If you’re a fan of the New York Rangers, you know nothing ever comes easy. The Broadway Blueshirts have been known as a “heart attack” team. They’ve been known as “heartbreakers.” And one time in the last 84 years, they’ve even been known as champions.
With that type of reputation, it’s no wonder ESPN’s E:60 crew decided to name their latest documentary, “No Easy Victories.” While there have been several documentaries/films about the lone Rangers’ Stanley Cup championship in the post-World War II Era, this new one puts a completely different spin on things.
Jeremy Schaap and the documentary’s production team don’t just regale viewers with highlights of the 1994 New York Rangers’ championship season. Compared to other films on the subject – “Road To Victory” and “Oh Baby!” – there are not nearly as many in-game highlights. You see, Schaap and Co. decided to tell the story of the ‘94 Rangers through the lens of The McDonald Family.
The late Steven McDonald grew up in New York City as a huge sports fan and no team captured his heart more than The Seventh Avenue Skaters. Nothing changed when McDonald became an adult. He became an NYPD Police Officer. He got married to a wonderful woman named Patti Ann. And, of course, he continued to root for the Rangers.
Then, on July 12, 1986, his world changed forever. McDonald was on patrol in Central Park when he was brutally shot by 15-year Shavod Jones. McDonald was shot three times and left paralyzed, barely clinging to life. Only by the grace of G-d did he survive. And when he was shot, his wife was pregnant with their son Conor.
Even though he survived, Steven was now a quadriplegia and on a ventilator. But the one thing that didn’t change was his love of the Rangers. His story captured the attention of not just New Yorkers, but people all over the world and that included the Blueshirts’ organization. Starting with the 1987-88 season, the Rangers began presenting an annual award that fans could vote on, named, “The Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award.” McDonald, his wife, and his son would present the award to one player on the team towards the end of each season in a ceremony that is still, to this very day, one of the highlights of the season; and likely means even more now considering that Steven passed away in January of 2017.
But what does all of this have to do with ESPN’s latest entry into the E:60 series? Well, McDonald and his family were present throughout the Rangers’ 1994 Cup journey and Schaap tells the team’s story through the eyes of McDonald’s son Conor, who himself is now an NYPD Captain and his widow Patti Ann. (Along with several players from that team and some media members).
In a one-on-one interview, Schaap detailed the process of creating this new film and peels back the onion on the whole project.
“Obviously, this is the first time in a long time that ESPN has been an NHL rights holder,” Schaap explained. “(Plus it’s the 30-year anniversary). So, it makes perfect sense to do something on the team. Also (the current Rangers’ team) was having a great regular season when we went forward and green-lit it. What I remember basically is just discussions about how this story is gonna be different. There’s nothing wrong with doing just a story about the ’94 Rangers because it’s a great story, a great team and there are a lot of great characters. But, we wanted to do something different because other documentaries have been done.”
“We were hoping to do something that looked at it from a different perspective,” Schaap continued. “Some ideas, as I recall, were kind of batted around and we definitely wanted to do something that included the Rangers fans as part of the story because they are such a big part of it. With this franchise in particular, just exactly how much anguish Rangers fans have felt for so long. This was such an incredible moment of joy and relief. Eventually, we started talking about Steven McDonald and The Extra Effort Award and it became clear that this would be an interesting way to approach telling the story. But you never know until you sit down with the people who you want to interview.
“For this story, of course, it would be Conor and Patti Ann. I went out to Long Island and interviewed Conor. Everybody asked, ‘Well, how’d it go?’ The producers and I were all just kind of in awe after we spoke to Conor. He was so amazing. His recall was so remarkable. If we had had any questions beforehand about whether this was going to be the right way to approach the story, whether the connection was strong enough, whether the memories were strong enough (he answered them all). Everybody knows Steven McDonald meant a lot to the Rangers and vice versa. After talking to Conor and Patti Ann, they drove home the point beyond any doubt that the Rangers were, I think Conor put it best. ‘It was G-d, family, and the Rangers.’ And that’s what convinced us that this was the right way to go.”
“In New York, when police officers are shot or injured, it’s obviously a huge story and it was a huge story at the time,” Schaap continued on. “Steven McDonald’s story was covered by everybody in the local news, of course, but also in the national media. Our Producers and Directors did a tremendous job of locating all of the historical archival footage to help tell this story. It’s very powerful.”
Powerful indeed. The film quite literally shows video footage of Steven McDonald being stretchered into an ambulance after being shot. This is not a normal hockey documentary. McDonald’s story, his perseverance, and his will to survive his hard work, it all completely embody the film’s name, “No Easy Victories.”
Of course, for anyone who knows the story of the ‘94 Rangers, nothing came easy for them either; even though they won The President’s Trophy. The New Jersey Devils had the Rangers on the brink of elimination in the Eastern Conference Final. But New York’s Captain, Mark Messier, stood up and led his team to a critical Game Six victory.
“People are familiar with the stories, the ins and outs, and day-by-day of that team,” Schaap said. “But hearing Mark Messier talking about what it was like for him coming to New York from Edmonton, the pressures that he felt, the fear that he was feeling, experiencing while trying to perform. Knowing what it would mean to the fans after more than half a century, coming from his hometown where he had done everything he could possibly do, winning five (Cups), including one after (Wayne) Gretzky had left. It’s interesting to me because you don’t typically view this story that way.”
Schaap is right, you don’t normally view the story of the ‘94 Rangers in this way. But it adds to the human side of this now near-mythical team.
“When I was talking to Adam Graves, his special relationship with The McDonalds and what that means to him and what that has meant to him for a long time, that’s what I’ll remember,” Schaap said. “Messier talking about fear. The guy who never seems to be afraid of anything. But he talks about how you overcome your fear. I know Mark has said this in the past, but him talking about insecurity or lack of self-confidence or at least just questioning it and how that also is one of the things responsible for his success because he does feel pressure. He pushes himself to be the best he can be and everybody around him.”
Insecurities, fear, and pressure are all things the Rangers, their fans, and The McDonald Family have dealt with for many, many years. But in the Spring and early Summer of 1994, the team who never seemed to have an easy victory, finally managed to win the big one. Steven McDonald, Conor, and Patti Ann may not have been players on the ice, but their story was just as important to the Rangers; it’s one that goes hand-in-hand with the one Schaap and his crew told in the film.
In life and in hockey, there are no easy victories.
