During the decade of the 1980s, 168 National Hockey League players skated in at least one game for the Rangers. Over that time, no player who wore the Blueshirt played in more games, scored more goals, tallied more assists, or recorded more points for the team than left winger Don Maloney.
Through his hard-working style of play, Maloney earned the respect of his teammates, trust of his coaches, and admiration of The Garden Faithful.
“There’s something special about MSG,” Maloney said recently when reflecting on his tenure with the Rangers. “There’s a vibe to that place that is second to none. The fans love the Rangers and are so loyal and appreciative, and the building was so loud and boisterous.”
Maloney’s older brother, Dave, was drafted by the Rangers in 1974 and had established himself as a regular in the team’s lineup by the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft, when Don was eligible to be selected. Although Don said that he heard the Rangers might have had interest in him, he wasn’t sure whether he would be selected by the team if they had the chance to pick him.
But when the Rangers had the chance to make their first selection of the Draft – in the second round with the 26th overall pick – Maloney was their choice.
At 20 years old, Maloney began the 1978-79 season with the Rangers’ American Hockey League affiliate, the New Haven Nighthawks. After tallying 44 points in 38 games in New Haven, Maloney was recalled by the Rangers and made his NHL debut at MSG against the Boston Bruins on February 14, 1979. He never went back to the minor leagues.
Maloney scored his first career NHL goal just 5:14 into his NHL debut and then set up Phil Esposito for a goal 46 seconds later, helping the Rangers earn a 5-1 victory over the Bruins. Maloney played on a line with Esposito and right wing Don Murdoch that game and the trio – which would become known as the “Mafia Line” (for having a “Godfather” in Esposito and two “Dons” in Maloney and Murdoch) – carried the Rangers offensively for the remainder of the regular season and into the 1979 Stanley Cup Playoffs.
“Looking back, that line was a perfect combination,” Maloney said. “My strength was playing along the boards and getting pucks, Donnie Murdoch was a finisher and could make plays, and Phil was the man at that time. I knew if I could get the puck anywhere near Phil, there was a pretty good chance he was going to get the puck on the net and likely in the net. Phil would also have Donnie and me meet with him prior to every game to go over the opponent, and that was very helpful for me as a young player coming into the league.”
Maloney tallied 26 points over the final 28 games of the regular season, and his offensive surge continued once the playoffs began. He registered three points in the Rangers’ Preliminary Round sweep over the Los Angeles Kings – including an assist on Esposito’s series-clinching goal in overtime – before adding eight points in the team’s five-game series victory over the Philadelphia Flyers in the Quarterfinals.
In the Semifinals against the Islanders, Maloney recorded a point in each of the six games, and he led all skaters on both teams with eight points (three goals, five assists). In what he called “one of the absolute highlights of his career,” Maloney helped the Rangers defeat the Islanders to advance to the Stanley Cup Final.
Although the Rangers were defeated by the Montreal Canadiens in the 1979 Stanley Cup Final, the loss didn’t take away from Maloney’s outstanding playoff run and how he established himself as a regular in the team’s lineup. He ended the playoffs with 20 points (seven goals, 13 assists) in 18 games; the 13 assists were the most that any Ranger tallied in one playoff year in franchise history, and the 20 points were tied with Esposito for the most that any Ranger registered in one playoff year in franchise history.
As the 1980s began, Maloney continued to make a positive impact on the Rangers, whether it was producing offensively or doing the “dirty work” to help his teammates. In both 1979-80 and 1980-81, he was the recipient of the Players’ Player Award, which recognizes the Ranger who, as selected by his teammates, “best exemplifies what it means to be a team player.” Maloney tallied a career-high 73 points during the 1979-80 season, and in 1980-81, he recorded a career-high 29 goals, including nine-game winning goals (which set a single-season franchise record at the time) and five shorthanded goals.
One of those nine game-winning goals and two of those five shorthanded goals came on the night of February 21, 1981, when the Rangers hosted the Washington Capitals at MSG. Late in the second period, Maloney scored three goals in a span of 2:30 seconds – including two shorthanded goals in a span of 34 seconds while Dave Maloney was in the penalty box – to ultimately lead the Rangers to a 6-4 win. To this day, he still holds the Rangers record for the fastest hat trick in franchise history.
Craig Patrick, who took over as the Rangers’ general manager and head coach during the 1980-81 season, said after the game that “Whatever Donnie does I don’t expect him to do every night, but what he does doesn’t surprise me.”
Maloney began to receive notoriety league-wide a few seasons later, as he was selected to play in the NHL All-Star Game in back-to-back years in 1982-83 and 1983-84. In the 1984 NHL All-Star Game, the Rangers’ No. 12 became the first player in franchise history to be named the contest’s Most Valuable Player, as he tied NHL records at the time for points (four) and assists (three) in an All-Star Game.
Maloney’s regular season scoring statistics may have paled in comparison to some of his teammates on the Wales Conference All-Star Team, but he was picked by Islanders head coach Al Arbour – who knew what Maloney brought to the game first-hand from all of the Rangers-Islanders games in the late 1970s and early 1980s – because of how he played the game.
“I picked (Maloney) because he comes to play every game,” Arbour told reporters after the 1984 NHL All-Star Game. “He makes up for what lacks in other areas with hard work.”
Pierre Larouche, who was teammates with Maloney on the Rangers and his linemate in the All-Star Game, said after the game, “He’s getting paid back for all the hard work he always did do.”
Just over two months after he coached Maloney in the All-Star Game, Arbour had a front row seat to one of the most clutch goals that the Rangers forward scored in his career. In the winner-take-all Game 5 of the Patrick Division Semifinals between the Rangers and Islanders at Nassau Coliseum, the Rangers were trailing, 2-1, before Maloney batted in a rebound with 39 seconds remaining in regulation to tie the game. It was – and remains – the only time in Rangers history that a player has scored a game-tying goal in the final minute of regulation when the team has faced elimination.
Players, coaches, and general managers came and went throughout the remainder of the 1980s, but Maloney – along with longtime teammate Ron Greschner – remained the constant. During the 1988-89 season, after parts of 11 seasons with the Rangers, he was dealt to the Hartford Whalers. Ironically, it was Esposito – who assisted on Maloney’s first NHL goal and played such a pivotal role in his career – who was the general manager who traded him.
Maloney’s playing career ended following the 1990-91 season. His legacy with the Rangers would continue in the front office, as he served as the team’s assistant general manager for a decade from 1997 through 2007.
Maloney likes to joke about how the greatest impact he made on the Rangers was his role in the organization’s decision to select Henrik Lundqvist in the seventh round of the 2000 NHL Entry Draft, but his front office tenure only adds to one of the great playing careers in Rangers history. His 85 career playoff games played are the eighth-most in franchise history, and his 57 career playoff points are the fifth-most. He ranks among the top 20 Blueshirts in career games played, goals, assists, and points, and his 14 career shorthanded goals were the most in the history of the franchise until surpassed by Mark Messier and Adam Graves.
More importantly, however, he played the game the right way, with a work ethic and passion that transcended the box score. And that is what Rangers fans remember when they reflect on Don Maloney’s tenure in New York.
