November 16, 1926, Cook would score the first goal in Rangers history, leading the Blueshirts to a 1-0 win in their first game against the Montreal Maroons at Madison Square Garden. By the end of the 1926-27 season, he led the entire NHL with 33 goals and 37 points, becoming the first Blueshirt to accomplish each feat.
It was just the beginning of several “firsts” that Cook has in Rangers history. And over his 11-year NHL career with the Blueshirts, Cook became one of the most impactful players in the history of the franchise.
Cook was born on October 9, 1896, in Brantford, Ontario. While he played in Ontario as a teenager and into his 20s, it was in Saskatoon where Cook became a star in the hockey world. With the Saskatoon Crescents, the right winger led the Western Canada Hockey League in both goals and points during the 1923-24 season, and he ranked second in the renamed Western Hockey League in both categories in 1925-26.
The WHL disbanded following the 1925-26 season, and teams in the National Hockey League began looking westward to acquire players to enhance their rosters. One such team was the New York Rangers, who were entering the NHL in 1926-27. The Rangers acquired the contracts of Cook, as well as his brother and linemate, Fred “Bun” Cook, from Saskatoon. Before the season began, the Blueshirts would also acquire center Frank Boucher, who had previously played in the WHL with Vancouver.
Coached by Lester Patrick – a legendary hockey figure who rose to prominence in Western Canada and was familiar with the Cook brothers and Boucher – Bill Cook, Bun Cook, and Boucher formed the first great line in Rangers history. As Murray Murdoch, another member of the original Rangers team, once said about Lester Patrick, “The first line did as they liked, the second line did as (they were) told, and the third line was damn lucky to be there.”
The chemistry between the Cook brothers and Boucher was undeniable, and they constantly worked together to create new plays to increase their offensive production. As Boucher wrote in his autobiography When The Rangers Were Young, “Lester left Bill, Bun, and me almost completely alone. Often during practices he would stay at one end of the rink with eight or nine players, and let the three of us at the other end flip the puck around and work on our plays. He never interfered with our experiments. I think he gave us this leeway because he had faith in our ability and this, to me, pointed up his greatness as a coach.”
Boucher and Bun Cook were the playmakers of the line, while Bill Cook was the finisher. With his powerful skating stride and hard and accurate shot, No. 5 created havoc for defenses and goaltenders.
In 1927-28 and 1928-29, when offense was limited throughout the league, Bill Cook ranked among the top 10 in the NHL in each season. In addition, he helped the Blueshirts advance to the Stanley Cup Final in both years and win the Cup in 1927-28.
In 1929-30, the NHL permitted forward passing in the offensive zone, and as a result of the rule change, the Rangers’ captain had some of the most prolific statistical seasons of his NHL career. He tallied 59 points in 44 games that season, finishing fourth in the NHL in points. In 1930-31, he was named to the NHL’s First All-Star Team at right wing – becoming the first Ranger to be a First Team NHL All-Star – as he ranked second in the NHL with 30 goals.
Cook just missed out on leading the league in goals in 1931-32, as his 33 goals were one shy of the NHL’s leader, Charlie Conacher of the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Rangers lost to Toronto in the Stanley Cup Final that year, but in 1932-33, Cook and the Rangers got their revenge against the Maple Leafs. The Rangers’ captain led the NHL with 28 goals and 50 points during the regular season, and when the Blueshirts and Maple Leafs met again in the Stanley Cup Final, Cook scored the Cup-clinching goal in overtime of Game 4 of the series.
Cook was a First Team NHL All-Star for three consecutive seasons from 1930-31 through 1932-33 and a Second Team NHL All-Star in 1933-34. By the start of the 1935-36 season, he was 39 years old and his offensive production began to decline. As the Rangers began to bring in the next wave of players from their minor league teams, Cook and the other members of the ‘Old Guard’ began to advance into the next stage of their careers.
After the 1936-37 season, Cook became player-coach and general manager of the Cleveland Barons in the International-American Hockey League (IAHL). In 1952 – while he was in the middle of his stint as the Rangers’ head coach – he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, becoming the first player who played the majority of his career with the Rangers to receive the honor.
Cook scored 228 goals and tallied 366 points in 475 career games over his 11 seasons with the Rangers. He was the franchise’s all-time leader in goals until 1962, when he was surpassed by Andy Bathgate. He served as captain for more seasons than any other player in franchise history, and the only player who was the Rangers’ captain for more games than him was Mark Messier.
Bill Cook was an original Ranger who accomplished many franchise “firsts” and helped build the foundation on which the franchise stands today.
