Rangers Alumni Classic on Sunday a chance to celebrate 100th anniversary of franchise and remember Ron Duguay

One hundred years, almost to the day, after the first Rangers game, former Blueshirts will put the jersey on one more time and take the ice at Madison Square Garden on Sunday afternoon.

They’ll play in the fifth Rangers Alumni Classic, an event that will bring back dozens of franchise legends and fan favorites who will square off against each other, playing not for two points but for nostalgia and charity.

“It’s 100 years of Rangers hockey, and there’s no better way to celebrate it than to have Rangers versus Rangers,’’ 1994 Stanley Cup winner Adam Graves said in a phone call with Newsday this week. “You’re going to have families represented by great-grandparents, grandparents, parents, kids, grandkids — Ranger fans from all generations. And we hope with the next tier of guys that we have coming back in, whether they’re playing or coaching, that there’s going to be a player that everyone can identify with. For me, it’s a celebration of our bigger Ranger family.”

Graves, 58, works for the Rangers in their hockey and business operations departments. He will be among the bigger names playing, along with goalies Mike Richter and Henrik Lundqvist and other fan favorites such as Ryan Callahan, Dan Girardi and Derek Stepan plus recent retirees such as Kevin Shattenkirk and Brendan Smith.

“Being able to hook like the ’90s, I think I’ll be able to tag along with some younger guys,” Graves joked. “That’s the hope, that they’re not calling it by today’s standards. If they’re not, I’m all set.”

“It’s such a fun time for us to reconnect with guys who we haven’t seen in a while,” said Stepan, 36, who works in player development with the Minnesota Wild. “To be able to play in a game in front of fans who cheered us on for so long is a super-fun experience. And for me personally, my three kids have never seen me in a Ranger uniform.”

The game will be part of the Rangers’ centennial celebration a year after the franchise, which played its first game at the Garden on Nov. 16, 1926, played its centennial season. Initially, the franchise’s beginning was supposed to be celebrated at last season’s Alumni Classic, but that game was canceled because of a massive January snowstorm.

There will be a tinge of sadness on Sunday, as the game comes just a few weeks after beloved former Ranger Ron Duguay died after a battle with cancer. Duguay, iconic for his helmetless, flowing hair, died Oct. 22.

“It’s heartbreaking,’’ Stepan said. “Ron was a big part of the organization. When I was there, he did TV every once in a while and he’d come around and hang out. He was just such a good human and such a good guy to connect with. He’ll be missed for sure.”

“He was larger than life, and you knew when he walked in, he lit the whole room up,” Graves said. “He was a guy that had the ability to share stories and speak to all different ages of people, and he was a special man and . . . someone that I was lucky enough to play in several of these alumni games with. And I always enjoyed his company.”

Tickets for the game are available through Ticketmaster. Proceeds from the game will benefit the Northwell Foundation and the Garden of Dreams Foundation.

“At the Garden, there’s nothing more important than the Garden of Dreams . . . and certainly Northwell Health Foundation, which is again something that helps so many families in the tristate area,’’ Graves said. “So to be able to use hockey, an alumni game, a celebratory game, something that is for all ages, and be able to raise meaningful funds and at the same time get all the different generations of Rangers together [is great].”

As for the current Rangers team, which has been out on its longest road trip of the season to Seattle and Western Canada, Graves said he is “excited’’ about its prospects.

“The way we’ve started at home [8-2-0] has been fantastic,” he said. “And with this defense and the way the team’s playing five-on-five . . . they’ve made huge strides for me, and they’re a much different team, and much different in a positive way.”

By Colin Stephenson

colin.stephenson@newsday.comColinSNewsday

Colin Stephenson covers the Rangers for Newsday. He has spent more than two decades covering the NHL and just about every sports team in the New York metropolitan area.