Do any of you (vets :) ) remember a game with Rags in about 1985 -1986 were the second period they called the 2nd period because of a fight?

I just so happen to catch this game (at about this point) with 30 seconds left in the 2nd period. A big 'ol brawl broke out so they called it, went to the locker room, came back out play the final 30, swapped ends and played the 3rd.

I remember a rag heading in to the locker room with blood all down his sweater. I think Billy Smith was still the goalie. Isles lost like 5-2 or 7-2.


Any thoughts, videos, or articles on this game would be nice. It was good brawl from what I remember.

Thanks

:ragssuck: :fight: :head bang:

I vaguely remember them tacking on the extra time to the third period and then switching ends. I guess it was an effort to cool both teams down.

Game has changed a great deal.

Still looking for some info on this.

I'd like to try as see if it is on YouTube, but I'd like to narrow it down a bit as far as what to look for.


:fight: :poke:

RANGERS TROUNCE ISLANDERS

By KEVIN DUPONT
Published: February 18, 1985
The faithful knew this would happen all along, didn't they?

Eventually, the believers said, the Rangers would get healthy, find their scoring touch and play with some heart. After a season full of injuries, explanations and the dismissal of a coach, they would find a peak - somewhere, somehow.

''We shouldn't be in the position we're in,'' said their captain, Barry Beck. ''But we're in it. And now's the time to get out.''

And out they came last night, scoring and scrapping. Supported by a five-goal, second-period outburst, and a little muscle in a tussle, the Rangers pinned an embarrassing 9-3 defeat on the Islanders at the Garden.

Quick to score and quick to stick up for one another, the Rangers got the best of the Islanders in the second period. They scored five times in a span of 6 minutes 31 seconds to boost their lead to 7-2. And then they showed new-found unity, sticking up for each other during an on-ice brawl that resulted in 113 penalty minutes and the ejection of six players, including the starting goalies, John Vanbiesbrouck and Kelly Hrudey.

The scoring flurry, reminiscent of the six-goal burst the Rangers had Friday night in an 8-7 victory over Edmonton, left the Islanders looking helpless. Beck began the run at 10:48 with a shorthanded score, building the lead to 3-1. And, after Reijo Ruotsalainen answered John Tonelli's goal at 12:25, George McPhee, Grant Ledyard and Bob Brooke put together a three-goal run in a span of 2:15.

''We knew we had to get the breaks, sooner or later,'' said the Ranger coach, Craig Patrick.



Fight Between Goalies

Then, not long after Brooke's goal, the brawl erupted. After a Bryan Trottier-Steve Patrick scrap was quieted, Clark Gillies decked the Rangers' Tomas Sandstrom by punching him across the eye visor. With Sandstrom on the ice with a bloody nose, the Ranger defenseman Steve Richmond came out of a pack to challenge Gillies, the aged Islander enforcer.

''It doesn't matter who it is in that situation, Mickey Mouse or Godzilla,'' said Richmond. ''You have to go after him. We stick up for each other on this team.''

Seconds after those two bears began their tug-of-war, Hrudey came flying down ice after the Ranger goalie, Vanbiesbrouck, had punched the Islander right wing, Duane Sutter. Hrudey tossed his stick and gloves off and took a flying leap at Vanbiesbrouck.

''John's a pretty good guy,'' said Hrudey. ''He told me later that he's not a fighter. But, hey, my hands were tied.''

''The organization wants us to hang together,'' said Vanbiesbrouck. ''I thought sacrificing myself at the time was the best thing to do.''



Example of Mediocrity

Also ejected, along with the goalies, were Gillies, Sutter, Richmond and James Patrick. And the 35 seconds that remained to play in the period were added on to the final period, giving the referee, Andy Van Hellemond, time to assess the penalties and the two clubs a break to cool their tempers.

In consecutive games, then, the Rangers defeated the Oilers, the defending Stanley Cup champions, and the Islanders, the four-time champions (1980-83). Predictably, Al Arbour, the Islander coach, said the defeat was one more example of the mediocrity that has marked his team this season.

''We've been playing like patsies all season,'' said Arbour. ''We don't do anything until we're challenged and then it's too late. We don't play hard- nosed hockey. Some of our players are trying to hide out there. If this doesn't open our eyes tonight, nothing will.''

The Rangers received a big pre- game boost when Mark Osborne, sidelined by injury all season, and Tom Laidlaw, out six weeks after his spleen was ruptured, returned to the lineup. With their return, and the move of Brooke to center, the Rangers showed the aggressive play and scoring touch that many predicted would make them real threats in the Patrick Division this year.

''For so many games nothing went right for us,'' said Beck. ''It's nice to see things go our way for a couple of games.''

First for Brooke

Brooke's goal was the first of his career at the Garden. . . . Ruotsalainen now has 20 goals, tying his career high. . . . The two clubs finished with a total of 151 penalty minutes. . . . Vanbiesbrouck, before he left, picked up his fourth assist this year, the most ever by a Ranger goalie. Eddie Giacomin, Steve Weeks and Ed Mio all held the previous high of three. . . . The Rangers are hopeful that Don Maloney, sidelined for 41 games by a broken leg, can return for Thursday night's game with Hartford. . . . Earlier in the day, the Rangers returned the left wing Mike Blaisdell to New Haven in the American Hockey League. . . . Richmond was a late replacement for Willie Huber, whose left knee flared up again. Huber said Saturday that his knee must undergo an arthroscopy at the end of the season to repair a torn ligament. . . . Mike Bossy scored his 47th goal, shorthanded, and is closing in on his eighth consecutive 50-goal season. . . . Billy Smith finished in the Islander net, allowing two goals on seven shots. Glen Hanlon finished for the Rangers, allowing one goal on 14 shots.

I think this is it

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O5ZROi-amCE

that brings back memories. remember that game now.
I think the following year we bombed them 8-2 at the coliseum and a few smaller skirmishes taking place.

Interesting rag bias in this one (as always).
Vanbiesbrouck takes a shot at Sutter who's being restrained and espo/nosen say nothing
but when Hrudey comes down and rattles the beeze, they whine about beezers helmet coming off while hrudeys is still on.

the good ole days when it was sheer hatred.

you younger fans who may have missed that era by just a few years
have no idea just how bad it was (not on the ice) in the stands.

:cheers:

Well, it was a NYT article, so I expect a little Rags bias, but it sure does bring back memories to see those names again. That rivalry, when both teams were decent, and had personality and established names that were identified with the team was so much fun.

:worthy: Sweet!! Thanks for the find. :punk:

But that article didn't mention they played the 35 seconds and switched ends. At least that's how I remember it.

Thanks again for finding this.

:cheers:

Also ejected, along with the goalies, were Gillies, Sutter, Richmond and James Patrick. And the 35 seconds that remained to play in the period were added on to the final period, giving the referee, Andy Van Hellemond, time to assess the penalties and the two clubs a break to cool their tempers.