Inaugural Alumni Classic Leaves NY Wanting More By Matt Blittner, The New York Extra/TheNYExtra.com
There’s nothing like a game between the Islanders and Rangers to get your blood pumping. Under the ownership of Jon Ledecky and Scott Malkin, the Islanders have made it a priority to get the franchise’s alumni to be more involved than they had been under the previous regime. And this game was made even more special because of the recent passing of several alumni from both teams. Emile Francis, Rod Gilbert, Clark Gillies, Jean Potvin and Mike Bossy have each passed away within the last year and this gathering of alumni was a means of celebrating their legacies; as well as raising money for the Northwell Health charity.
Saturday afternoon, at Northwell Health Ice Center, the Islanders and Rangers contested their inaugural Alumni Classic. After falling down 4-0 early in the first half – the teams played two halves rather than three quarters – the Islanders came back to win the game in the shootout, 9-8. In the center of it all were Pierre Turgeon, who scored the Isles first goal to start the comeback, as well as the shootout winner and Benoit Hogue, who had a hat-trick, plus a goal in the shootout.
While it was nice to see many of the two teams’ alumni in “game action” the more important parts of the festivities were the charity aspect and the fan engagement. Prior to the game, a handful of alumni from the two teams met with the media to give their thoughts on what, hopefully, turns into a regular event.
At the end of the day, regardless of the outcome of the game – although both sides made it clear they were in it to win it – Coaches Pete Stemkowski (Rangers), Ron Greschner (Rangers), Bryan Trottier (Islanders) and their teams spent a couple hours bringing joy to the fan bases of both franchises. And that’s really what these Alumni Classics are all about.
Here are some pre-game videos with the alumni.
