Phil Esposito is best known for his time in the NHL with the Boston Bruins but he had some productive years with the New York Rangers at the end of his career. In his four full seasons with the Blue Shirt, he scored no less than 34 goals.
The Trade
On November 7, 1975, Phil and Carol Vadnais were sent to the Rangers from Boston for Brad Park, Jean Ratelle and Joe Zanussi. Esposito had started the 1975-76 NHL season playing 12 games, putting up six goals and ten assists for 16 points - pretty decent numbers.
The was the second blockbuster trade involving Esposito over his career. After starting out with the Chicago Blackhawks, he was traded to the Bruins on May 15, 1967 with Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield for Gilles Marotte, Hubert "Pit" Martin and Jack Norris.
Arrival In The Big Apple
Phil had always worn number seven during his NHL career with both the Blackhawks and Bruins. When he arrived in New York, Rod Gilbert was wearing and had long worn the number. Esposito started with the Rangers wearing number 12 - he is shown on the front of his 1976-77 O-Pee-Chee card with that on his jersey. He also wore 5 for a time before settling into 77.
In his first game with the Rangers, Esposito scored two goals and added an assist for three points in a game against the California Golden Seals. Despite the effort, New York lost the game 7-5. The Seals were propelled by a four goal performance put in by Gary Sabourin and 31 saves made by Gilles Meloche.
His best season as a Ranger came in 1978-79 when he scored 42 goals. This total led the team and placed him eighth overall in the NHL. In the post season, Esposito contributed 20 points over 18 games, leading New York to the Stanley Cup final before losing to the Montreal Canadiens.
After another decent year in 1979-80, Esposito's numbers dwindled and he called it a career 41 games into the 1980-81 season. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1984.
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