 Balon's first year back in New York was sub-par by his standards, as he finished with 10 goals and 31 points.However, he would establish himself as an elite player in 1969–70, as he finished 7th in the league in goals with 33 and 10th in overall scoring with 70 points.He followed that up with another stellar season in 1970–71, as he bettered his career high with 36 goals (again top-10 in the league), and was voted the 'Most Popular Ranger' on a team with 5 future Hall-of-Famers.