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In 2004, one of the most infamous moments in NBA history unfolded after a massive brawl broke out between players and fans at a Pacers-Pistons game during the incident known as “The Malice at the Palace,” which transpired 35 years after a similarly wild scene unfolded during a showing between the Bruins and the Rangers at Madison Square Garden.
The New York Rangers aren’t considered a primary rival of the Boston Bruins, but the two squads still have a fairly lengthy history due to their status as members of the NHL‘s “Original 6.”
In 1970, Boston won the first of the two Stanley Cups it would secure at the start of the decade, and the team that earned the right to hoist that iconic piece of hardware was dubbed “Big Bad Bruins” thanks to the very physical play it harnessed en route to winning the championship.
While most of those players had left the team by the time 1979 rolled around, they’d help set the tone for a franchise that rarely backed down from a fight. While that usually meant they were never afraid to throw down with other hockey players, some fans in New York City ended up on the receiving end of their ire thanks to what unfolded after a game.
One of the wildest brawls in NHL history involved Miike Milbury beating a Rangers fan with his own shoe
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Prior to the start of the 1979-80 NHL campaign, the Bruins had appeared in the Stanely Cup Finals in back-to-back years and were still one of the best teams in the league when they headed down to Madison Square Garden to face off against the Rangers with a 19-9-5 record on December 23, 1797.
New York, on the other hand, was hovering around the .500 mark (16-15-5, to be exact) and was facing a bit of an uphill battle if they wanted to walk away with the win. It looked like they were on the verge of doing exactly that after heading into the third period up 3-1, but Boston tallied a trio of unanswered goals to earn the 4-3 victory.
Tempers between the two teams had repeatedly flared over the course of the contest, and things didn’t exactly simmer down once the final horn blew. A scrum formed around the Bruins net as players from both sides exchanged words, and while it initially seemed like the situation was under control, a shoving match eventually broke out.
That skirmish spilled over to the boards, and things escalated very quickly when a Rangers fan named John Kaptain reached over the glass to hit Boston’s Stan Jonathan with a rolled-up program before snatching his stick out of his hand and hauling it into the stands.
Jonathan (who was bloodied by the blow) and his teammates took exception to that unwarranted attack, and we officially had a melee on our hands after Bruins enforcer Terry O’Reilly claimed over the glass to attack Kaptain.
A few other Bruins players followed suit—including defenseman Mike Milbury, who set his sights on the spectator and pursued him up a few rows of seats before cornering him with a little bit of help from Peter McNab. An NYPD officer attempted to pull him off of the spectator but was unable to stop Milbury from ripping Kaptain’s shoe off before hitting him across the leg with it.
Order was eventually restored, although the Bruins needed police to help get them out of NYC after hundreds of angry fans stormed the team’s bus as it was departing MSG.
O’Reilley was hit with an eight-game suspension while Milbury and McNab were forced to sit out for six, and they were forced to pay a $500 fine on top of the $500 levied against every other player on the team (aside from goalie Gerry Cheevers, who made the conscious decision to stay out of the fray).
It doesn’t get much wilder than that.