Potvin got wish when selected by Islanders with No. 1 pick in 1973 Draft

Legendary hockey reporter Stan Fischler writes a weekly scrapbook for NHL.com. Fischler, known as "The Hockey Maven," shares his humor and insight with readers each Wednesday.
With the Upper Deck 2022 NHL Draft taking place this week at Bell Centre in Montreal, Fischler looks back to 1973 when prize defenseman Denis Potvin was certain to be the No. 1 pick. The New York Islanders had the first selection but a melodrama unfolded when the Montreal Canadiens made an all-out attempt to trade for the prodigy.

In the days leading up to the 1973 NHL Draft in Montreal, there was little doubt about whom the No. 1 pick would be. Defenseman
Denis Potvin
was in a class by himself as the top prospect.
"They were already calling him 'The Next Bobby Orr,'" then Islanders general manager Bill Torrey recalled, "and we wanted him for sure."
Early in the 1972-73 season, Torrey assigned scout Jim Devellano to determine whether the enthusiastic reports about Potvin were legitimate. Devellano -- now the Detroit Red Wings Executive Vice President -- returned nothing but rave reviews.
"I told Bill that this kid was a guy we just had to get, no matter what we had to do," Devellano recalled.
With that in mind the Islanders traded center Terry Crisp to the Philadelphia Flyers for defenseman Jean Potvin. That automatically made the Islanders more attractive to Denis, who idolized his older brother.
Torrey needed all the ammunition he could get to land Denis because there was new competition from the rebel World Hockey Association, which was entering its second season and had money to burn in search of talent.
"The WHA knew what we knew, that Denis was big, was a presence and he could score," Torrey said. "For sure, he was a legitimate future superstar."
Three WHA teams -- the Chicago Cougars, New York Raiders and Ottawa Nationals -- also were making a pitch for Potvin but it was evident that Denis wanted to play alongside his big brother.
"The Islanders already had gone on record saying that money would not be an object when it came to getting me to New York," Potvin said.
Montreal Canadiens general manager Sam Pollock, though, was devising ways of corralling Potvin.
"My agent told me that the Canadiens were offering four good players for me," Potvin revealed. "But I didn't want to play in Montreal. I felt that I'd be under too much pressure to be an instant superstar."
On the morning of the draft, Pollock invited Torrey for a stroll around downtown Montreal, and it wasn't for exercise either.
"We went around the block once and Sam was working on me pretty good," Torrey remembered. "He had several possibilities and I considered them all, but I was convinced that we had to build the team around Denis. I told him that I was sticking with my plan to pick Denis. But Sammy wouldn't give up."
Unlike this year's draft to be held in Montreal's vast Bell Centre, the 1973 version was limited to a large hotel room. The proceedings began when NHL President Clarence Campbell walked to the dais and called for order.
"We are ready to begin," the President declared and then beckoned to Torrey, who was about to make his move when a voice broke over the crowd.
It was Pollock.
"Mr. Campbell," Pollock asked, "may I interrupt for a moment to have a word with Mr. Torrey?"
Potvin shuddered.
"It appeared that my worst fears were about to be confirmed," the future Hall of Famer said. "Pollock was about to conclude the big deal. Bill and Sammy spoke for half a minute. Finally, Pollock walked back to his seat and Campbell returned to the microphone and said, 'Bill Torrey of the New York Islanders, you have the first choice.'
"Bill got to his feet, stuck out his chin, and, in the longest split second of my life, said, 'The New York Islanders wish to draft as their first choice -- Denis Potvin.'"
The Potvin family's post-pick pandemonium was not quite on the level of a Stanley Cup-winning scene but nothing short of jubilant. I'll let Potvin tell it as he did in his autobiography, "Power on Ice."
"My father was running all over the place saying, 'Hey, I'm Mister Potvin!' Jean was crying for joy because we were together again. And my mother, God bless her, handled the furor best of all -- with a drink!"
As for Pollock and the Canadiens, they fared quite well in the 1973 draft, too. The Canadiens selected forward Bob Gainey with the No. 8 pick.
Gainey won the Stanley Cup five times as a player and once as an executive with the Canadiens. Potvin won the Cup four times with the Islanders. Each was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, Potvin in 1991, Gainey the following year.