New York Rangers fans can now wear their heart on their feet, and New York Islanders legend Denis Potvin is all for it.
When the Islanders hosted the Rangers at UBS Arena on Wednesday, fans from each team were able to purchase “Potvin socks,” a play on the less-than-positive saying Rangers fans have been chanting at Madison Square Garden for decades.
“You’ve been chanting it for 43 years,” Potvin said with a smile in a video posted by the Islanders. “Now, you can wear it.”
Potvin etched his place in Islanders-Rangers history on Feb. 25, 1979, when he hit promising Rangers rookie Ulf Nilsson near the end boards at Madison Square Garden. Nilsson’s skate got caught in a crevice of the ice, he broke his ankle from the check, and left the ice. He was never the same player after that.
Every time Potvin touched the puck that game, Rangers fans yelled something that sounded like “Potvin socks,” and they never stopped. In fact, the chant can still be heard several times during any Rangers home game, whether they are playing the Islanders or not.
Now, in addition to allowing Rangers fans to vent their frustration, the chant will help do some good with 10 percent of the proceeds from the socks going to the Islanders Children’s Foundation.
.