1952-53 – 1963-64 – Number Retired on February 22, 2009
Hall of Famer Andy Bathgate did it all for the Rangers in a remarkable 12-year span that saw him captain the team, win the NHL’s Hart Trophy as league MVP, play in eight NHL All-Star Games, and tie for the league scoring lead. In 1,069 career games, he recorded 349 goals and 624 assists for 973 points in 17 NHL seasons.
Bathgate joined the Rangers organization as a 17-year-old in 1949 and got his first call-up to the Blueshirts early in the 1952-53 season. The four-time Rangers’ MVP (’57, ’58, ’59, ’62) led the team in scoring eight times (1955-56, 1956-57, 1957-58, 1958-59, 1959-60, 1960-61, 1961-62, 1962-63). His finest season came in 1958-59, when he became the first Rangers player to net 40 goals in a single season and was awarded the Hart Trophy as the league’s MVP.
A two-time NHL First Team All-Star (’59, ’62) and two-time NHL Second Team All-Star (’58, ’63), Bathgate tied for the NHL scoring title during the 1961-62 season, only to lose the Art Ross Trophy to Bobby Hull because he had fewer goals. Named team captain in 1961-62, Bathgate helped the Rangers snap a four year playoff drought that season. He remained captain right up until he left the Rangers on February 22, 1964.
Upon his departure from the Blueshirts, Bathgate was the owner of every major team scoring record. His record-setting stretch of goals in 10 straight games (11 goals) during the 1962-63 season still stands today. He joined the immortals in the game of hockey when he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1978.
Bathgate passed away on February 26, 2016.
