1978–79 New York Rangers season

NHL hockey team season March 2026 August 2023 NHL 1978–79 1978 New York Rangers Campbell 3rd Patrick 3rd 40–29–11 19–13–8 21–16–3 316 292 Fred Shero Fred Shero Dave Maloney None Madison Square Garden Phil Esposito (42) Anders Hedberg (46) Anders Hedberg (79) Nick Fotiu (190) John Davidson (20) John Davidson (3.52) The 1978–79 New York Rangers season was the franchise's 53rd season. The highlight of the season was participating in the Stanley Cup Final, as the Rangers played 12 consecutive playoff games without losing in regulation. 2 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 thumb|200px|New Rangers 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.NEW YORK RANGERS LOGO https://1000logos.net/new-york-rangers-logo/ 1000 Logos September 12, 2023 The Rangers would use the new colors until 1999. Regular season Season standings NYR Record vs. opponents NYR Schedule and results background:#FFFFFF; border-top:#0161AB 5px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 5px solid; 1978–79 regular season1978–79 New York Rangers Schedule https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/NYR/1979_games.html Hockey-Reference.com March 31, 2025 y background:#FFFFFF; border-top:#0161AB 2px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 2px solid; October: 5–1–3 (home: 4–0–2; road: 1–1–1) Game October Opponent Score Record |- | 1 || 12 || Philadelphia Flyers || 3 – 3 || 0–0–1 |- | 2 || 15 || Colorado Rockies || 4 – 1 || 1–0–1 |- | 3 || 18 || Detroit Red Wings || 3 – 3 || 1–0–2 |- | 4 || 19 || @ Detroit Red Wings || 2 – 2 || 1–0–3 |- | 5 || 21 || @ New York Islanders || 5 – 3 || 1–1–3 |- | 6 || 22 || Toronto Maple Leafs || 5 – 2 || 2–1–3 |- | 7 || 25 || Vancouver Canucks || 6 – 2 || 3–1–3 |- | 8 || 28 || @ Montreal Canadiens || 2 – 1 || 4–1–3 |- | 9 || 29 || Pittsburgh Penguins || 3 – 2 || 5–1–3 |- y background:#FFFFFF; border-top:#0161AB 2px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 2px solid; November: 8–3–1 (home: 2–3–1; road: 6–0–0) Game November Opponent Score Record |- | 10 || 2 || @ Colorado Rockies || 3 – 0 || 6–1–3 |- | 11 || 4 || @ Los Angeles Kings || 7 – 3 || 7–1–3 |- | 12 || 5 || @ Vancouver Canucks || 5 – 2 || 8–1–3 |- | 13 || 8 || Minnesota North Stars || 5 – 3 || 8–2–3 |- | 14 || 11 || @ Pittsburgh Penguins || 2 – 1 || 9–2–3 |- | 15 || 12 || New York Islanders || 5 – 3 || 9–3–3 |- | 16 || 15 || Chicago Black Hawks || 8 – 1 || 10–3–3 |- | 17 || 18 || @ Minnesota North Stars || 7 – 2 || 11–3–3 |- | 18 || 19 || Atlanta Flames || 3 – 1 || 11–4–3 |- | 19 || 22 || Toronto Maple Leafs || 3 – 3 || 11–4–4 |- | 20 || 26 || Washington Capitals || 9 – 4 || 12–4–4 |- | 21 || 29 || @ Atlanta Flames || 5 – 3 || 13–4–4 |- y background:#FFFFFF; border-top:#0161AB 2px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 2px solid; December: 7–9–0 (home: 4–4–0; road: 3–5–0) Game December Opponent Score Record |- | 22 || 2 || @ Toronto Maple Leafs || 5 – 2 || 13–5–4 |- | 23 || 3 || Boston Bruins || 3 – 2 || 13–6–4 |- | 24 || 6 || St. Louis Blues || 7 – 4 || 14–6–4 |- | 25 || 7 || @ Philadelphia Flyers || 5 – 2 || 15–6–4 |- | 26 || 9 || @ Detroit Red Wings || 5 – 4 || 15–7–4 |- | 27 || 10 || Philadelphia Flyers || 4 – 0 || 15–8–4 |- | 28 || 13 || Los Angeles Kings || 8 – 7 || 16–8–4 |- | 29 || 16 || @ Boston Bruins || 4 – 1 || 16–9–4 |- | 30 || 17 || Boston Bruins || 4 – 1 || 16–10–4 |- | 31 || 20 || Buffalo Sabres || 6 – 3 || 17–10–4 |- | 32 || 22 || Detroit Red Wings || 4 – 2 || 18–10–4 |- | 33 || 23 || @ New York Islanders || 9 – 4 || 18–11–4 |- | 34 || 26 || @ Atlanta Flames || 5 – 3 || 19–11–4 |- | 35 || 28 || @ Philadelphia Flyers || 6 – 5 || 19–12–4 |- | 36 || 30 || @ Chicago Black Hawks || 5 – 4 || 20–12–4 |- | 37 || 31 || Atlanta Flames || 6 – 5 || 20–13–4 |- y background:#FFFFFF; border-top:#0161AB 2px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 2px solid; January: 9–4–1 (home: 3–1–1; road: 6–3–0) Game January Opponent Score Record |- | 38 || 3 || Montreal Canadiens || 6 – 2 || 21–13–4 |- | 39 || 5 || Vancouver Canucks || 6 – 4 || 22–13–4 |- | 40 || 9 || @ St. Louis Blues || 5 – 3 || 23–13–4 |- | 41 || 10 || @ Colorado Rockies || 5 – 3 || 24–13–4 |- | 42 || 14 || @ Atlanta Flames || 6 – 4 || 25–13–4 |- | 43 || 15 || Minnesota North Stars || 8 – 1 || 25–14–4 |- | 44 || 17 || New York Islanders || 5 – 3 || 26–14–4 |- | 45 || 20 || @ St. Louis Blues || 3 – 2 || 26–15–4 |- | 46 || 21 || Philadelphia Flyers || 5 – 5 || 26–15–5 |- | 47 || 24 || @ Washington Capitals || 5 – 1 || 26–16–5 |- | 48 || 25 || @ Buffalo Sabres || 5 – 4 || 27–16–5 |- | 49 || 27 || @ New York Islanders || 7 – 2 || 28–16–5 |- | 50 || 30 || @ Vancouver Canucks || 5 – 3 || 29–16–5 |- | 51 || 31 || @ Colorado Rockies || 5 – 4 || 29–17–5 |- y background:#FFFFFF; border-top:#0161AB 2px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 2px solid; February: 5–3–2 (home: 3–0–1; road: 2–3–1) Game February Opponent Score Record |- | 52 || 3 || @ Los Angeles Kings || 4 – 2 || 29–18–5 |- | 53 || 14 || Boston Bruins || 5 – 1 || 30–18–5 |- | 54 || 15 || @ Buffalo Sabres || 4 – 3 || 30–19–5 |- | 55 || 17 || @ Philadelphia Flyers || 4 – 2 || 31–19–5 |- | 56 || 18 || Washington Capitals || 6 – 6 || 31–19–6 |- | 57 || 21 || St. Louis Blues || 7 – 3 || 32–19–6 |- | 58 || 24 || @ Toronto Maple Leafs || 4 – 2 || 33–19–6 |- | 59 || 25 || New York Islanders || 3 – 2 || 34–19–6 |- | 60 || 27 || @ St. Louis Blues || 4 – 1 || 34–20–6 |- | 61 || 28 || @ Minnesota North Stars || 4 – 4 || 34–20–7 |- y background:#FFFFFF; border-top:#0161AB 2px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 2px solid; March: 5–6–3 (home: 2–4–2; road: 3–2–1) Game March Opponent Score Record |- | 62 || 3 || Buffalo Sabres || 2 – 2 || 34–20–8 |- | 63 || 4 || Toronto Maple Leafs || 4 – 2 || 34–21–8 |- | 64 || 7 || Colorado Rockies || 5 – 3 || 35–21–8 |- | 65 || 10 || @ Montreal Canadiens || 6 – 3 || 36–21–8 |- | 66 || 11 || Chicago Black Hawks || 5 – 2 || 37–21–8 |- | 67 || 14 || Atlanta Flames || 6 – 4 || 37–22–8 |- | 68 || 15 || @ Boston Bruins || 7 – 4 || 38–22–8 |- | 69 || 17 || @ New York Islanders || 5 – 2 || 38–23–8 |- | 70 || 18 || Pittsburgh Penguins || 5 – 1 || 38–24–8 |- | 71 || 20 || @ Washington Capitals || 2 – 2 || 38–24–9 |- | 72 || 21 || @ Chicago Black Hawks || 7 – 6 || 39–24–9 |- | 73 || 25 || Montreal Canadiens || 1 – 0 || 39–25–9 |- | 74 || 27 || Philadelphia Flyers || 4 – 4 || 39–25–10 |- | 75 || 28 || @ Pittsburgh Penguins || 7 – 1 || 39–26–10 |- y background:#FFFFFF; border-top:#0161AB 2px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 2px solid; April: 1–3–1 (home: 1–1–1; road: 0–2–0) Game April Opponent Score Record |- | 76 || 1 || @ Philadelphia Flyers || 7 – 3 || 39–27–10 |- | 77 || 2 || Los Angeles Kings || 5 – 4 || 40–27–10 |- | 78 || 4 || Atlanta Flames || 3 – 3 || 40–27–11 |- | 79 || 6 || @ Atlanta Flames || 9 – 2 || 40–28–11 |- | 80 || 8 || New York Islanders || 5 – 2 || 40–29–11 |- |- | Legend: #cfc Win (2 points) 1px solid black #fcc Loss (0 points) 1px solid black #ffc Tie (1 point) 1px solid black 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 1979 Stanley Cup playoffs 1979 Stanley Cup Final Stanley Cup Final The Rangers faced the defending champion Montreal Canadiens, who were making their fourth straight Stanley Cup Final appearance. It was the Rangers' first appearance in the Final since the 1972 Stanley Cup Final. The Canadiens would win the best-of-seven series four games to one, to win their fourth consecutive Stanley Cup. background:#fff; border-top:#0161AB 5px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 5px solid; 1979 Stanley Cup playoffs y background:#fff; border-top:#0161AB 2px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 2px solid; Preliminary round vs. (10) Los Angeles Kings – Rangers win 2–0 Game Date Visitor Score Home OT Series |- | 1 || April 10 || Los Angeles Kings || 1 – 7 || New York Rangers || || New York Rangers lead series 1–0 |- | 2 || April 12 || New York Rangers || 2 – 1 || Los Angeles Kings || OT || New York Rangers win series 2–0 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#0161AB 2px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 2px solid; Quarterfinals vs. (4) Philadelphia Flyers – Rangers win 4–1 Game Date Visitor Score Home OT Series |- | 1 || April 16 || New York Rangers || 2 – 3 || Philadelphia Flyers || OT || Philadelphia leads series 1–0 |- | 2 || April 18 || New York Rangers || 7 – 1 || Philadelphia Flyers || || Series tied 1-1 |- | 3 || April 20 || Philadelphia Flyers || 1 – 5 || New York Rangers || || New York Rangers lead series 2–1 |- | 4 || April 22 || Philadelphia Flyers || 0 – 6 || New York Rangers || || New York Rangers lead series 3–1 |- | 5 || April 24 || New York Rangers || 8 – 3 || Philadelphia Flyers || || New York Rangers win series 4–1 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#0161AB 2px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 2px solid; Semifinals vs. (1) New York Islanders – Rangers win 4–2 Game Date Visitor Score Home OT Series |- | 1 || April 26 || New York Rangers || 4 – 1 || New York Islanders || || New York Rangers lead series 1–0 |- | 2 || April 28 || New York Rangers || 3 – 4 || New York Islanders || OT || Series tied 1-1 |- | 3 || May 1 || New York Islanders || 1 – 3 || New York Rangers || || New York Rangers lead series 2–1 |- | 4 || May 3 || New York Islanders || 3 – 2 || New York Rangers || OT || Series tied 2-2 |- | 5 || May 5 || New York Rangers || 4 – 3 || New York Islanders || || New York Rangers lead series 3–2 |- | 6 || May 8 || New York Islanders || 1 – 2 || New York Rangers || || New York Rangers win series 4–2 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#0161AB 2px solid; border-bottom:#E6393F 2px solid; Stnaley Cup Final vs. (2) Montreal Canadiens – Canadiens win 4–1 Game Date Visitor Score Home OT Series |- | 1 || May 13 || New York Rangers || 4 – 1 || Montreal Canadiens || || New York Rangers lead series 1–0 |- | 2 || May 15 || New York Rangers || 2 – 6 || Montreal Canadiens || || Series tied 1-1 |- | 3 || May 17 || Montreal Canadiens || 4 – 1 || New York Rangers || || Montreal leads series 2–1 |- | 4 || May 19 || Montreal Canadiens || 4 – 3 || New York Rangers || OT || Montreal leads series 3–1 |- | 5 || May 21 || New York Rangers || 1 – 4 || Montreal Canadiens || || Montreal wins series 4–1 |- |- | Legend: #cfc Win 1px solid black #fcc Loss 1px solid black Player statistics Skaters Regular season Player GP Games played G Goals A Assists Pts Points PIM Penalty minutes Anders Hedberg 80 33 46 79 33 Phil Esposito 80 42 36 78 37 Pat Hickey Pat Hickey (ice hockey) 80 34 41 75 56 Ulf Nilsson Ulf Nilsson (ice hockey) 59 27 39 66 21 Ron Duguay 79 27 36 63 35 Mike McEwen Mike McEwen (ice hockey) 80 20 38 58 35 Ron Greschner 60 17 36 53 66 Steve Vickers Steve Vickers (ice hockey) 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 Dan Clark (ice hockey) 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 Dean Turner (ice hockey) 1 0 0 0 0 Frank Beaton 2 0 0 0 0 Andre Dore 2 0 0 0 0 Playoffs Player GP Games played G Goals A Assists Pts Points PIM Penalty minutes Don Maloney 18 7 13 20 19 Phil Esposito 18 8 12 20 20 Mike McEwen Mike McEwen (ice hockey) 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 Steve Vickers (ice hockey) 18 5 3 8 13 Pat Hickey Pat Hickey (ice hockey) 18 1 7 8 6 Bobby Sheehan Bobby Sheehan (ice hockey) 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 Ulf Nilsson (ice hockey) 2 0 0 0 2 Goaltenders Regular season Player GP Games played TOI Time on ice W Win L Loss T Tie GA Goals against GAA Goals against average SO Shutouts John Davidson John Davidson (ice hockey) 39 2232 20 12 5 131 3.52 0 Wayne Thomas Wayne Thomas (ice hockey) 31 1668 15 10 3 101 3.63 1 Doug Soetaert 17 900 5 7 3 57 3.80 0 Playoffs Player GP Games played TOI Time on ice W Win L Loss GA Goals against GAA Goals against average SO Shutouts John Davidson John Davidson (ice hockey) 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. hockeydb.com 2010-08-08 1978-79 New York Rangers http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/leagues/seasons/teams/0000481979.html 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) References External links Rangers on Hockey Database 1978-79 Category:1978–79 NHL season by team Category:1978 in sports in New York City Category:1979 in sports in New York City 1978-79 New York Rangers season