The history of one of New York Rangers fighters is long and bold. But some fights and fighters are a level above the norm.
This much I can say for sure; at six feet eight-and-a-half inches tall, wonderboy Matt Rempe is, in fact, the best tallest fighter in New York Rangers annals; hands down.
But here's the toughie; forget about Matt The Mauler for a moment -- assuming such a feat is possible.
Tell me this:
Who is the best two-fisted Rangers fighter of all-time?
The Maven has a few candidates, who I also witnessed with my own eyes.
In the early 1950's, for example, there were three defensemen who could handle their dukes: Ivan (The Terrible) Irwin, Louie (The Leaper) Fontinato and Jack (Tex) Evans.
Ivan The Terrible was more intimidating than the others. Somewhere there's a picture of Irwin and Rocket Richard. They weren't actually fighting but they had their sticks out in front of them like in a bayonet battle but they never actually fought.
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oJddah3vBTg[/embed]
Louie The Leaper fought a lot until that fateful night late in the 1958-59 season when Gordie Howe not only boxed Fontinato's ears but so many other parts of his body that he wound up in St. Clare's Hospital for what we used to call "repairs."
Now Tex Evans could fight. He's one of only a few NHLer who I know of who fought Howe to a draw. Ferocious Fred Shero also did a draw with Gordie as well.
These Rangers guys were good with their mitts, but there was one eternal champion -- arguably the best fighter in NHL history -- and, yes, he was a Ranger, and a Stanley Cup-winner as well.
That would be Murray (Muzz) Patrick, son of g.m.-coach Lester (The Silver Fox) Patrick and kid brother of Blueshirt scoring champ Lynn Patrick.
Muzz was a multi-sport star; in bike racing and basketball. But, most of all, he could fight. Against his Dad's wishes he entered enough bouts -- and won enough -- to become Canada's amateur heavyweight boxing champion in the early 1930's.
Best of all, Murray could play hockey and starred on the Blueshirts 1940 Stanley Cup-winners teamed on defense with Hall of Famer Art Coulter.
Everyone in the league knew that Muzz was a heavyweight champ and hardly anyone would dare challenge him. Except one.
Before the Rangers won the 1940 Cup they faced a terrific Bruins team in the playoffs. The Beantown six was very good and very-very tough. And the toughest hombre of all was the great defenseman Eddie Shore.
In this particular game there was a skirmish, high sticking and whatnot, plus fights. In one of them, Shore was beating the crap out of the smaller Ranger, Phil Watson who happened to be a good buddy of Muzz.
When Patrick saw what was happening to his pal, Muzz stepped in and gave Shore THE beating of his life. It was a statement then as it is now; nobody ever won a fight with Murray Patrick as long as he played for the Blueshirts!
As long as the Rangers keep playing hockey, the Blueshirts will never boast a better fighter than Muzz Patrick, nor for that matter, the National Hockey League.
Hey, he didn't win the heavyweight title of Canada because he knew how to plant roses!