The Capitals had a "policeman" type of player in Randy Holt.
This article originally appeared in The Hockey News Mar 25, 1983/vol. 36, issue 24.
BY BOB FACHET
LANDOVER—On a Thursday night in New York, the Washington Capitals’ policeman, Randy Holt, broke his stick as he crosschecked Ranger Scott Kleinendorst. The shaft became embedded in Holt’s chest, leaving a wound that resembled a bullet hole.
Afterward, Holt underwent extensive testing to determine whether he had suffered a perforated lung. Although he received a positive report, staples were needed to close the wound, since it was too wide for stitches.
So where was Holt two nights later? He was intervening in a fight between the Philadlelphia Flyers’ Glen Cochrane and teammate Dennis Maruk.
If Holt sometimes takes foolish penalties, he also serves to keep belligerent opponents away from the more skilled Capitals. Holt draws no line when it comes to fulfilling his role. He has moved in to challenge Archie Henderson, Dave Semenko, Tiger Williams and Cochrane this season.
Taking on one of the Flyers is nothing new for Holt, who amassed the NHL-record 67 penalty minutes for one period and one game by battling the entire Philadlelphia team as a member of the Los Angeles Kings.
On this particulr occcasion, however, Holt had to think twice before committing himself. Injuries to four defensemen had left Washington with a backline of Holt, Rod Langway, Greg Theberge, Paul MacKinnon and rookie Eric Calder, called up from Cornwall of the Ontario League. If Holt stepped in to help Maruk, he would be leaving the Capitals desperately short for the last 27 minutes of a close game, as well as drawing a one-game suspension for his third game misconduct.
Holt’s hesitation was momentary. He neutralized Cochrane, then accepted the linesman’s escort to the dressing room. After he left, however, the story developed a happy ending. Right winger Ken Houston, a defenseman before he reached the NHL with Atlanta, moved back for the first time in eight years and performed capably as Washington hung on to win, 4-3.
At the time, the Flyers were losing for only the fifth time in 33 games, with three of the defeats being inflicted by Washington.
“I felt bad, getting thrown out of a 3-2 hockey game and making the other defensemen work that much harder when they were already coming off a tough game in New York,” Holt said. “But two things entered my mind.
“Foremost, of course, was that Dennis was up against one of the toughest guys in the league, and I thought he could get hurt.
“Second, we were winning 3-2 and they could have gotten a mental high from Cochrane working over Dennis. So I thought getting my third game misconduct and a game suspension was worth it. If someone else had moved in first, that would have been OK, but I couldn’t see waiting for Dennis to get mauled by Cochrane.
“Almost more than straight hockey, there is the idea of letting them know you can stand up to them physically. We have to let the Flyers, Rangers and Islanders—the teams we’ll be meeting in the playoffs—know we won’t back down against them.”
Maruk, the smallest Capital at 5-8, became embroiled with the 6-2, 200-pound Cochrane after Cochrane knocked Gaetan Duchesne unconscious with an elbow to the bridge of the nose. That foul went unnoticed by referee Kerry Fraser, as did some errant sticks, one of which left Bob Carpenter with a cracked bone in his left wrist.
If Holt had any doubt that he had made the right move, it was resolved when Maruk stopped by later to offer his thanks. Langway, the team captain, and coach Bryan Murray backed up Holt’s action, too, even though it meant Langway was on the ice for 36 of the 60 minutes.
“Randy was ahead of me, but if he hadn’t grabbed Cochrane, I would have,” Langway said. “It could have been me thrown out instead of him. You have to hold back when you’re short like that, but not when it comes to protecting a teammate.”
“I never want Philadelphia or anybody to walk in this building and intimidate us,” Murray said. “That incident happened right in front of the referee and he didn’t do a thing. If the officials won’t do anything, we will—regardless of the consequences.” ■