At the start of the day on February 22, 1964, Bob Nevin was preparing for a game between his Toronto Maple Leafs and the New York Rangers at Maple Leaf Gardens. Before Nevin made his way to the arena for the game that evening, he received a phone call from King Clancy, the Maple Leafs Assistant General Manager; Clancy told him that when he arrived at Maple Leaf Gardens that night, he would be going to the Rangers’ locker room.
Nevin became a Ranger in one of the most shocking and influential trades in the franchise’s history – a seven-player swap with the Maple Leafs in which Blueshirts legend Andy Bathgate was dealt to Toronto. Nearly one year later, following another substantial trade (longtime Ranger and team captain Camille Henry was dealt to Chicago), Nevin was selected to be the Blueshirts’ next captain.
Over parts of eight seasons with the Rangers, including parts of seven seasons wearing the “C” on his jersey, Nevin established himself as one of the premier two-way forwards in the NHL.
A native of South Porcupine, Ontario, Nevin played junior hockey with the Toronto Marlboros – a Maple Leafs-sponsored team in the Ontario Hockey Association. He made his NHL debut as a 19-year-old with Toronto in a game against the Rangers at Madison Square Garden on December 8, 1957, which was one of four NHL games he played during the 1957-58 season. By 1960-61, Nevin had cemented his place in the Maple Leafs lineup. His 58 points that season were the most among all NHL rookies, and he was the runner-up for the Calder Trophy as the league’s Rookie of the Year (teammate Dave Keon won the award).
Although he didn’t produce as much offense in the next two seasons as he did during his rookie year, Nevin filled an important role of playing against the opposition’s best players and on the penalty kill. Nevin’s contributions helped Toronto win the Stanley Cup in both 1961-62 and 1962-63, but in 1963-64, the Maple Leafs were in search of scoring help as they attempted to go for their third consecutive Stanley Cup championship.
At the same time, the Rangers were looking towards the future. They decided to trade Bathgate – the franchise’s all-time leader in goals, assists, and points at that point in time – to the Maple Leafs and received five players and prospects in return, including Nevin.
After making his Rangers debut in Toronto on the day of the trade, Nevin scored a goal the following day in his first game as a Blueshirt at MSG – which was also against the Maple Leafs. Nevin tallied nine points in 14 games as a Ranger to finish the 1963-64 season, but perhaps his most memorable moment from the final stretch of that season was a fight he had with the Montreal Canadiens’ John Ferguson – one of the toughest players in the NHL – in a game at MSG (the fight was one of only two that Nevin had in over 1,200 regular season and playoff games throughout his NHL career).
Nevin had a strong start to the 1964-65 season; through 21 games, his seven goals put him among the top 10 goal scorers in the NHL, while the Rangers were tied for third place in the NHL and only three points out of first place. The Rangers’ key forward, however, suffered a separated shoulder in a game against Chicago on December 2, 1964, that would keep him out of the lineup for two-and-a-half weeks. By the time Nevin returned, the Rangers had dropped from third place to fifth place in the standings.
“We need him,” Red Sullivan, the Rangers’ Head Coach at the time, told the media about Nevin following that game against Chicago. Best damn hockey player on the club.”
Given how Sullivan (as well as General Manager Emile Francis) felt about Nevin and his importance to the team, it was understandable why Nevin was named captain on February 5, 1965, even though he was the youngest captain in the league and had not been a member of the Rangers for a full year at that point.
Prior to the 1965-66 season, Francis publicly discussed the “new look” that the franchise was about to display and how it started with the Rangers-Maple Leafs trade in February of 1964. Sullivan called Nevin “one of the top right wings in the league”, while Francis lauded Nevin’s two-way ability. In 1965-66, while playing on a line with veterans Don Marshall at left wing and Phil Goyette at center (the trio was nicknamed the “Old Smoothies Line” for their crafty playmaking ability), Nevin led the Rangers in goals (29), assists (33), and points (62), was named the team’s Most Valuable Player, and finished third in voting for the Lady Byng Trophy (awarded to the NHL player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability).
The following season, the Rangers advanced to the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time since Nevin joined the team and began a stretch of nine consecutive playoff appearances. The Blueshirts’ captain – in addition to maintaining his level of his play – had served as a model for the young, rising forwards in the organization who were on the verge of becoming stars, such as Rod Gilbert, Jean Ratelle, and Vic Hadfield.
While Nevin’s offensive output would be surpassed by Gilbert and Ratelle in the late 1960s, Bernie “Boom Boom” Geoffrion – who played against Nevin for several years before becoming his teammate with the Rangers and then the Rangers’ Head Coach – recognized Nevin’s importance to the team in all areas.
In one interview while he was the Blueshirts’ Head Coach during the 1968-69 season, Geoffrion said, “(Nevin) is the best two-way player. I don’t only mean on our team. I mean in the whole National Hockey League. … Nevin is so important to us because he scores as well as he checks.”
By the 1970-71 season, Nevin was 32 years old and the captain of a Rangers team that featured talented players throughout its lineup. In a full circle moment for Nevin’s career, the Blueshirts faced the Maple Leafs in the Quarterfinals of the 1971 Stanley Cup Playoffs. In the six-game series against Toronto, Nevin led the Blueshirts with five goals and seven points, and ultimately helped the Rangers emerge victorious. In the final contest of the series – Game 6 in Toronto – the Rangers’ captain scored both of the Blueshirts’ goals in a 2-1 win, which included the game-winner in overtime.
The game-winner to beat Toronto was perhaps Nevin’s finest moment as a Ranger. It was also his last triumphant moment with the Blueshirts. Following the 1970-71 season – with several young players pushing for roster spots – Nevin was traded to the Minnesota North Stars.
In nearly a century of Rangers hockey, only Mark Messier and Bill Cook served as the team’s captain for more games than Nevin. A quiet man off the ice, his play in all areas of the rink spoke volumes.
And, six decades after he was named captain, Nevin’s legacy and impact on the Rangers is not forgotten.