# 1978–79 New York Rangers season

The 1978–79 New York Rangers season was the franchise's 53rd season. The highlight of the season was participating in the Stanley Cup Finals, as the Rangers played 12 consecutive playoff games without losing in regulation.

## Offseason

The Rangers fired their general manager John Ferguson and head coach Jean-Guy Talbot, replacing them with former Philadelphia Flyers and two-time Stanley Cup-winning coach Fred Shero.
The Rangers signed forwards Anders Hedberg and Ulf Nilsson away from the WHA's Winnipeg Jets.
The Rangers chose Don Maloney with their first pick, in the second-round, 26th over-all. Maloney was the younger brother of Dave Maloney, a defenceman with the Rangers. Don Maloney would get into 28 games for the Rangers that season.

### New team colors

In 1978 the Ranger's introduced a new color scheme. While the logo and design remained the same, the Rangers changed to a much lighter shade of blue, dispensing with the dark blue that had been used since the team's inception in 1926. The Rangers would use the new colors until 1999.

## Regular season
### Season standings

Patrick Division :
| | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| New York Islanders | 80 | 51 | 15 | 14 | 358 | 214 | 116 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | 80 | 40 | 25 | 15 | 281 | 248 | 95 |
| New York Rangers | 80 | 40 | 29 | 11 | 316 | 292 | 91 |
| Atlanta Flames | 80 | 41 | 31 | 8 | 327 | 280 | 90 |

### Record vs. opponents

Patrick Division record vs. opponents :
Vs. Campbell Conference
Vs. Wales Conference
Vs. Patrick Division
1978–79 NHL records
Team
ATL
NYI
NYR
PHI
Total
Atlanta
—2–64–3–14–410–13–1
N.Y. Islanders
6–2—5–35–1–216–6–2
N.Y. Rangers
3–4–13–5—2–3–38–12–4
Philadelphia
4–41–5–23–2–3—8–11–5
Vs. Smythe Division
1978–79 NHL records
Team
CHI
COL
STL
VAN
Total
Atlanta
2–1–24–04–12–212–4–2
N.Y. Islanders
3–24–0–13–0–24–014–2–3
N.Y. Rangers
4–04–13–24–015–3–0
Philadelphia
1–33–0–14–12–1–110–5–2
Vs. Adams Division
1978–79 NHL records
Team
BOS
BUF
MIN
TOR
Total
Atlanta
1–32–2–11–2–14–18–8–2
N.Y. Islanders
2–1–21–2–13–13–19–5–3
N.Y. Rangers
2–32–1–11–2–12–2–17–8–3
Philadelphia
3–1–13–0–22–22–2–110–5–4
Vs. Norris Division
1978–79 NHL records
Team
DET
LAK
MTL
PIT
WSH
Total
Atlanta
3–0–12–21–33–0–12–1–111–6–3
N.Y. Islanders
3–0–12–0–23–11–0–33–112–2–6
N.Y. Rangers
1–1–23–13–12–21–1–210–6–4
Philadelphia
2–0–24–00–3–13–13–0–112–4–4 :

## Schedule and results

1978-79 Game Log :
October: 5-1-3 (Home: 4-0-2; Road: 1-1-1)
GameOctoberOpponentScoreRecord
112Philadelphia Flyers3 – 30–0–1
215Colorado Rockies4 – 11–0–1
318Detroit Red Wings3 – 31–0–2
419@ Detroit Red Wings2 – 21–0–3
521@ New York Islanders5 – 31–1–3
622Toronto Maple Leafs5 – 22–1–3
725Vancouver Canucks6 – 23–1–3
828@ Montreal Canadiens2 – 14–1–3
929Pittsburgh Penguins3 – 25–1–3 :
November: 8-3-1 (Home: 2-3-1; Road: 6-0-0)
GameNovemberOpponentScoreRecord
102@ Colorado Rockies3 – 06–1–3
114@ Los Angeles Kings7 – 37–1–3
125@ Vancouver Canucks5 – 28–1–3
138Minnesota North Stars5 – 38–2–3
1411@ Pittsburgh Penguins2 – 19–2–3
1512New York Islanders5 – 39–3–3
1615Chicago Black Hawks8 – 110–3–3
1718@ Minnesota North Stars7 – 211–3–3
1819Atlanta Flames3 – 111–4–3
1922Toronto Maple Leafs3 – 311–4–4
2026Washington Capitals9 – 412–4–4
2129@ Atlanta Flames5 – 313–4–4 :
December: 7-9-0 (Home: 4-4-0; Road: 3-5-0)
GameDecemberOpponentScoreRecord
222@ Toronto Maple Leafs5 – 213–5–4
233Boston Bruins3 – 213–6–4
246St. Louis Blues7 – 414–6–4
257@ Philadelphia Flyers5 – 215–6–4
269@ Detroit Red Wings5 – 415–7–4
2710Philadelphia Flyers4 – 015–8–4
2813Los Angeles Kings8 – 716–8–4
2916@ Boston Bruins4 – 116–9–4
3017Boston Bruins4 – 116–10–4
3120Buffalo Sabres6 – 317–10–4
3222Detroit Red Wings4 – 218–10–4
3323@ New York Islanders9 – 418–11–4
3426@ Atlanta Flames5 – 319–11–4
3528@ Philadelphia Flyers6 – 519–12–4
3630@ Chicago Black Hawks5 – 420–12–4
3731Atlanta Flames6 – 520–13–4 :
January: 9-4-1 (Home: 3-1-1; Road: 6-3-0)
GameJanuaryOpponentScoreRecord
383Montreal Canadiens6 – 221–13–4
395Vancouver Canucks6 – 422–13–4
409@ St. Louis Blues5 – 323–13–4
4110@ Colorado Rockies5 – 324–13–4
4214@ Atlanta Flames6 – 425–13–4
4315Minnesota North Stars8 – 125–14–4
4417New York Islanders5 – 326–14–4
4520@ St. Louis Blues3 – 226–15–4
4621Philadelphia Flyers5 – 526–15–5
4724@ Washington Capitals5 – 126–16–5
4825@ Buffalo Sabres5 – 427–16–5
4927@ New York Islanders7 – 228–16–5
5030@ Vancouver Canucks5 – 329–16–5
5131@ Colorado Rockies5 – 429–17–5 :
February: 5-3-2 (Home: 3-0-1; Road: 2-3-1)
GameFebruaryOpponentScoreRecord
523@ Los Angeles Kings4 – 229–18–5
5314Boston Bruins5 – 130–18–5
5415@ Buffalo Sabres4 – 330–19–5
5517@ Philadelphia Flyers4 – 231–19–5
5618Washington Capitals6 – 631–19–6
5721St. Louis Blues7 – 332–19–6
5824@ Toronto Maple Leafs4 – 233–19–6
5925New York Islanders3 – 234–19–6
6027@ St. Louis Blues4 – 134–20–6
6128@ Minnesota North Stars4 – 434–20–7 :
March: 5-6-3 (Home: 2-4-2; Road: 3-2-1)
GameMarchOpponentScoreRecord
623Buffalo Sabres2 – 234–20–8
634Toronto Maple Leafs4 – 234–21–8
647Colorado Rockies5 – 335–21–8
6510@ Montreal Canadiens6 – 336–21–8
6611Chicago Black Hawks5 – 237–21–8
6714Atlanta Flames6 – 437–22–8
6815@ Boston Bruins7 – 438–22–8
6917@ New York Islanders5 – 238–23–8
7018Pittsburgh Penguins5 – 138–24–8
7120@ Washington Capitals2 – 238–24–9
7221@ Chicago Black Hawks7 – 639–24–9
7325Montreal Canadiens1 – 039–25–9
7427Philadelphia Flyers4 – 439–25–10
7528@ Pittsburgh Penguins7 – 139–26–10 :
April: 1-3-1 (Home: 1-1-1; Road: 0-2-0)
GameAprilOpponentScoreRecord
761@ Philadelphia Flyers7 – 339–27–10
772Los Angeles Kings5 – 440–27–10
784Atlanta Flames3 – 340–27–11
796@ Atlanta Flames9 – 240–28–11
808New York Islanders5 – 240–29–11 :

### Season summary

* February 25: During a win against the Islanders, Ulf Nilsson was injured on a hip check by Denis Potvin of the New York Islanders. He suffered a broken ankle when his skate blade got caught in a crevice in the Madison Square Garden ice as he was hit by Potvin, which resulted in Nilsson bearing the entire force of the hit on only one leg. Although Nilsson has never characterized the hit as dirty and, in 2009, said, "He [Potvin] was always fair. But the ice was never great in the Garden, because they had basketball and other events. My foot got caught. It was a freak thing." Nevertheless the incident is still commemorated by the "Potvin Sucks" chant that takes place during every Rangers home game, and to this day, this would serve as the origin to this infamous "Potvin Sucks" chant at Madison Square Garden.

## Playoffs
### Stanley Cup Finals

The Rangers faced the defending champion Montreal Canadiens, who were making their fourth straight Stanley Cup Finals appearance. It was the Rangers' first appearance in the finals since the 1972 Stanley Cup Finals. The Canadiens would win the best-of-seven series four games to one, to win their fourth consecutive Stanley Cup.
Key: Win Loss
1979 Stanley Cup playoffs :

## Player statistics
### Skaters

Regular Season :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| Anders Hedberg | 80 | 33 | 46 | 79 | 33 |
| Phil Esposito | 80 | 42 | 36 | 78 | 37 |
| Pat Hickey | 80 | 34 | 41 | 75 | 56 |
| Ulf Nilsson | 59 | 27 | 39 | 66 | 21 |
| Ron Duguay | 79 | 27 | 36 | 63 | 35 |
| Mike McEwen | 80 | 20 | 38 | 58 | 35 |
| Ron Greschner | 60 | 17 | 36 | 53 | 66 |
| Steve Vickers | 66 | 13 | 34 | 47 | 24 |
| Carol Vadnais | 77 | 8 | 37 | 45 | 86 |
| Walt Tkaczuk | 77 | 15 | 27 | 42 | 38 |
| Don Murdoch | 40 | 15 | 21 | 36 | 6 |
| Pierre Plante | 70 | 6 | 25 | 31 | 37 |
| Mario Marois | 71 | 5 | 26 | 31 | 153 |
| Dean Talafous | 68 | 13 | 16 | 29 | 29 |
| Lucien DeBlois | 62 | 11 | 17 | 28 | 26 |
| Dave Maloney | 76 | 11 | 17 | 28 | 151 |
| Don Maloney | 28 | 9 | 17 | 26 | 39 |
| Dave Farrish | 71 | 1 | 19 | 20 | 61 |
| Ed Johnstone | 30 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 27 |
| Nick Fotiu | 71 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 190 |
| Greg Polis$^‡$ | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 8 |
| Dan Clark | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| Mike Korney | 18 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 18 |
| Tim Bothwell | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Mike McDougall | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dean Turner | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Frank Beaton | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Andre Dore | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Playoffs :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| Don Maloney | 18 | 7 | 13 | 20 | 19 |
| Phil Esposito | 18 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 20 |
| Mike McEwen | 18 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 8 |
| Don Murdoch | 18 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 12 |
| Ron Greschner | 18 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 16 |
| Walt Tkaczuk | 18 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 10 |
| Carol Vadnais | 18 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 13 |
| Ron Duguay | 18 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 11 |
| Anders Hedberg | 18 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 12 |
| Steve Vickers | 18 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 13 |
| Pat Hickey | 18 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 6 |
| Bobby Sheehan | 15 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 8 |
| Dave Maloney | 17 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 45 |
| Mario Marois | 18 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 29 |
| Pierre Plante | 18 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 20 |
| Ed Johnstone | 17 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 10 |
| Dave Farrish | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 14 |
| Lucien DeBlois | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 4 |
| Nick Fotiu | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| Ulf Nilsson | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |

### Goaltenders

Regular Season :
| Player | GP | TOI | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SO |
| John Davidson | 39 | 2232 | 20 | 12 | 5 | 131 | 3.52 | 0 |
| Wayne Thomas | 31 | 1668 | 15 | 10 | 3 | 101 | 3.63 | 1 |
| Doug Soetaert | 17 | 900 | 5 | 7 | 3 | 57 | 3.80 | 0 |
Playoffs :
| Player | GP | TOI | W | L | GA | GAA | SO |
| John Davidson | 18 | 1106 | 11 | 7 | 42 | 2.28 | 1 |
$^†$Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Rangers. Stats reflect time with Rangers only. $^‡$Traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with Rangers only.
    Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
    Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

## Draft picks

New York's picks at the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft in Montreal, Canada.
| Round | # | Player | Position | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 2 | 26 | Don Maloney | LW | Canada | Kitchener Rangers (OHA) |
| 3 | 43 | Ray Markham | C | Canada | Flin Flon Bombers (WCHL) |
| 3 | 44 | Dean Turner | D | United States | University of Michigan (NCAA) |
| 4 | 59 | Dave Silk | RW | United States | Boston University (NCAA) |
| 4 | 60 | Andre Dore | D | Canada | Quebec Remparts (QMJHL) |
| 5 | 76 | Mike MacDougall | RW | United States | Port Huron Flags (IHL) |
| 6 | 93 | Tom Laidlaw | D | Canada | Northern Michigan University (NCAA) |
| 7 | 110 | Dan Clark | D | Canada | Milwaukee Admirals (IHL) |
| 8 | 127 | Greg Kostenko | D | Canada | Ohio State University (NCAA) |
| 9 | 144 | Brian McDavid | D | Canada | Kitchener Rangers (OHA) |
| 10 | 161 | Mark Rodrigues | G | United States | Yale University (NCAA) |
| 11 | 176 | Steve Weeks | G | Canada | Northern Michigan University (NCAA) |
| 12 | 192 | Pierre Daigneault | LW | Canada | Montreal Juniors (QMJHL) |
| 13 | 206 | Chris McLaughlin | D | United States | Dartmouth College (NCAA) |
| 14 | 217 | Todd Johnson | C | United States | Boston University (NCAA) |
| 15 | 223 | Dan McCarthy | C | Canada | Sudbury Wolves (OHA) |