It will be 50 years this Nov. 2, but if you listen closely, you can still hear the chants of “Kill the Cat!” echoing through Madison Square Garden.
The passing on Monday at age 86 of goalie Eddie Giacomin, one of the New York Rangers’ most beloved figures, sadly comes as the Broadway Blueshirts are just about to embark on their centennial season, having joined the NHL in 1926.
The story of Giacomin and his return to the Garden in the uniform of the Detroit Red Wings is one of the great tales about the man who to pretty much everyone was “Ed-die!” with a hyphen and an exclamation mark.
Late Rangers GM Emile (The Cat) Francis hadn’t exactly endeared himself to New York fans on Halloween day in 1975 by playing a wicked trick on the faithful when he waived the enormously popular Giacomin, then in the twilight of a career that had him bound for the Hockey Hall of Fame as a member of the Class of 1987.
The Red Wings claimed Giacomin, who had played 10-plus seasons for the Rangers. And as fate would have it, Detroit was at the Garden two nights after the waiver deal had shaken New York hockey to its core.
Francis had brought Giacomin, not quite 26, to the NHL in May 1965, giving up four players for him in a trade with Providence of the American Hockey League.
“I made a lot of good deals, but in my mind, without a doubt [getting Giacomin] was the most important deal I made. I had to build up our goalkeeping,” Francis said in 2016, speaking of the goalie he’d championed for years.
But in 1975, The Cat was leaning toward newcomer John Davidson.
Giacomin’s return to the Garden with Detroit was one of the most emotional nights in Rangers history. The Red Wings defeated the home team 6-4, with the full house bellowing its love of Giacomin through the entire game.
“Here’s the problem: Both of Eddie’s knees were gone,” Francis said. “I knew that the year before, when I made the deal with the St. Louis Blues to get Davidson, to groom him to be our next goalkeeper.
“But I couldn’t use [Davidson] at Madison Square Garden. ‘Ed-die! Ed-die!’ the fans always chanted. I knew if I was ever going to get [Davidson] ready to play for the Rangers, he’s got to be able to play in the home rink.
“[Giacomin] had done so much for our team. I tried to trade him, but nobody wanted him. So, I put him on waivers and who picks him up but Detroit, who’s coming in next game.”
Francis laughed at the memory of the chants for Giacomin drowning out the national anthem and recalled that his own conflicted players didn’t want to shoot on their former teammate.
Giacomin was in tears as the love showered him from the upper reaches of the Garden.
“The last 10 minutes of the game, they start: ‘Kill the Cat! Kill the Cat!’