Beginning tonight, the New York Rangers will battle the New Jersey Devils in a best of seven playoff series for the fifth time since the Devils moved to New Jersey.  The previous four meetings have all come at critical points in Rangers history.

The teams’ first meeting was in the 1992 Patrick Division Semifinals.  This marked the first season on Broadway for “The Captain,” Mark Messier, who led the Rangers to the President’s trophy, en route to capturing the Hart Trophy.  The Rangers struggled in that series, but still managed to dispatch the Devils in seven games.  Unfortunately, the Rangers playoff run would end in the following round, as they were beaten by the Pittsburgh Penguins, extending the Cup drought to a painful 52 years, and putting in motion a series of events that eventually lead to the dismissal of the late Roger Neilson, as Head Coach.

 Two years later, now with Mike Keenan at the helm, and a frantic wave of trade deadline deals to bring in playoff battle-tested veterans, the Rangers would meet the Devils in the 1994 Easter Conference Finals.  During the regular season, the Rangers owned their cross-river rivals, winning all six matches, leading many to believe the Rangers would easily cruise to the Finals.  Nothing could have been further from the truth.  The Devils took Game 1 in what would be the first of three Double OT games in the series.  The Rangers bounced back in Game 2, and struck back themselves in two overtimes in Game 3 to take the series lead.  The Devils came right back to take Games 4 and 5 to push the Rangers to the brink of yet another post-season failure.  The final two games of the series could be boiled down to two words:  “Guarantee” and “Matteau!”  With his team trailing three games to two, Messier guaranteed victory in Game 6 at the Meadowlands.  Things did not get off to a good start for the Rangers.  They trailed 2-0 late in the second period, when Alexei Kovalev beat Brodeur to cut the Devils’ lead in half.  After picking up an assist on the Kovalev goal, Messier potted three of his own in the third period, capped by an 80-foot empty netter, to square the series at 3-3.  With the Rangers clinging to a 1-0 lead with time winding down in Game 7, Valari Zelepukin jammed home the game-tying goal with 7.7 seconds left in regulation, crushing the Garden faithful, and making it look like the Rangers had invented new ways to torture its beleagured fans.  But, 4:24 into the second overtime, newly acquired Stephane Matteau picked up the puck, circled behind the Devils’ net and beat Martin Brodeur on a wraparound to send the Rangers to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1979, where the Rangers would eventually slay the dragon and beat the Vancouver Canucks in seven games to end the 54-year curse.

In 1997, the Devils finished first in the Eastern Conference, while the Rangers, who boasted a lineup that included Mark Messier, Wayne Gretzky, Brian Leetch and Mike Richter, sputtered during the regular season.  Both teams dispatched their first round opponents in five games, setting up the third Battle of the Hudson.  This time, it was expected that the Devils would finally turn the tables, and Game 1 went exactly as expected.  The Devils shut down the Rangers big-name lineup, winning the game 2-0 and taking a 1-0 Series lead.  In game two, Captain Mark Messier set the tone with a vicious and unpenalized cross-check to the face of Doug Gilmore that clearly took the Devils off their game.  Mike Richter was brilliant, allowing only three goals as the Rangers took the final four games of the series, culminating with Adam Graves OT winner in Game 5 to send the Rangers to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they would be crushed by Eric Lindros and the Philadelphia Flyers.  Six weeks later, Messier would leave New York for greener ($$) pastures in Vancouver, beginning The Rangers’ seven-year descent into the hockey abyss, as they would not play in another playoff game until after the lockout.

When the lockout ended, the Rangers were not only expected to continue their post-season drought, but were predicted in most quarters to finish last in the Eastern Conference.  But, most fans and experts didn’t count on three things:  Jaromir Jagr would return to being the most dominant hockey player on the planet and set the franchise records for goals and points in a single season in what should have been a Hart Trophy season; Tom Renney would restore discipline, character and pride on Broadway, with everyone, to quote the late Herb Brooks, “playing for the name on the front of the sweater, not the name on the back; and, a little-known seventh-round pick becoming one of the top goalies in the NHL, as backup goalie Henrik Lundqvist, became “King Henrik” the franchise goalie.  Those three things were enough to get the Rangers into the playoffs for the since 1997, leading to the fourth Rangers-Devils playoff series in the 2006 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals.  The Rangers entered the series playing their worst hockey of the season, blowing a chance to win the Atlantic Division in the final week of the season and dropping all the way to the sixth seed in the East.  King Henrik’s game had slowly come unraveled after leading Team Sweden to a Gold Medal in the Olympics in February.  And, Glen Sather’s attempt to bolster the blue line by acquiring Sandis Ozolinsh at the trade deadline proved disastrous.  As the final minutes of a Game 1 Devils rout were winding down, a frustrated Jagr took a swing at Devils Center Scott Gomez, causing an injury to Jagr’s shoulder.  Jagr would miss game 2, and be completely ineffective in hig Game 3 return, before re-injuring the shoulder in Game 4.  The Devils finally got over the hump against the Rangers, trouncing their rivals in a four-game sweep.  When  Game 4 was over at MSG, Ranger fans, disappointed by the season’s end, but recognizing the strides made by the team, sent their heroes off for the summer with a standing ovation.  The Garden faithful repeated this gesture last season, following the team’s second round loss to the Buffalo Sabres, in which they were 7.7 seconds away from taking a 3-2 series lead, before Chris Drury dashed their hopes.

That brings us to this season, this series and another critical point in Rangers history.  The Rangers’ post-lockout resurgence has lead to an Era of Good Feeling on Broadway.  After experiencing the pain of seven straight seasons without making the playoffs, fans knew just how far the team has had to come the past few years.  They appreciated the hard work and the change in culture, and they just plain enjoyed the fact that their team mattered again.  For the past two seasons, losing in the first and second round respectively was good enough for Ranger fans.  That’s not enough anymore.  After signing Scott Gomez and Chris Drury to expensive long-term contracts, just making the playoffs is not enough.  After gouging fans on playoff ticket prices (to the tune of $150 per blue seat for the Finals), just making the playoffs is not enough.

The Rangers didn’t bring Gomez and Drury to New York to finish first in the Eastern Conference in the regular season.  They brought them here to win 16 hockey games over the next two months.  And, Ranger fans expect a legitimate Stanley Cup run, beginning tonight. 

So, can and will the Rangers win this series after going 7-0-1 against the Devils in the regular season?  Here’s a look at the matcups in this series:

Offense

If you’re looking for an old-time wide-open run and gun game, this is not the series for you.  Both of these teams struggle to score goals, and this series is likely to be filled with low-scoring, one-goal games.  The Devils must get scoring from “The Big Four.”  Elias, Gionta, Parise and Langenbrunner must carry the team offensively.  If the Rangers can keep those guys off the scoresheet, the Devils are going to have a hard time winning the series.  For the Rangers, their big name players must also lead the way.  Jaromir Jagr has saved his best hockey for the end of the season, and he must continue to dominate the way he has the past 2 weeks.  As mentioned above, Gomez and Drury were brought here for this time of year, and they are going to be under tremendous pressure to deliver.  And, Brendan Shanahan must step up his game now that the playoffs are here.  The key for the Rangers is going to be secondary scoring from their young kids.  If the Rangers get offense from Brandon Dubinsky, Ryan Callahan and Nigel Dawes, that could be enough to give them an advantage.

Edge:  Rangers

Defense

Both teams play tremendous defensive hockey.  The Rangers and Devils were the top two defensive teams in the Eastern Conference in terms of shots and goals allowed.  The Devils are the most disciplined team in the NHL and no team in the league is as capable of executing a game plan.  Many people still question the Rangers defense, mostly, because they don’t have a single star on the blue line.  But, the results don’t lie.  The Rangers allowed the fewest shots and goals against in the Eastern Conference, and finished third and fourth respectively in the entire NHL in those categories.  Plus, they had the fifth-most goals scored by defensemen in the NHL.  The Devils defense corps is also greater than the sum of its parts.  Much of the credit has to go to Assistant Coach and Hall of Fame Defenseman Larry Robinson. 

Edge:  Devils

Goaltending

The goalie matchup in this series is as good as it gets.  Entering the playoffs, there were exactly two teams in the Eastern conference that don’t have questions about their play in goal.  Both of those teams are playing in this series.  When it’s all said and done, Martin Brodeur (boy it pains me to write this) may go down as the greatest goalie in NHL history.  He assumed another massive workload this season playing in a whopping 77 games and leading all Eastern Conference goalies in wins and goals against average.  Despite his 1-4-3 record against the Rangers, Brodeur was brilliant vs. the Blueshirts this year.  And, he is unbeaten in the playoffs against Henrik Lundqvist.  Lundqvist, quite simply, owns the Devils.  In his first game ever against the Devils, he allowed 3 goals.  Since then, Lundqvist has allowed 2 goals or fewer in 15 straight games against New Jersey.  This season, Lundqvist finished behind only Brodeur in wins and GAA among Eastern Conference netminders.  The only question for King Henrik is can he bring his regular season success against the Devils into the post-season?

Edge:  Devils

Special Teams

Both teams have been disappointing on the power play this season.  The Rangers and Devils finished 12th and 13th respectively in the Eastern Conference on the power play.  This is going to be the deciding factor in the series.  Whichever team wakes up its power play is going to be left standing at the end.  It’s not going to be easy, as both teams are tremendous on the penalty kill.  The Rangers were the top penalty killing team in the Eastern Conference, while the Devils were fourth.  Last year, in the playoffs, both teams picked up their power play, as they finished with the top 2 power play units in the post-season.  The Rangers power play woke up toward the end of the season and if Jagr continues to play with the confidence he has down the stretch, the Rangers power play can be dangerous.  The Devils have scored only one power play goal in 27 chances against the Rangers this season.  The Rangers went 4 for 30 on the power play against the Devils.

Edge:  Rangers

Prediction:

The Rangers have the better team and should win the series, although nothing is ever that simple for the Rangers.  It should be a tight-checking, defensive series.  Both goalies will play very well, and it will come down to who can find a way to score when it matters.  The Rangers have the right guys on the team to do that and will win the series in six games.  If they don’t, you can rest assured that the Era of Good Feeling on Broadway will come to a crashing halt along with the Rangers’ season.

Rangers in six