14-02-2025
An 80-Year-Old Rangers Hockey Fight Mystery Solved
If you had the good fortune to see the movie about legendary Maurice Richard, you may remember a fight scene where the Rocket knocked out Rangers defenseman Bob (Killer) Dill.
In the movie, Dill was played by our old friend Sean Avery. What the ex-Ranger may remember from the flick is that this was Richard's first major fight as a big-leaguer.
Part Two of the bout was their going off to the penalty box – shared in those days – when Richard decked Dill again.
But there's an interesting postscript that Richard told me when I worked on his book, "The Flying Frenchmen."
"The funniest part of the whole incident was after the game," Richard recalled. "I walked out of the Garden exit on West 49th Street. Right across the street was the Hotel Belvedere and there was Dill waiting for me.
"I couldn't speak too much English at the time but I asked Dill if he wanted to have dinner with me. He said, 'This is the first time I've ever been punched that hard but I don't think I'll have dinner with you!"
P.S. When the pair would meet occasionally after that encounter, Rocket added: "Bob would give me a big handshake and a big smile!"
