This article originally appeared in The Hockey News Magazine vol. 34, issue 6 on Nov. 7, 1980
BY STEVE WINTER
LANDOVER—For Dennis Maruk, Year Seven in the NHL holds a special significance.
You see, Year Seven for Dennis Maruk is also Year Seven for the Washington Capitals; and both Maruk and his employers share one thing in common—neither has ever experienced the Stanley Cup Playoffs.
Let’s forget for one second that both expansion Stanley Cup champions—The Flyers and the Islanders—won the Cup in their respective seventh years. Realistically, nobody expects the Caps to waltz around Capital Centre with Lord Stanley’s hardware hoisted high atop their shoulders—not this year anyway; but a berth in the playoffs?
No question.
“I don’t try to set any personal goals,” said Maruk, the club’s leading goal scorer after six games this season. “The only goals I set are the playoffs. I’ve never been to the playoffs, so it would certainly mean a lot to me.
“To win a game is a great feeling, but I think the playoffs hold a little different feeling. And this year, we’ve got guys who have been there before. They know what the feeling is like and most of the rest of us have never been there. It’s a good blend. If we keep going the way we have been, we’re going to be right there.”
Dennis Maruk says that in order for the Capitals to make the playoffs this year, “we have to avoid big injuries.”
Two players who have “been there before” now find themselves flanking the 5-8 center from Toronto, trying to lead the Capitals to their first playoff berth and potentially their best season ever. Bob Kelly and Jean Pronovost—both of whom have enjoyed winning seasons with, respectively, Philadelphia and Pittsburgh/Atlanta—add just that blend of character to the locker room, as well as to the team on the ice.
The trio has easily generated the most excitement this side of Bengt Gustafsson thus far at Capital Centre with Kelly banging bodies all over the ice, jarring the puck loose from opposing defensemen, and Pronovost and Maruk weaving up-and-down while displaying their patchwork playmaking, it’s easy to see exactly how all the component parts of the “Roaring Twenties. Line” (named for their uniform members) fits together.
“We’ve got Bob, who’s a mucker and who gets the puck out for me lots of times,” Maruk said. “And Prony’s pretty much the same. He can shoot well and I more or less pick up the slot and the loose pucks. If I go in first. I’ll become the checker.”
Maruk’s linemates share his sentiments, as well.
“Our line seems to add a lot of balance to the team,” said Pronovost, who was acquired from Calgary for future considerations in early September. “We know when we go out there that if it’s not our line that does the dam’age, it’s going to be another line.
“Denny’s great to play with on account of his speed,” Pronovost continued. “You don’t have to look for him. He’s always around. He’s kind of helping me out, out there. Just look as his two goals against New York.”
Pronovost was referring to a pair Maruk scored in the Caps’ biggest win of the season, an 8-2 romp over the Rangers. Pronovost and Maruk teamed up for a first period short-handed goal, which opened up a 2-0 Washington lead, when the duo played criss-cross and drop pass before Maruk netted Pronovost’s rebound for his fourth goal of the season.
“That’s the kind of hockey I like to play,” Pronovost said. “Give-and-go, give-and-go. That’s what creates opportunities.”
“He opens things up,” said Kelly of Maruk. “He’s a good playmaker. For him, I have to dig in the corners, but he’s first in the corners a lot too. Mostly, he’s just so heady with the puck. He makes the good plays out there. He anticipates very well, and he makes our line go.”
One example of Maruk’s anticipation was his second goal in the Ranger win, which came during the final minute of the first period. New York defenseman Carol Vadnais was carrying the puck across his goal mouth when Maruk swept in, stripped Vadnais of the disk, and deposited it behind goalie Doug Soetaert. As the game progressed, Maruk assisted on two goals by Mike Gartner (who scored four in the game), while earning the second star of the evening.
“Denny’s a sparkplug,” said captain Ryan Walter. “He has the ability to take off with the puck and score at any time during a game. Also, he’s really matured on his defensive game. He’s going into the corners and helping out and really working hard.
“I’m proud of him. He’s a really good hockey player.”
Considering the turn of fate Maruk endured last year, he has to consider himself fortunate. Eight games into the 1979-80 season, a legal check by Vancouver’s Thomas Gradin left Maruk with torn knee ligaments, which sidelined him for 53 games.
Earlier this year, his tender right knee was severely tested when he was tripped by Montreal’s Bob Gainey and fell on the knee during a 3-3 tie with the Canadiens. “At first I was scared,” Maruk admitted, “but when I felt there was no pain, it was a real confidence booster for me.”
Another confidence booster for Maruk is his quick start this year. “I started out fast last year (eight goals, 12 points in eight games) and I’m starting out fast right now (six goals, two assists after five games). The key here—for the team—is to avoid the big injuries. Minor ones are all right, but you don’t want the big ones.” ■