Larry Molyneaux

In the fall of 1938 Lester Patrick of the New York Rangers replaced defenseman Joe Cooper with a pair of raw rookies.

One was rugged Larry Molyneaux. The other was Patrick's son, Murray.

Yeah, you know how this story played out already.

Murray, universally known as Muzz, would join his brother Lynn and become a New York Rangers mainstay over the next three seasons before service in World War II interrupted his promising career.

Molyneaux would play just that one season in the NHL before disappearing to the minor leagues. He was used sparingly at that, picking up just one lonely assist in 43 games.

Both rookie defensemen made brief debuts the previous season with the Rangers. Due to injuries to Butch Keeling and Art Coulter, both would continue to play with the minor league Philadelphia Ramblers and, for a couple of games each, the Rangers. Both ended up playing a stretch of seven hockey games in just nine days!

But both obviously acquitted themselves quite well, prompting the Rangers to move Cooper to make room for the new recruits.

While Patrick was clearly a NHL caliber defenseman, Molyneaux was likely just as good. He had been lauded as one of the top defense prospects in the game from the time he turned pro in 1932.