The first defining moment of the NY Islanders vs. Rangers rivalry happened 50 years ago

Last night notwithstanding, the New York Islanders versus New York Rangers rivalry is among the best in sports. You may not believe this, but the two cross-town rivals used to meet regularly in the post-season (they haven't since 1994), and 50 years ago was the rivalry's first big moment.

JP Parise’s game-winning overtime goal on April 11, 1975, stands as one of the defining moments in Islanders history—not just because of the goal itself but because of what it symbolized: the birth of a franchise that would soon become a dynasty.

The Islanders were only in their third NHL season in 1974-75. Entering the playoffs as underdogs, they faced the Rangers in a best-of-three preliminary series. The two teams split the first two games, setting the stage for a dramatic winner-take-all Game 3 at Madison Square Garden.

Just 11 seconds into overtime, Parise scored the sudden-death winner—the fastest overtime goal in NHL playoff history at the time—on a quick play that shocked the Rangers and silenced the Garden crowd. The goal gave the Islanders their first-ever playoff series win, and it instantly etched Parise’s name into franchise lore.

"We knocked off the big city guys," GM Bill Torrey said. "That got the rivalry going pretty good."

The Islanders rode the momentum of that win, although not right away, into the next round, falling behind 3 games to 0 to the Pittsburgh Penguins before becoming only the second team in NHL history to come back from down from a 3-0 series deficit. They tried to replicate the impossible in the next series again but lost in Game 7 to the Philadelphia Flyers, the eventual Stanley Cup champions.

The Parise goal in 1975 was the birth of a rivalry and the first step toward what the Islanders would become - one of the greatest dynasties in the history of professional sports.