Denis Potvin

I grew up on Long Island, did not like the Islanders, although many of them became broadcast partners and friends in later years.

I've worked with Dennis Potvin and Bobby Nystrom and a couple of the others, and they're all great guys.

But all my friends were Islander fans growing up on the island, so the years they were winning the four cups.

But I had so much respect.

They've had Ed Westfall, who was the first captain who got this team through their two very difficult expansion years and who helped them develop by their third season, which back in the seventies was unheard of into a team that was one game away from the Stanley cup final in just its third year of existence.

You had, you know, Clark Gillies, who didn't feel comfortable with the sea and voluntarily gave it, you know, relinquished it to Dennis Potvin, who was a great captain.

Anders Lee, who was a captain for what, eight years.

You know, there are guys, there's different styles of leadership.

Over the weekend, I went, in Stony Brook, Long Island, there is a museum, Long Island Museum, and they're doing an exhibit on the 1970s, and they show you, I might have to post it on X, they showed a, I think it was a ticket for a series that the 73 Mets played a series in Japan after they won the pennant.

You know, Dennis Potvin jersey, Billy Smith hockey stick.

I mean, it's a Long Island thing, so of course the Islanders are going to be in it.

And they show different, you know, cultural stuff, a house on Long Island in the 70s, a station wagon that was all sorts of artists brought back to life, how life was in the 70s.

But that's not how a team is built.

Like, the LA Kings in the early 2000s had, you know, Deadmarsh, Palfrey, and Allison, Blake, Schneider, and Potvin.

Incredible top six.

But they didn't have anything else behind that.

He's been a Norris finalist six consecutive seasons, which is incredible.

Reached 500 points last season in only 467 games, fourth fastest amongst defensemen ever behind Orr, Coffey, and Denis Potvin.

Importantly, a- and more so than I...

Well, may- maybe Edmonton's there too, but Colorado m- remains a legitimate championship-level team after winning the President's Trophy, uh, and reaching the Western Conference Final last season.

Yeah.

He's already reached 90 and 92 points, but never crossed 100.

Only six defensemen in NHL history have ever produced a 100-point season: Bobby Orr, Paul Coffey, Denis Potvin, Al MacInnis, Brian Leetch, and Eric Karlsson.

So you would think that that's kind of an important one to get.

He scored on two of his three shots on goal.

Only Dennis Potvin and Brian Trottier had more shots than that in this game.

Yvonne Vautor, briefly an Islander during the magical 79-80 season.

He is our Islanders birthday of the day.

37.

And Potvin was 29.

Huh.

Interesting.

from the time you left here.

And I remember seeing you down in Miami with Dennis Potvin, amongst others, and Brian Murray.

It is really a pleasure to have you on.

You're in Ohio, correct? No, I'm not.

He has a new book.

You can go to jeffrimmer.com.

If you remember, Jeff, from the old days, the new days, the Miami days, the Columbus days, I was with Dennis Potvin, man.

You know, you and I and he were in a booth in Miami 30 years ago.

They just had a very lovable group of guys.

They already had Potvin and, uh, Clark Gillies, and, um, and, uh, you know, Bryan Trottier, Mike, Mike, I don't know if Mike Bossy was there that year, but, um- Chico Resch-

Yes

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