Why Rangers Goalies Are So Popular

I can't put my finger on it but, for some reason, goalie stories seem to attract more attention than others.

After I had seen my first game at MSG – the old one on 8th Avenue – I went to PS 54 the next day when my third grade teacher, Mrs. Gould, did a "Show And Tell."

She called on me and I did an imitation of a goalie because the puck-stopper fascinated me more than any other player.

Mrs. Gould gave me an "A" and my first thought was "This hockey business ain't too bad."

In those days, the Rangers farm team in the Eastern Amateur Hockey League, the NY Rovers, played on Sunday afternoons at the old Garden. Ditto, the four Met League teams and I can remember affectionately those goalies as well.

Ed Bearden of the Brooklyn Torpedoes; Larry Feltham of the Manhattan Arrows; future Vezina Trophy-winner Al Rollins of the Rovers. The EAHL Boston Olympics had some goodies; Maurice Courteau and Harvey Bennett were among my faves.

As for the Rangers, Chuck (Bonnie Prince Charlie) Rayner topped them all. Charlie beat the mighty Howe-Lindsay-Abel Red Wings one night, 1-0. It was goaltending at its very best and courageous; no mask and none of the other fortress-like equipment they employ nowadays.

Many of us remember Terry Sawchuk in his last days as a Rangers goalie. After his youthful starry days with Detroit, Terry was traded to a woebegone Bruins team. I dare say that one of the greatest displays of goaltending that The Maven ever saw was Sawchuk – as a Bruin – beating the Rangers 1-0 on a wrist shot by Orval Tessier; that also is just as vivid in my memory bank.

Suffice to say, Terry was so terrific that evening – or, maybe it was a rare afternoon game – that when I got home I started hoping the Mrs. Gould would call on me for another "Show And Tell!"