LOS ANGELES — Dave Maloney and his band were coming and that meant Peter Stemkowski and his ilk were either going or already out the door. The Rangers’ Era of Excellence Without Winning the Cup I had ended, and the basic difference between the situation four decades ago and now is that Emile Francis didn’t think to send a letter to season-ticket holders.
Of course Emile went, too, with John Ferguson replacing The Cat as general manager and taking command behind the bench. Most of the unloading was Emile’s doing. He had been the one to unload Vic Hadfield, Eddie Giacomin, Jean Ratelle, Brad Park and even before them, Harry Howell, Teddy Irvine, Jim Neilson and Gilles Villemure.