February 25th, 1979. Madison Square Garden.
That was the night when the Islanders were taking on the Rangers and a signature moment in the storied rivalry occurred.
Rangers forward Ulf Nilsson was trying to get to a puck when his skate got caught in a rut on the ice. Islanders defenseman Denis Potvin came around and checked Nilsson hard into the boards. Nilsson suffered a broken ankle and the "Potvin Sucks" chant was born.
It's a chant that Rangers fans have been belting out for over four decades and it gave Potvin an idea that has taken 43 years to come to fruition.
All he did was change one letter in the chant and that's how he came up with "Potvin Socks".
"I've been thinking about it for a long time," said Potvin. "I talked to many people in the clothing business and nothing ever really happened.
"Potvin Socks" debuted on October 26th when the Islanders, appropriately, hosted the Rangers at UBS Arena. The first round of socks sold out quickly and now orders are being taken at www.potvinsocks.com. With the Isles on board as a partner, part of the proceeds will be donated to the Islanders Children's Foundation.
"They loved it and have been great partners in launching the socks," said Potvin, whose number five hangs in the rafters at UBS Arena.
Potvin, elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1991, had tried to get this project off the ground for years, but it just never worked out.
"I did think it was never going to happen," said Potvin. "Over the years, everybody that I mentioned it to thought it was a great idea but the magic never happened until six or seven months ago."
That's when Potvin met James Lyman who had a company that manufactured boxing equipment including gloves, t-shirts, shorts and, of course, socks.
Potvin and Lyman, a Rangers fan from Connecticut, were playing golf one day when the three-time Norris Trophy winner told Lyman of his idea for the socks and his inability to find a way to make it happen.
"He just fell over laughing," said Potvin. "(Jim) said I can do socks."
Potvin is all smiles about the "Potvin Socks" project, but he certainly remembers what he went through in the years that immediately followed the hit.
"Ulfie was the first one to say there was nothing dirty about it and he got his skate caught in a rut which was something that happened quite a bit in Madison Square Garden," said Potvin.
In the 1978-79 playoffs, the Islanders were upset by the Rangers in the semifinals and then the Blueshirts lost to the Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Final. The following season, Potvin and the Islanders won the first of four straight Stanley Cups.
"That kind of exacerbated the anger in a sense and the focus," said Potvin. "There were no death threats. Nothing like that."
But when the Islanders would visit the Rangers, especially in the playoffs, the Isles would stay in the hotel across the street from Madison Square Garden. For an 8 o'clock game, the players would make their way over to the arena about two and a half hours before face-off. Potvin, to avoid any potential conflict with Rangers fans, would head over to MSG at around 3 o'clock in the afternoon.
"I would do it specifically because I didn't want the risk of running into…whatever," said Potvin. "Tensions were high. It was a time when I was very concerned but once I got on the ice, I felt safe."
Eventually, Potvin found a way to have some fun with it. In 2005, the Islanders celebrated the 25th anniversary of their first Stanley Cup team. That night, Potvin had a plan when he stepped to the microphone to address the crowd at Nassau Coliseum.
"What I was doing was to try and change the narrative," said Potvin.
Potvin asked the crowd "How many cups?"
The crowd screamed "four".
Potvin then asked "who sucks?"
And the crowd roared "They (the Rangers) do!"
"Those Rangers fans will never get it," said Potvin to the fans. "Even when I'm there, they keep yelling "Potvin's Cups!".
And maybe some Rangers fans are ready to bury the hatchet with Potvin.
When the socks were unveiled on October 26th, Potvin was set up in the concourse and fans who purchased the socks were able to get them autographed.
Surprisingly, not all of them were Islanders fans.
"Even the Rangers fans that I met that night thought it was great," said Potvin. "One lady said to me Denis this is brilliant," said Potvin. "We're really getting tired of that chant."
And now the plan is for Potvin to reach out to Ulf Nilsson with regards to the socks. They had become pretty good friends years ago after the hit. Nilsson lives in Sweden and Potvin has his phone number.
"I haven't spoken to him yet," said Potvin. "I am going to be sending him a note or calling him and then we'll take it from there."
Until then, "The Captain" is moving forward with "Potvin Socks" and is looking to build the brand.
"We could put anything on the socks," said Potvin who will be back on Long Island for his bobblehead night on December 2nd when the Islanders host Nashville.
"We're coming up with a great Christmas sock. There's a whole area that we want to explore."
All it took to put a different spin on the "Potvin Sucks" chant was to change one letter.
It was genius…just like Denis Potvin was on the ice.
