Interviews from Sunday's New York State Hockey Hall of Fame induction ceremony

[00:00:00] Speaker A: Foreign. [00:00:03] Speaker B: The following program is brought to. [00:00:05] Speaker C: You in living color on Dell gazette.com or wherever you get your podcast. The Daily Gazette Company presents the parting Shots Podcast. Now here's your host, Daily Gazette sports editor Ken Shot. [00:00:23] Speaker D: Thank you, Scott Gezy, and welcome to the Parting Shots podcast, available wherever you get your podcast. Subscribe today. Thanks for joining me from the Parting Shots Podcast studio in Schenectady, N.Y. special. [00:00:34] Speaker E: Edition of the podcast. [00:00:36] Speaker D: Sunday night was the fourth annual New York State Hockey hall of Fame induction ceremony at the Hilton Garden Inn in Troy, and I appreciate Rennie LaRue, the president of the hall of Fame, for inviting me once again to it and a great class. And of course we had Matt Murley on the podcast a couple weeks ago. He was inducted the former RPI great Kathleen Calf from Saratoga Springs, played at Brown University, won a bronze medal in the 2006 Olympics with Team USA. We had her on last week and then of course article in Sunday's Daily Gazette. And there were others that were inducted Sunday and I had a chance to interview several of the inductees. You're going to hear in this podcast from broadcasting legend Jake McDonald, who broadcasted the Los Angeles Kings, Atlanta Flames, New York Islanders and Florida Panthers. We're going to talk to Dave Maloney, the New York Rangers former defensive for the team, now broadcaster who's now switching positions at msg. He's moving from the radio booth to the television booth because he's going to replace the man I also interviewed, Joe Micheletti. Joe was at the ceremony last night getting inducted as well. So so we'll talk to him about his career in broadcasting and I do tease him a little bit about Union beating, his alma mater, Minnesota, the 2014 national championship game. Photographer legend Bruce Bennett. Great photos he takes of hockey. If you ever watch the Stanley cup final presentation, you see him running around, two cameras in hand sometimes. We want to talk about his career and how the industry has changed with sports photography. He's been around over 40 years. Great to talk with him about his career. Graham Townsend, another former RPI great. He was there and I talked with him and one person I did want to talk to on the podcast, but he politely declined, was Billy Smith. The New York Islanders goaltending legend led the Islanders of four consecutive Stanley Cups from 1980 to 1983. But I will tell you this, I didn't push it with Billy and Billy was a wonderful we chatted off the record or no offense, off the tape, a lot of great stuff. And I told him I grew up in Philadelphia. And I told him I hated him as being a Flyer fan. And we talked about the Bob Nystrom goal in game six of the 1980 Stanley Cup Final at Clincy Islander's first Stanley Cup. And a lot of people thought that goal was all psyched. [00:03:11] Speaker C: I don't. [00:03:11] Speaker D: The majority of people don't. But Philly Smith said, yeah, that was offside. There was a goal in the first period of that game that was off, definitely offside. But I don't think the Nystrom goal was all side. But we had a great chat about hockey and things. And I bought him a beer, so I can say I bought Billy Smith a beer. [00:03:30] Speaker B: So. [00:03:31] Speaker D: So we're doing this in two segments. We're gonna, you know, first I'm gonna. I have introductions at the top of each interview, so you'll just hear me interview or introduce the people. So we're gonna start in a few couple minutes here with Jake McDonald, followed by Dave Maloney and Joe McAletti. So you're listening to the park and Shots. [00:03:56] Speaker F: Hi, I'm Stan. [00:03:57] Speaker D: And I'm Shen. [00:03:58] Speaker F: And each week we bring you the Stan and Shen Show. And each week we talk about fun things through our travels throughout the capital region. We touch on food, we touch on news, try to touch heavily on good news. And Shen's always available with hot takes. [00:04:15] Speaker D: Yeah. So if you could follow along and listen to us every week on DailyGazette.com. [00:04:20] Speaker C: Or on all major streaming platforms, we'd love to have you join us. Stay tun informed with the Daily Gazette's E Edition, download our app, sign up to receive our newsletters, and enjoy exclusive reader rewards when you join our growing community today. Head over to www.dailygazette.com to check out our membership plans. And remember, when credibility matters, trust the Daily Gazette. [00:04:45] Speaker D: Hi, this is Colby Armstrong of sportsnet Pittsburgh covering those Penguins out in Pittsburgh. [00:04:50] Speaker A: TNT and Sportsnet up in Canada. [00:04:52] Speaker C: You're listening to the Parting Shots podcast. [00:04:56] Speaker D: With Daily Gazette sports editor Ken Shot. [00:05:01] Speaker C: Now joined by legendary hockey broadcaster Jigs McDonough, who worked for, really four organizations. Is that correct, Jigs, in your NHL life? [00:05:09] Speaker B: Yeah, I think so. Four NHL teams. Yeah. And then one I put out of business. A couple of broadcast networks, things like that. Yeah, yeah, I think it is four. [00:05:20] Speaker C: I remember as I was coming over here, I recall I first met you in 1986. I was at the NHL All Star game at Hartford, and I was with a contingent of Atlanta Flames fan club members who I know through the years, through the going to the booster club Conventions every year. And then we got to know each other even more as I came up here and we were doing articles on you and the Sports Channel American. We'll get that a little bit. But let's talk about your career. You started with the Los Angeles Kings in the expansion year of 67, 68, and Jack Kent Cook was the owner. What was that time like? Because he's a flamboyant. He was a flamboyant guy. [00:05:55] Speaker B: Very, very flamboyant. The man never had more than $5 in his pocket at any time, so. And he loved hot dogs. And there was a hot dog drive through place. Quite often he would have to borrow money to go through there. But I regarded those five years as my college education. Without a diploma, without a degree at the end of it. But Jack Kent Cook, mastermind, he maybe, maybe interfered a little too much with his hockey team at that time. Didn't leave it in the hands of Larry Regan, who was his general manager. Red Kelly made trades that probably should have been made, that kind of thing. But overall he was, as you say, flamboyant. He really felt that the Kings would sell out night after night, the number of Canadians living in the Los Angeles Valley at that time, or the Valley, the Basin, whatever. And it just didn't work out. The reason for that, in my opinion, if I can carry on here, was that there had been a Western Hockey League team owned by the late Dan Reaves, who had also owned the Rams. And there was a loyalty, there was a fan base that thought Reeves sort of had the NHL franchise and were turning their back on Cook because he already had the Lakers and promised to build a new arena. The flamboyancy. [00:07:16] Speaker F: Yeah. [00:07:17] Speaker C: What was it like that those first couple of years? Obviously, expansion. You know, the teams, the six teams in the Western Conference, Philadelphia, St. Louis, California, Golden Seals, the Kings, the Blues, the Penguins. I mean, they were going up against some of the established teams like Montreal, Toronto, Rangers, Boston, at the time, Detroit. That'd be tough to go of. [00:07:39] Speaker B: Should have been. But, you know, they had a pretty good record at home against the Eastern Conference. Part of that being that the guys in the Eastern Conference were now getting to the West. They were enjoying the California lifestyle, the sunshine. [00:07:52] Speaker C: Oops. [00:07:52] Speaker B: Final score. Kings 4, visitors 1, visitors 2. And you said, you know, maybe this team is for real. Not recognizing really what was going on. But it was, it was a learning experience. It was hockey 101 in a lot of cases. The, the main draws, surprisingly, were the Bruins. Big bad Bruins, of course, at that Time and the Rangers, those two teams in particular outdrew Toronto and Montreal when they visited L. A. Yeah. [00:08:25] Speaker C: Then you went on to the expansion of Atlanta Plains in 1972. Not really at that time a hockey hotbed, but also at the time the WHA was coming into existence. And I think it was more of an NHL trying to beat the WHA to the punch. What was it like in Atlantic? I mean, you had to sell hockey down there? [00:08:43] Speaker B: Yeah, that was the missionary work. There had, I believe, one ice rink. Pretty sure there was only the one. There was an industrial league team or league, I should say four or five teams. There were people from the north who had played the game. But as far as being able to attract a crowd because they knew the game, no, we had to sell, sell, sell and recognize when the team was facing bankruptcy and the players had purchased tickets to give away. And people are calling, this is after five, six years of the existence not only of the planes, but of the building of the Omni. And people are calling to find out how do we get there? Where do you go to get to the Omni? Well, all the concerts the Hawks have played here, Elvis has played the building, all the. And you don't know how to get to the Omni? We haven't done a very good job, have we? [00:09:37] Speaker C: No. Of course, second year they get to the playoffs under Boom Boom Bernie. Boom Boom Jeff Brown as the head coach gets swept out by the Flyers and Dave Schultz. I grew up in Philadelphia, so Dave Schultz scores the game winning goal in overtime in that series. But when you get to the playoffs in year two, did you think guys think this could be happening every year? [00:09:59] Speaker B: Yeah, there was a little bit of that, but not really. Not really enough to justify improving the club or giving them the ability to prove that. Improve the club. They were getting into the lack of financing. There was an ownership group of nine individuals who didn't really like the idea of a cash call going out. We were in this to make money, not to invest more money in players and moving players, that kind of thing. So the third year then was when Boom Boom Jeffrey on resigned mid season. And I think part of the reason and probably 90% of it was he could see the team wasn't going to make the playoffs and that it was going to be a black mark beside his name. Make it the second year, not the third. So Boom stepped aside and things kind of spiraled downhill from there. [00:10:53] Speaker C: Yeah, it ended up 1979-82 to be the last year. Did you have an idea during that Season that the teams end up moving, which eventually went to Calgary. [00:11:02] Speaker B: No, none whatsoever. In fact, when the playoffs, well, there were some rumors going around and everybody in the front office, no, no, don't pay any attention to those. But as I rewind some tape in my mind, I recognize that as we rolled into different cities, David Poyle, the assistant general manager, would get off the bus, go into the hotel with a check to pay for the last time we were there. And, you know, you just, you began to sense that something wasn't quite right. But the rumors, rumors of a movie star buying the team, movie star of Ted Turner and Coca Cola teaming up to keep the team alive and the franchise and business, there was a lot of speculation. And then when the word finally came down that, no, this isn't going to happen, the team is being sold and moved. Everybody was, oh, well, we didn't get a chance to do what maybe we could have done. [00:11:58] Speaker C: So you had a job for several. But how did you end up with the owners? [00:12:03] Speaker B: Well, I was told that they weren't going to move a broadcaster to Calgary. Then Hockey night in Canada, the late Ralph Mellenby, Ralph at the time said, you get yourself to Calgary and we'll probably use you. You get yourself to Calgary, Let me figure the cost of moving your wife and two children myself, and we'll probably use you. No, no, guarantee. No, not. Not right now. So that just happened to coincide with the Islander job becoming available because Steve Albert was doing Mets baseball and Islanders hockey. And they said you can't do both. The overlap. Somebody you got to choose which one you're going to do. Well, I'll do baseball. Okay. So the radio job became available. Actually the, the television job, it was cable TV at the time, or Rometco. And then I would, I would fill in for Tim Ryan, whatever game he had to miss. And Timmy ended up missing many of the 20 that season. And they decided to replace Bob Lawrence. Took Bob off radio and said, well, simulcast kind of similar to what's going on in the league these days, isn't it? [00:13:26] Speaker C: Yeah, yeah, of course. Then you get to call three straight Stanley cup championships. Owners get to a fifth overall against Edmonton in 84. How much, how thrilling was that to be able to call three straight Stanley cup championships? [00:13:38] Speaker B: You know, I recognize now why people are saying, well, that's enough of the Florida Panthers and Edmonton. At the time I thought, no, why do we want to stop this? And history will show that the league stepped in and it's the only time in the history of the San Diego playoffs that they've had a two, three, two series, first two on Long island, three in Edmonton. All travel related. Yeah, right. [00:14:02] Speaker C: Well, they had the Flyers in 85 too. Same thing at 2, 3, 2. And they got rid of it after that. [00:14:08] Speaker B: Yeah, they should have, should never have. [00:14:10] Speaker C: They want the omba. I think that's what they wanted to do. [00:14:12] Speaker B: Yeah, yeah, unfortunately. But yeah, that, that was an unbelievable thrill at that time. Of course, we could go right through the Sandy Cup Final. By we, I mean the guys in the TV booth locally and with Channel 9 being a superstation on the satellite, the games were available across America. It was, it was neat, really neat. [00:14:36] Speaker C: One other memo game you called was the 1987 Easter Sunday morning forward time game against the Capitals and the Patrick Division semifinals. I lived in York at the time, working at the York Daily Record, and we had home team sports. So we got. Mike Forens called the game. ESPN was blacked out. What was it like that night for you to call that game? [00:14:59] Speaker B: You know, it just went on and on and it got maybe a little bit slower, a little bit easier to call, guys being as tired as they were. But you just sat back and marveled at the saves at both ends of the ice. I mean, the saves that Kelly Rooney made, the opportunities that were there. Washington had every right to win that game. From time to time they were the better team and the Islanders would pick up the pace. I loved every second of it. It just, it was such an unbelievable memory. And then a story that probably hasn't been told, or if it has been not very often, is that the team got to Baltimore for the charter and couldn't fly. New York was fogged in and we sat on the tarmac, sat there at Baltimore waiting to fly home, only to turn around and go to Philadelphia for the next round that very same night. [00:16:01] Speaker C: Of course, then you went on the Florida Panthers for a few years when you did that hockey there in Sunrise wasn't really. Seats were empty. The Panthers weren't really much of an organization there. How much has that changed since you're, since you were there? And how happy are you that it's really turned around down there? [00:16:21] Speaker B: It's probably changed 98, 99% from my era there. I was there from 99 to 2004. And you're right, the seats were empty. There was no excitement, unless you came to see what Pavel's girlfriend was wearing that night or if you were a hockey fan, to marvel at Pavel, Pavel's ability. We still had the red line at that Time if Pavel had played without the red line and just hung around at the other blue line, I can't imagine the number of goals Pavel Bury, of course number of goals he would have scored. But no, it. It was. Arena was too far away. Had they stayed downtown Miami or been able to do something with an ice surface that was NHL as far as seating capacity and suites, maybe Miami would have been more conducive to crowds at that time. But hindsight now, the building, the businesses around the building, the housing developments around the building. It was a real estate deal that took time to come to fruition really. [00:17:29] Speaker C: And in this day and age, you and I go back to an era when Stanley cup finals were over in mid May. Now we're into June. The fact that the Panthers have gone three straight cup finals winning two in a row. Fact that before that the Lightning winning, going three straight, winning two in a row before losing the third time. And what does it say about. Do you consider those dynasties in light of. Especially with Tampa because you know they won a cup in a bubble, won a cup in a shortened season. I mean can you consider dynasty for the Panthers now with the way it's set up? [00:18:04] Speaker B: Pretty close. Pretty close. I think if the Panthers are there again next season, definitely dynasty. And what they have done, the ability to keep the three guys that they kept at the end of the 2024 season, 2025 cup win speaks volumes. I mean that. That is shrewd. Shrewd business has nothing to do with the Florida income tax or state tax. It is just good common sense paki101 that Bill Zito has been able to put together down there and the fan base now try and get a ticket, try and get a ticket even to a regular season game. It's winning is everything. Winning really is. And they have built. They have built a team that is as equal to the New York islanders dynasty run 80 to 84. I used to maintain that the Islanders allowed you as a visitor or they opponent to set the style of game you wanted to play and then we'll beat you at it. This, this depth that the Florida Panthers have right now is every bit as good. Starts with goaltending, works its way out and down the middle and the wingers that they've added, they. They're solid through and through. [00:19:27] Speaker C: Let me ask you about the Sports Channel America experiment. You and Bill Clement were the voices. The NHL took a deal, took games off espn. Unfortunately there wasn't much distribution of Sports Channel America back then. What went wrong? [00:19:44] Speaker B: I think at the Time hockey proved that the game wasn't good enough or strong enough to drive a network, nor was the network strong enough to drive hockey at that time. I remember being at the annual meetings in Montreal and was pulled aside and told by a confidant in the Montreal office that we were getting the national rights. What are you talking about? We don't have a network. Well, apparently you're forming a network. We are. [00:20:13] Speaker E: I mean, it was stunning news. [00:20:14] Speaker B: And this was June. You're going to be on the air with a network set up in October. They did it. And as you say, there wasn't a whole lot of distribution, but it was fun to work with people like Billy C. Herb Brooks. We had a group of great producers and directors, but we just didn't have enough viewership. [00:20:42] Speaker C: What do you miss about not broadcasting? [00:20:45] Speaker B: Nothing. Well, the check. [00:20:47] Speaker C: Yeah. [00:20:48] Speaker B: The direct deposit. No, I. I was just telling Sam a little while ago, Sam Rosen, I hope you have some hobbies. I hope you have travel plans, because when the buck drops in October, you're going to miss it. I did, and I didn't think I would because when I retired from the Panthers, we were going into the lockout year. I said, perfect. No hockey. I'll be able to cut that cord. Well, when they got the deal done, the collectively bargained agreement, and we're ready to go the next day season, I was watching night after night. My wife would say, what are you doing? You don't have a game to do. No, but I want to see, you know, if they change the lines. Why does it matter to you? I don't know, but it still does. I watched. I watched the Stanley Cup Final this season. Well, every year on Hockey Night in Canada, and I wait for the credits, I wait for the great moments that they show at the end of it, because that, to me, wraps up up the season. And it just. Yeah, I. I have to admit I haven't fully cut the cord, but don't ask me to go back to do a game. No, I. The. Too many big names, long names, games, too fast, that kind of thing. [00:22:02] Speaker C: What do you think? What do you. You're being inducted to hear what. What does it mean to you? [00:22:07] Speaker B: It's an honor. It came as a total surprise when Rennie called me. I thought probably looking for a phone number or assistance locating somebody. And when he told me that the committee had decided that I should be inducted into the New York State Hockey hall of Fame, I just sat in silence. I was stunned. Unbelievable. It's incredible. And now he tells me, no don't thank people. Tell stories about yourself. Oh, you're in. You're in for a dreadful night. [00:22:45] Speaker C: Well, Jigs, it's been great to know you all these years and I appreciate you coming on the podcast here. Congratulations, well deserved. [00:22:51] Speaker B: Thank you. Thank you very much. It's a thrill just to be around hockey. [00:22:56] Speaker F: People love it. [00:22:59] Speaker C: Joining me now is New York Rangers hockey legend and new job with the Rangers and MSC network, Dave Maloney. Dave, first of all, before we started this interview, I told you to preface by saying I have a Philadelphia Flyers fan. So I hated you when you play for the Rangers. [00:23:13] Speaker E: Well, I don't even know you and I hate you. [00:23:18] Speaker C: I appreciate that. [00:23:19] Speaker E: Yeah, no, it's funny. You know it. So I play against the Flyers and I missed. Well, I basically missed the first version of the. Of the. Anyway, you. Fast forward in 1970, 76, 77, John Ferguson's Our coach, right? We were in Philly on back to back games against the Flyers, and Danny Newman runs Horace Kinderchuck into the boards in the far corner. So the Spectrum goes, you know, now they want blood, right? The Flyers want blood. So out comes Hammer Schultz, Big Bird Seleski, Mad Dog Kelly. You know, it's like a wrestling crew, right? So now John Fergus is our coach. He's probably the toughest guy we've got, but he can't get out there. So, I mean, he goes up and down the bench, gets four guys to go out, and he hits me on the shoulder and I go, oh, Jesus Christ. So my 12 years of Catholic school, I got some credit to live through that shift in Philadelphia. [00:24:18] Speaker C: So anyway, I remember one night, Oriskin, Carol Bradley had a nasty, sick fight. [00:24:23] Speaker E: Oh, yeah, no, that doesn't surprise me with that. But no, the Flyers were the Flyers and great rivalries and stuff, but it's all in the past, thank goodness. [00:24:33] Speaker C: Well, congratulations on your induction into the New York State Hockey hall of Fame. What does it mean to you? [00:24:38] Speaker E: Well, you know what? It's a lot like most of my life, like, things have happened that I would never have imagined as a kid. Right. And it just. To be recognized for something that you did because you loved it. We're able to progress the way we progress, to be able to play in the best league in the world and to be recognized in some sort of way is quite an honor. It really is quite an honor. And I got the call from Mike Smith. Mike and I crossed paths. Mike's from Clarkson, New York, and he was an assistant coach of the rangers in the mid-70s. And I got the call and I was honored. Honestly, I was honored. [00:25:23] Speaker C: I was looking up your stats on the Internet and I forgot how good of a career you had. I just forgot how good you were. I mean, what was it like to be a defensive and put all those points up? [00:25:35] Speaker E: Well, you know what, it's funny because when you get further from the ice and distance from the game, your legend grows. And listen, I played, I played hard and I learned along the way. Was able to have probably played for Herb Brooks. I had my best years with Herb because he demanded and expect me to be the best player could be. And I was always, always an offensive player. I started out as a forward, and then when Bobby Orr came along and I watched him play, I said, I like the. To play the way that guy plays. And so I was able to really enjoy a life of which there was no any position or any chance I got. I felt I earned it. I didn't ever feel I deserved anything. So when you kind of look back and you go, that was a great run. So it's good stuff. [00:26:31] Speaker C: Pinnacle had to be 1979. He got. He beat the Islanders in the semifinals. A team that was expected to. To get to the cup final. You guys got to the cup final when the, I think won the opener, but then Montreal just being Montreal Canadians the way they were end up winning for. But what was that season like for your first year with Fred Sher as a coach? [00:26:49] Speaker E: It was a. As I say, it was a bit of a magical mystery tour. We were young. We had a very charismatic young team. And we, you know, in hindsight, when we beat the Islanders, I think we took. Treated that as our cup win. I'm going to talk about it a little bit when I speak. I just wish they had kept that group together. The following season was basically dismantled. But it was wonderful. It was, I would say. And again, I'll never forget, the headline in the New York Post is Rangers whoop it up, Studio 54. [00:27:23] Speaker C: Those were the days, man. [00:27:24] Speaker E: And we did. We really did. But in hindsight, now, that was really the only kick at the can I ever got. We had good teams with Herb in the early 80s, in the mid-80s, but we couldn't beat the Islanders and nobody else could either. So all in all, the 79 run was definitely the pinnacle of my career. [00:27:44] Speaker C: I think it was the 82, 83 playoffs where Flyers Bob and Cameron called you guys Smurfs. [00:27:49] Speaker B: Yeah. [00:27:50] Speaker C: How insulting was that to you guys? You ended up beating them in the playoffs. [00:27:53] Speaker E: Well, no, it wasn't insulting at all, because he could kick their ass. So, you know, you can call us whatever we want. And, you know, the Flyers, it was funny with Dukes, Ron Dugay and the smaller guys, the Flyers would try to intimidate you in the first 10 minutes, right? And then inevitably, they take a bunch of penalties. Our goaltending was better and our power play was better. So it's just a matter of living through the first 10 minutes, and then when you establish the lead, then was living through the last 10 minutes. So it was not insulting at all. Because, you know, when you win, that's the ultimate statement, is if you can win. And we were fortunate enough to beat the Flyers. [00:28:33] Speaker C: How did you get into broadcasting? [00:28:36] Speaker E: 1981, I got hurt in the playoffs in L. A and I jumped into the booth with Ken, Kenny, Sad Marv Albert and Salmona and loved doing it. And the. That's my second son over there. And then one thing led to another. When I retired, I was able to. When I retired, I worked for 20 years on Wall street, so I stayed involved with either radio or television. And then when the opportunity came up out of the lockout in 2004, 2005, the Rangers. My brother was the assistant GM at the time, and so I. And now, 20 years later, here I am. [00:29:20] Speaker C: You mentioned 1981. You played with Steve Baker, who played at Union College. What was Steve like? [00:29:25] Speaker E: Steve was a good dude for a goaltender. You know, they're a little bit different, but. No, Steve was a good dude. He came up. And that's the thing there. You know, that position. You know, there'll be a goaltender or two come along and look like they're going to play and stuff like that. But he was. He was a good. [00:29:40] Speaker B: Okay, that's the thing. [00:29:42] Speaker E: The fraternity, our hockey fraternity, is littered with good guys. Rarely in memory. So I played. I mean, up to 7, 700 games played. And I can't think of 99% of the guys. We're all just. We're all trying to do the same thing. [00:30:00] Speaker B: We're all. [00:30:01] Speaker E: All pretty good guys. Respect the history of the game, respect the players that play. Steve is a good dude. [00:30:07] Speaker C: Of course. The news just recently came out that you're moving over from the radio side to the TV side with Kenny Albert. Yeah. How much fun is that going to be? [00:30:15] Speaker E: That'll be great. Like it was something. You know, it's funny because Joe and I. I'm obviously Joe Micheletti. I'm replacing Joe. So Joe and I had talked about the fact that we were. We were getting A little closer to the finish line than we are the starting line. [00:30:31] Speaker B: And. [00:30:33] Speaker E: And so when he decided to move on, I wasn't surprised. And so I couldn't be. You know, I'm following him. I'm following J.D. i'm following Bill Chadwick. There are some big shoes to fill, but I couldn't have expected this to happen, and I'm just thrilled to give him the opportunity. [00:30:58] Speaker C: I first met Kenny Albert in 1990 when I was working down at the York Daily Record, covered Hershey Bears and he was introduced as the Baltimore Skipjacks play by play guy. And I've known him all these years. What's it like working with him? [00:31:08] Speaker E: He's great. He's awesome. Like, I remember him as when I was doing the radio. When I started, he was in the booth with his father. So he was 13, 12 and 13 at the time. He's the best in the business. His lack of ego, his presence, his confidence, he is just. He's special. He's a bit of a unicorn, right? [00:31:30] Speaker B: He's. [00:31:30] Speaker E: He's been a TV guy his whole life. And the absence of ego to me is the most impressive thing about him. He's wonderful. He's a wonderful human being. [00:31:38] Speaker C: Well, you, despite hating me as a Flyers fan, thank you for doing this, Dave. I much appreciate it. Have fun. Let me ask one thing. What happened to the Rangers this past season? [00:31:47] Speaker E: Well, you know, it just. There's a lot of things in hindsight and sometimes you get a little ahead of your story, you know, given what happened the year before the playoffs. They probably, but for Shusturkin, probably shouldn't have beat Carolina. You know, Chris Kreider scores three. Carolina's goaltending wasn't good enough. So you get a little ahead of yourself. And one thing led to another, but that's all in the past. You know, Chris Durie and his staff have done a really good job of, you know, moving some bodies, getting ready for next year. Year. So it'll be fun. [00:32:20] Speaker C: Is Mike Sullivan the right hire? [00:32:22] Speaker E: Yeah, I like Mike. Mike's a good dude. Really good dude. [00:32:25] Speaker C: Well, again, thank you for doing this, even though you hate me as a Flyers fan. Good luck with the new job and appreciate all your time. Thank you. [00:32:32] Speaker E: My man. Thank you. [00:32:33] Speaker C: Joining me now is Joe McLetti, who just recently announced his retirement from hockey broadcasting with the MSG networks and the Rangers. Joe, first of all, congratulations and congratulations and thanks for joining me and congratulations on this honor of being inducted into the New York State Hockey hall of Fame. [00:32:49] Speaker A: What does it mean to you, everything. It is such an honor. And when I see the other inductees that I'm going in with, it really makes me proud because there's some great people and I'm just lucky. I really am. I've been fortunate to work with great people throughout my career, and they are the reasons why this has happened today. So I just feel really fortunate. Ken. [00:33:16] Speaker C: Now, Sam Rose was inducted last year and I spoke with him about how long he wanted to go, and he talked about, you know, he wanted to go as long as he can. Of course, two weeks later, announces your retirement, but you kept it quiet. Why did you keep quiet? When did you decide you were going to retire? [00:33:31] Speaker A: Well, I really decided last summer and. But Sam took me by surprised, too, because I didn't, I didn't think he was. And I was, I was very close to not coming back last year. There's a lot of personal reasons, and my wife and I have been talking about it for the last three or four years. We have two kids and six grandkids that don't live near us, and they're growing up quickly. I've also had a lot of personal tragedy. I had three brothers, all get terminal cancer within a year and a half of each other, and I've lost two of them in the last number of years and the other one is barely hanging on. So all those things combined of not seeing my kids and I haven't, you know, my wife and I have been married almost 44 years now and, and I want to spend more time with her as well. So, so we've been thinking about it, talking about it, and then, and, and then, you know, I decided I'll spend this last year with Sam. [00:34:27] Speaker C: How did you get into broadcasting? [00:34:30] Speaker A: By accident. Speaking of hall of Famers, a great Dan Kelly, one of the greatest broadcasters of all time, called me after my career ended and said, you know, I'm looking for an analyst on radio to work with. And he said, you're not going to make any money. He says, you'll get back in the game. And he says, I think we'll have some fun. I think we could be good together. I said, okay. So that's how I did it. I learned the first two years I worked with Dan, I learned so much about broadcasting because I knew nothing. And he was again, one of the all time greats and wanted to do things a certain way, and he taught me how to do that. I'll be forever appreciative. [00:35:11] Speaker C: Then you came to start with the Islanders on their broadcast and then when John Davidson decided to leave msg after the 2005, 2006 season to go to, joined the St. Louis Blues organization, you stepped into that role. Did you feel any pressure because JD Was so popular with, with the New York Ranger fans? Did you feel any pressure filling his shoes? [00:35:34] Speaker A: Of course. I don't know how you. I don't know how you can't. And because JD Was, was and is legendary. And I learned so much from JD and had, had. I have so much respect for him. And I just kept reminding myself, don't try to be like him, because if you're not yourself and you don't do things the way you know how to do them, and you have to keep reminding yourself there's a reason why maybe you're getting this job. And so, yes, there was, there was, there was pressure. And I, and I know and, and for good reason. I mean, you know, JD Was beloved and still is by many of the Ranger fans and, and for all the right reasons. And so, you know, you can't, you can't fight that. You have to embrace it. And that's what I tried to do. [00:36:26] Speaker C: What was it like working with a legend in Sam Rosen? [00:36:31] Speaker A: Oh, boy. How much time do we have left? [00:36:33] Speaker C: It's a podcast. We have plenty. [00:36:34] Speaker A: You know, for someone to have be the face of the Rangers television for 40, 40 seasons, you know, I mean, who else can do that? I mean, who does that? There's just not many people that can do that. And Sam was, Sam was the heartbeat of our, of our telecast. You know, he came to, he came to every broadcast the same way. Prepared, enthusiastic, ready to go, fired up, loving what he was doing. And he did that for 40 years. And so it was such an inspiration to the rest of us that had a chance to work with him because it reminded us we better work and we better be prepared and just to follow him and be treated the way Sam treated everyone was, was just special. [00:37:33] Speaker C: What happened to the Rangers this past season? They're coming off a President's cup season before, and then everything just seemed to collapse. [00:37:43] Speaker A: You know, every now and then, you see in sports, there's these years that happen that you scratch your head and go, why? And sometimes it's like winning or losing and you start, you start winning and you start believing and you think you're going to win every game. And that was the Rangers two years ago. You know, there were some off ice things that happened that affected the players and the players let it affect them. And they were, they, they had a Difficult time recovering from that. And once it starts going the other way, it's difficult to stop it. And that's what happened. And is it an, you know, an anomaly? Yeah, maybe. I mean, it's. I think the team is too good and too talented to go through something like that again. But they've made a lot of changes, and so we'll see what happened. But it was just one of those years that, you know, they couldn't stop the slide. And it's too bad. It was unfortunate. [00:38:41] Speaker C: Is Mike Sullivan the right guy to turn things around? [00:38:44] Speaker A: Yes. Yes, he is. I mean, he, you know, it's not always about the coach. You have to have good players, you have to have enthusiastic players. You have to have a winning attitude. A lot of things have to go right, and you can have the greatest coach in the world. There have been really good coaches that have coached in certain cities, hall of Fame coaches, and not done well because you still have to have the personnel. So Mike is a Hall of Fame coach, and he's obviously been in New York before, and I think he's without question the right guy to try and. [00:39:23] Speaker C: Turn this final question for you. You came out of college hockey at Minnesota at a time when college hockey was not. Players were not really taken seriously in NHL. That's changed now, obviously. How have you seen that growth for college hockey? [00:39:39] Speaker A: I think it's been tremendous. Been. You know, there were certain people. I played for Herb Brooks for four years at the University of Minnesota, and he believed in the American player and the US Player, John Mayosich, who was a great player who played professionally for the Blackhawks and played at the University of Minnesota and coached at University of Minnesota, was, you know, he raised the banner for American players to get a chance. And so those two people in particular, I think, were the reason why some of us started getting a chance. And when I turned pro, I believe the percentage of US born players playing professionally at that time was like 4%. So they were the ones. And I couldn't be happier that it's. It is where it is. [00:40:29] Speaker C: I won't say this. I cover Union college hockey. They beat your alma mater in 2014 for the national championships. [00:40:34] Speaker A: You don't have to say that, Joe. [00:40:35] Speaker C: I appreciate it. A few minutes. Thank you. [00:40:39] Speaker D: In our second segment, we're going to have Bruce Bennett, Graham Townsend and Billy Smith's speech. You're listening to the Parting Shots podcast. [00:40:57] Speaker G: If you really want to know what's going on in your community, you have to read the Daily Gazette. We don't take A side, we're right down the middle and we're gonna get to the truth. Our reporters and photographers are out in the field bringing you updates every minute with trust, accuracy and integrity from the first page to the last page. Independent, probing journalism. We're finding out what's going on in community where nobody else is covering. It's who we are, it's what we do. [00:41:28] Speaker A: Hi, this is Matt Murley of RBI men's hockey and now recently New York State Hockey hall of Famer. You're listening to the Parting Shots podcast with the Daily Gazette sports editor Ken Schott. [00:41:41] Speaker C: I'm with legendary hockey photographer Bruce Bennett. Bruce, congratulations on your induction in the New York State Hockey hall of Fame. What does it mean to you? [00:41:50] Speaker H: I think what means most to me is that family and friends were here. They're the ones who basically supported my family and my, you know, the family supported me and all our friends supported my family when I was out shooting so many hockey games. So being honored and being in a class with all these guys that I admired, whether it's the broadcasters, the players, some people I hadn't heard of previously. And it's just, it's just such an honor to be here to night for this. [00:42:19] Speaker C: What got you, It's a two part question. What got you into interested in photography and what got you interested in hockey photography? [00:42:26] Speaker H: Getting into photography. My father used to shoot pictures, you know, with a Brownie, Instamatic and some other small, you know, brands back in the early 60s and I became enamored with it then and used to shoot a bunch of pictures at the zoo or wherever he'd go on school trips and that's where the sea germinated from there. Hockey was something I loved growing up. Used to play street hockey and roller hockey and the career just basically came out of nowhere. [00:42:59] Speaker C: I remember hockey pictures back in the 70s, it was always a dark background because I think back then they didn't. There was no television lights, no strobe lights and it just seemed like the lights around the arena were dim. Just the only thing you really saw were the players on the ice. What was it like shooting those kind of pictures? [00:43:20] Speaker H: Yeah, it was very different in the early days. Dealing with the low light in the arenas. Some of the photographers, the dark background is probably there was a guy out of St. Louis who did a lot of stuff with one strobe light in the rafters and the background would go pitch black. And these days every once in a while if you photographer will try to duplicate that to bring back that, that old time sense. So we did that a few times as well. But mostly it was full light in the arenas. Especially now with the digital cameras. Things have changed so much technically that the, the craft is, you know, you grow as the craft changes and as the cameras change. [00:43:59] Speaker E: It's. [00:43:59] Speaker H: And it's just been such a rapid change. It's been wonderful. [00:44:02] Speaker C: Yeah. I grew up in Philadelphia. We had season tickets to the Flyers and I always remember second sitting section five. All those lights would be shut off while the game was going on. You look at the video now, it's like it's dark ages with the way that you know now, how everything now everything's so bright now. [00:44:18] Speaker H: Yeah, it's, you know, these days it's LED lighting, beautiful lighting in most of the arenas. And the digital cameras get better and better every year. So that enables a very. Photographers do a much better job of freezing the action. And as long as you got a good sense of the game and a good knowledge of the game, you should be able to follow along. [00:44:38] Speaker C: How dangerous was it back in the 70s? Because back then penalty boxes were not sealed off, the glass was low. So how dangerous was it? [00:44:48] Speaker H: It was horrible. It was quite a learning curve trying not to get hurt. Especially place like Madison Square Garden where the photo box and the penalty box was one big long, 60 foot long opening. And I'll tell you, we had a. New York Rangers used to invite all the media to their Christmas parties. And so one year all the photographers went and we're on skates and we got ahold of Carol Vadnais, said we want to talk to you for a minute. Said we would like you to go stand in the penalty box where we stand. And one by one we're all going to go behind the net and take slap shots into your ribs, because that's what you do to us when you're trying to kill a penalty. And his French Canadian accent, he goes, oh, I hate when that happens. And I go, listen, you hate when that happens. You're keeping us all on our toes. And honestly through those days, those early days from 74 through 80, I used to wake up in the middle of the night flinching just instinctively because I would say just have nightmares about pucks flying at me all the time. [00:45:51] Speaker C: Some of your pictures there on Gold magazine back in the day. [00:45:54] Speaker H: Oh, those are my favorite. You know, you didn't have many glossy color glossy magazines. We had the classic ones, Hockey Digest and Hockey Illustrated. But to make it into Gold Magazine, that was always a treat. It had high circulation and the quality of the pictures, the reproduction in there was great. [00:46:14] Speaker C: How has it changed? I mean, it's. It seems like now you're watching some of the video on what was being presented. You have. You have cameras up in the. Up in the rafters, you have cameras in the net. You have. It seems like when you're at this cup presentation, you're running around two cameras on you. [00:46:33] Speaker H: Yeah, I usually have two cameras on me. But you always have other cameras around the building. If you're to care about the craft and you care about ensuring that you're going to capture history and not let a moment go by that's important to either a player, a team to the league, or a client, you put up remote cameras, and what it does is it buys you insurance, buys you insurance that if you're blocked by a referee or a player and you miss the shot, you hope that one of your remote cameras is in a position to capture that. And these days, you know, it's fairly easy to do. You know, technically, you kind of get in a rhythm and doing it, doing it as many games as you can just to have that protection. [00:47:15] Speaker C: How do you not fall on the ice during a Stanley cup presentation? Because we, you know, somehow the camera catches you running around and you stay on your feet the whole time. [00:47:24] Speaker H: It's ice cleats. The secret of my success and longevity, every once in a while, you get caught at those. The year Chicago beat Philadelphia in overtime, we didn't even know. That's right. Philadelphia. Sorry. Sorry to bring that up, but we had no idea. I was in the Zamboni corner, and just like a minute before overtime started, I texted the people in the photo room and I said I forgot to put on my ice cleats in case the game is over. Sure enough, it's wet ice. It's right into the start of overtime, and I go out there with nothing on, and any clip I see where I'm in the background, I am just shuffling along, trying to not to die, crack my head open. On the ice, is there one particular. [00:48:14] Speaker C: Picture that you are most proud of? [00:48:18] Speaker H: You know, the one I always come back to and listen, it's so difficult. Probably 2.5 million photographs. And not all in focus, of course, but it's a big archive. And my top 10 changes all the time, but I always come back to the same one, and that is Dennis Potvin throwing the patented hip check into Gila floor. And the floor is completely face down on the ice, but feet and body directly flow perpendicular to the ice. It was just the old days of the. The hip checks. Nobody wanted to fight you after you did a hip check. They just played the game. It was a black and white, so it had a little bit more character to it than, you know, instead of today's digital or film days, color film days. [00:49:08] Speaker C: Bruce, I've been looking forward to meeting you as I admire what you do and I appreciate a few minutes and congratulations again. [00:49:14] Speaker H: Thanks so much for your time. [00:49:16] Speaker C: Joining me now is RPA hockey legend Graham Townsend. Graham, congratulations on your induction. The New York State Hockey hall of Fame. What does it mean to you? [00:49:23] Speaker I: Well, you know, it was. First I thought it was a prank. You know, you don't, you don't think of yourself as being worthy of something like this. So I was really, really kind of shocked. But it's, it means a lot. It just, you know, it was a lot of years here at RPI in the Capital Region and throughout my pro career. So it was, it's just an incredible honor. Matt Murley over here, you know, to be inducted with Matt and Joey, two RPI alums and legends themselves. And it was just a great night to have the president of RPI here along with the new head coach and the AD just to support us. Our athletic trainer was here, so it was just great. My skating coach from RPI was here as well, so just a wonderful night. I didn't expect it to be like this at all. [00:50:04] Speaker C: You came from Kingston. What was that in Jacob? [00:50:08] Speaker D: What was that like to go to. [00:50:09] Speaker C: Canada and learn how to play hockey? [00:50:12] Speaker I: Well, you know, as a kid, you don't really think of it that way. You're just kind of looking. Looking to make friends. And so the kids were playing hockey and so whatever. They could have been playing ping pong, I would have jumped in there, just wanted to make friends. And I just fell in love with the game, the competition, the. The skill that's involved. And then of course, when I got on the ice, that was a whole different world and had to get used to skating. But once I got skating, I mean, there isn't. There's anything more freeing in life than being able to skate on an open pond outside in the fresh air. So I got to do that a lot as a child, play outside a lot. And that just grew my love for the game. [00:50:42] Speaker C: Yeah. When you mentioned in your speech about Mike Odessa and his handshake for. He held your hand for 45 minutes and it always broke. What was it like when he was recruiting you and then. Then playing for him? [00:50:55] Speaker I: Well, you know, it was it was a whirlwind. It was sort of a blur because there are a lot of schools and coaches coming over to my. My apartment to. To visit and meet me. And one coach came to my school. I remember being called out of math class by the principal. I thought I was in trouble. And there was a coach from Lowell, wanted to take me up for coffee to talk about me going to Lowell. So it was a whirlwind. It was really flattering and just exciting. And Mike Adessa was very impressive. He was very smart. He realized right away that the one person he had to get to get me was my little sister. And he recognized that, and he was so nice to my little sister. So that kind of gave him an edge on everybody else. And that's another reason why I chose rpi. It was more of a family that I was seeking, and so I chose to come here. [00:51:42] Speaker C: What was it like to play for? [00:51:43] Speaker I: It was tough. I mean, I got to tell you, he was very demanding, which is good. It was very difficult to play here for him. His systems were hard to understand. But I think that playing under those conditions helped me to really learn how to handle adversity. He always told us that if you can play for him, you can handle anything in life. And I gotta tell you, he wasn't kidding. [00:52:05] Speaker C: Speaking of versus rpi, hockey has been really had some tough years the last few years. New coach here and now with Eric Lang. Have you followed the program and are you happy with the direction now, with it that they hired Eric Lang? [00:52:19] Speaker I: I'm excited. I think with Eric, what he did at AIC is a very difficult situation. You got, you know, Springfield and you've got a school that's in the Atlantic Conference and what. And just to build a winning program there. I know it's difficult to get, you know, just, just. I mean, you compete against. You're looking at the teams and, you know, the Boston teams and trying to get the same players. And I think that he. What he's had to do is really work on developing his players. And so I think that's what Rensselaer needs. You're not going to get the. The blue chip players are going to go to BU and BC in those schools, even Harvard in some cases. But I think that. I think Eric will do a great job developing his players and building a really good and consistent program. [00:52:59] Speaker C: Well, Kyle, hockey obviously has changed since you were at RPI. Union's now probably in this area, probably ahead of RPI. They won a national championship in 2014, and I'm not saying that because I cover the team, but just the fact nil deals and now we see Penn State paying $700,000 for. How has the whole, this whole thing changed? [00:53:20] Speaker I: Well, honest to God, I really think it's going to collapse upon itself. I don't think because these kids are going to come in for a year or two, right? They're 18, 19 years old. They're going to compete against 25 year old men from other programs that don't have that money. And I honestly do think it's going to be difficult for an 18 or 19 year old kid to compete consistently against guys that age. So they'll come in for their two years, they'll sign their XL deals and they'll move on. And then you got to start all over again. So I think to win, I really believe you have to have a four year player build a culture over time. And mark my words, it's not, it's not going to be as easy as they think it's going to be. [00:53:56] Speaker C: What are you doing now? [00:53:57] Speaker I: These days my wife and I run hockey schools. We run a camp in Maine. We run boarding camps at a University of Southern Maine and for five weeks in the summer. And I coach at a hockey academy during the hockey season. [00:54:10] Speaker C: Enjoy it. [00:54:10] Speaker I: I love it. I love it. It's a privilege to be able to do what I do. I can't believe I'm so lucky. [00:54:15] Speaker C: Graham, appreciate a few minutes. Congratulations on the honor. [00:54:17] Speaker I: Thank you very much. Thank you. [00:54:20] Speaker D: Now let's wrap things up with Billy Smith's speech. Good speech and it was enjoyable. As I said at the top of this broadcast, he politely declined to be interviewed, but he was very talkative with me and it was nice to really chat hockey about his playing days with the Islanders and some fantastic stories. So here's Billy Smith's acceptance speech from the New York State Hockey hall of Fame induction ceremony. [00:54:46] Speaker B: Okay, here we go. [00:54:48] Speaker F: Randy, thank you. And the board thank you very much. I'm really pleased to be here. And for everybody out there, you're all saying, finally he's getting up to talk. We only have 10 minutes left to go upstairs and have a couple of drinks. [00:55:01] Speaker B: So I will try to eat this. [00:55:03] Speaker F: As quick as I can. Like I said, I got 10 minutes up here. So when something bad happens, we always, you know, have a moment or so. [00:55:14] Speaker B: Silence. [00:55:15] Speaker F: And I figured, well, maybe I could kill eight minutes because our hockey team offroad Islanders and Rangers didn't do very well this year. So maybe we can just have eight minutes of Silence. But everybody I meet that don't know me, and they say, why did you play the way you did? And it was just, I guess, my personality. I've always felt I've been a very lucky person. December 12, 1950, was born. So there's the first time I was lucky. And then as it came, my mother was the best athlete. Our family, I got a piece of that. My dad, at the age of 16, jumped on old Belfast and came to Canada, you know, Irish. [00:56:04] Speaker B: So I got a lot of that. [00:56:06] Speaker F: So maybe that's part of my problem, I don't know. But I had two older brothers and a sister. Both my brothers were much better hockey players than me, but we had them Ranger in our backyard. And I. I wanted to play defense too, because they were both defensemen. But after being run over for about four or five years, by then I figured I better pick another position. So I went into goal and I was lucky, you know, I got to play, you know, move up on the teams pretty quick. And then each one of my brothers went to Cornwall, and I was fortunate enough to get asked to go play my last year junior in Cornwall, which I was thrilled. Hockey team was awful, but I got to follow my brothers. But I was lucky. I met a very beautiful woman there and I married her in 72 and we had two kids. So like Jo says, she raised the kids, the three of us, the two young ones and the oldest one. Fortunately for me, the two young ones left, but she's taken care of me for 52 years, so it's been pretty good for her. And then, you know what continued? The Iowa's draft. I mean, the LA dropped me in 69. And you know what the draft is like? It's huge. Well, they drafted me in June and I didn't find out till July. And they called me and they said, congratulations. It didn't say for what it just with an American call, congratulations, you're drafted. I looked at my dad and I said, dad, are they allowed to draft Canadians in the United States? So when I finally found out what it was, I went to la. And again I said, I'm lucky. I had Boo Landon and Jack Norris there. And the three of us were having a beer and we're sitting there and Jack Norris says, you and Boo are going to Springfield. I'm going back out there. And I said, you, Boo, are the two best goalies in training camp. He says, it doesn't matter. The other two guys are older, they'll be in la. I said, that's crazy. But it's exactly what happened. So I go to Springfield with Boo Landon, and as I said, I'm lucky. Boo separated his shoulder in the first game and never came back. So now I got I'm first goalie. So I played the year in Springfield and we were average. And this is what I talk about, locking in teammates. One of the kids in LA got mono and was sent down to Springfield with mono. This kid with mono was the best player in our hockey team. He got us not only into the playoffs, but we won the calder trophy in 13 games. We lost one game and that kid was Butchie Gorman. So I'm going to jump way ahead to 1980 and Tori and me are talking. I said, you know what? We could never get a guy Butchie Gorn. I said our team would be, you know, better. Two weeks later, we got Butchie Gorn. I thought, well, this is great because Butchie and me were good friends and that so road in Winnipeg. We're playing in Winnipeg and my brother played for the Washington Capitals and Winnipeg jets and one of his teammates was Gordy Lane. So I then wentnipeg and getting ready for the game. My brother calls me and he says, gordy Lane's available. I said, there's no way Gordy Lane is available. He says, yeah, he says he just walked better in the Washington Capitals. And he said he'll never come back. [00:59:59] Speaker B: So I walking out with Tory and. [01:00:00] Speaker F: I said, tory, Bill, Gordy Lane's available. [01:00:03] Speaker B: Tory. [01:00:03] Speaker F: He says, there's no way. I says, my brother just told me. So he goes back in two days later. We got Gordy Lane on our team. And this is just before going into playoffs. And then we get this big blankie kid. You know, he won something that everybody said was special, something with the Olympics, and we get him coming in. So like I call them my six pack. And the reason I've had such success is not because I played well. It was I had Kenny Morrow, Dennis Potvin, Gordy Lane, Dave Leinsman, Stefan Pearson and Tommy Johnson. I mean, I'm here because of my Dee. They were unbelievable. And if they didn't knock them down, I really think that's, that's what you look at it. We are forwards, we're outstanding. But you know, like I said with my D, they should all be in here, not me. And I, I feel the same way about the hall of Fame in Toronto. I mean, you have no idea how good Butcher Gordon was. I mean, he actually won the Cul de trophy for us. He won MVP first year, four Stanley Cups, you know, and that's how teams survived. And our team won what we did because we had 16 guys that did everything together. So, like you say, I always laugh when somebody says, oh, Bobby. Bobby Niceman was on the third line. And I says, well, maybe you guys should look at how many big goals Bobby Nystrom's court. I mean, it was unbelievable. And I probably have a second or two. I can tell you a couple of. Couple of things that happened. We paid the Boston Ruins, and we had one huge dentistry. It was unbelievable. It was a lot of fun, but it was unbelievable. That means I didn't eat up too bad. But we're in the dressing room the next day and everybody hear that that has played, and, you know, you look and you go, oh, I sure hope that guy doesn't grab me. You know, I get in a fight. I want to. I want to get Butchie Goring or something like that. So, second game in Boston, we're all sitting in the dressing room together, and you could tell there was tension. And Bobby Nice stood up, and he. [01:02:35] Speaker B: Says, I got this guy. [01:02:37] Speaker F: Then Clark Gillies gets up. I got O'Reilly. Gary Howard stood up. I got Cashmere. And it just went down the list like this. And sure enough, within five minutes, Bobby Nye's out there. He's in a fight. All of a sudden, our momentum went from here to here, and Boston's looking at us and saying, what's wrong with these people? They expected it from me, but not the rest of the team. But I played the way I ended up. I always thought of myself as Santa Claus. I'd rather give than receive. So that's what I tried to do as much as I could. And the fights and everything else, like, I wouldn't last in the game today. I'd be suspended or arrested or something. But that was my personality. Like James. No, that's my personality. That how much I love, loved it. And like I said, I became a human being as soon as I got off the ice. But thank you very much for being here and listening to me, all these great athletes. I'm very pleased to be with you. And thank you. And now you can go have a drink. [01:03:52] Speaker D: And that will do it for this special edition of the Parting Shots podcast. Coming up in a couple of days on the Parting shots podcast, Mike McGann joins me for his weekly at the track with Max Saban. We'll look back at the opening week of Saratoga horse racing. Yes, the true opening week of Saratoga horse racing. And we'll preview week two so vain. Cloutier, the new Adironic Thunder coach, will join me. We'll talk about him coming back to Glens Falls where he played both for the Adirondack Red Wings of the American Hockey League and the Adirondack Frustrate of the United States populate. Then he takes over for Peter McCron. We'll talk to him about coaching where he played for many years. And then Freddie Coleman joins me from ESPN Radio. We're going to chat a variety of topics, including the New York Knicks hiring Mike Brown as their new head coach. So tune in later this week for that edition of the podcast. The views expressed on the Parting Shots podcast are not necessarily those of the Daily Gazette Company. The Partners Shots podcast is a production of the Daily Gazette Company. I'm Daily Gazette sports editor Ken Schatz. Thanks for listening and I'll catch you next time from the Parting Shots podcast studio in Schenectady, New York. Good day, good hockey.