On October 11 in Rangers history: Records set & milestones reached

What happened on October 11 in the history of the New York Rangers

October 11 is a recording setting day for the New York Rangers with two individual franchise records set and two milestones reached.

The fastest goal

On this date in 1959, Larry Popein scored seven seconds into the second period in a road game at the Detroit Olympia versus the Red Wings.  That set a franchise record for the fastest goal scored at the start of a period,  breaking the record of eight seconds set by Bill Cook in 1928.

The goal gave the Rangers a 2-0 lead, but the Red Wings would score four consecutive goals to win 4-2.

The NHL record for the fastest goal scored at the start of a period is four seconds, set by three different players, most recently James van Riemsdyk in 2014.

The youngest 3 hat trick

In 1980 on this date, rookie Mike Allison set the franchise record as the youngest Ranger to get a hat trick in a game. He’s also the youngest to register three points in a game.  He was 19 years, 197 days old when he scored three goals against the Toronto Maple Leafs in an 8-3 win at Maple Leaf Gardens.

Allison broke the hat trick record held by Camille Henry who had scored four goals in a game in 1954 when he was 21 years, 41 days old. The three points record he broke had been held by Jackie McLeod since February 1950.

The last Gretzky hat trick

Wayne Gretzky holds the NHL record for career hat tricks with 50.  No one is even close with Mario Lemieux second with 40.  How great is that record?  Alexander Ovechkin is threatening to break Gretzky’s goal scoring record, but he has only 27 career hat tricks.

On this date in 1997, Gretzky scored the last hat trick of his illustrious career in a 6-4 win for the Rangers over the Vancouver Canucks.  He did it on the road in Vancouver and added two assists for the 66th five-point game of his career.  Including playoffs, it was the 65th hat trick of his career.

It was the only hat trick for Gretzky in the regular season as a Ranger, but he had two hat tricks in the playoffs for New York, both in 1997 as the Rangers drove to the Conference Finals.

A great start for Doug Harvey

Player-coaches are reasonably rare in the NHL and on this date in 1961, defenseman Doug Harvey got off to a great start, scoring in his first game as coach for the Rangers.  It was a second period power play goal that broke a 1-1 tie.  The game ended in a 6-2 win for the Rangers over the Boston Bruins.

Harvey ended up coaching for only one season, relinquishing the role the next season to focus on playing.  In his one season as coach, the Rangers went 26-32-12 and finished in fourth place in the NHL, losing in the first round of the playoffs to Toronto.

He was more successful as a player that season, winning his seventh Norris Trophy and being named a First Team All-Star for the 10th time.

Harvey was the third player-coach in Rangers history and the only to coach for an entire season.  Frank Boucher came out of retirement in 1943-44 to play 15 games.  The most famous was Lester Patrick who was coach when he had to play goal for the Rangers in 1928 after goalie Lorne Chabot was injured in the Stanley Cup Final.

Today’s birthdays

21 NHL players have been born on October 11 including four former Rangers and one current Blueshirt who could have a great future.

Alexis Lafrenière was born on October 11, 2001 in St-Eustache, Quebec.  The first overall pick in the 2020 NHL Entry Draft, he is one of only two players to be selected CHL Player of the Year (along with Sidney Crosby).  He also was MVP of the World Junior Championships in 2019.

Grant Warwick was born on this date in 1921 in Regina, Saskatchewan.  The right winger played seven seasons with the Rangers before finishing his career in Boston and Montreal.  Warwick won the Calder Trophy in 1942 as top rookie.  Known as “Knobby”,  in 1942 he became the youngest Ranger to get four points in a game, a record held until broken by Gene Carr in 1971.

Dale Purinton was a tough defenseman, born on this date in 1976 Fort Wayne, Indiana.  He played four seasons in New York from 2000 to 2004, appearing in 181 games.  Known for his physical play, Purinton totaled 578 minutes in penalties in those 181 games leading the team twice.

Justin Faulk was a defenseman, born on this date in 1988 in Snowflake, Manitoba.  Often confused with another NHL defenseman with the same name, this Justin Faulk played 21 games for the Rangers in 2013-14 in a 10-year career for five different teams.

Jim Morrison was born on this date in 1931 in Montreal, Quebec.  He was a defenseman who played 19 games for the Rangers in the 1960-61 season. A solid blueliner, he played in three All-Star games for the Maple Leafs in the 1950s.  The Rangers traded him to the AHL Quebec Aces where he played for eight years, only to make a return to the NHL after nine years away, with the Pittsburgh Penguins.  He was not the lead singer for The Doors.