Dec. 16, 1964 - The New York Rangers are still looking for their first home‐ice victory over the Detroit Red Wings, and judging by tonight’s shoddy performance they are going to have difficulty getting it.
The Wings outskated, outhustled, outpassed, and outshot the Blues in romping to a 7‐3 victory before a Madison Square Garden crowd of 13,924.
Detroit’s great right winger, Gordie Howe (pictured), broke a scoring drought that had lasted through 12 games. Howe, the NHL’s most prolific shooter, did not have a single point to show for those games.
The Ranger defense was all Howe needed. He scored twice, once in the second period and again in the final session. His second goal came at a time when the Rangers were demonstrating a clear‐cut inferiority.
Detroit had two men off the ice at the time, the Rangers one. But it was Detroit that put on the offensive that Howe capped by blazing a 40‐foot shot past Marcel Paille, who had replaced Jacques Plante five minutes after the second period started.
Earlier, Paille was sitting in the side arena of the Garden smoking a cigarette when he noticed Plante in pain.
“I told Bob Plager that it wouldn’t be long before I’d be in the game,” Paille said. Unfortunately for Marcel, he was right. After all, you don’t get booed sitting the side arena, but you sure do when you allow five goals in half a game.
Paille’s appearance in the nets seemed the signal for the Wings to get down to business. Before the remainder of the period was over, Detroit scored three goals on Marcel to break the game wide open.
“I didn’t even see the first two shots,” said Paille, “and the third one — by Howe — I guessed wrong on. I thought he’d go for the open part of the net, but instead he shot at the short side. I was wrong.”
Paille was wrong twice more in the third period. But he seemed to be doing his best to blot the entire battle out of his mind as he stood outside the Ranger dressing room an hour after the game.
“If you’re the goalie in a game like this, you have to feel bad,” Paille said. “Maybe when I first started playing hockey, this would have bothered me a lot, but not anymore. Even the boos didn’t bother me. I can’t help it if they are going to boo.
“You sit there smoking a cigarette and relaxing. You don’t expect to play. I had been drinking water all day, which I wouldn’t do if I were going to play. And instead of having a steak at 2 o’clock, I had liver at 4 o’clock. I have a slow stomach.
I think what I should do now is go sit down some place, smoke a few cigarettes, and relax.”
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