The Rangers are down 3-2 in their playoff series against the Devils, making Game 6 a must-win for New York.
Sound familiar? After taking the first two games of the series, the Rangers have dropped the last three contests and find themselves on the brink of elimination against their Hudson River rivals.
The last time the Rangers successfully came back from down 3-2 against the Devils was nearly 30 years ago when hockey legend Mark Messier stapled himself into New York sports history with his guaranteed win.
While Messier won't be on the ice to help the Rangers in 2023, the ESPN analyst will be watching to see if his former club can pull off the same feat he did in his playing days.
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The Sporting News has more details on Messier's famous guarantee.
Mark Messier's Game 6 guarantee in NHL playoffs vs. Devils
The Devils and Rangers were set to meet in a highly-anticipated Eastern Conference Final during the 1994 playoffs. Despite both clubs holding the best records in the league, New York was seen as the heavy favorite, going 6-0 in the regular season against New Jersey.
As the series began, it was clear it would not be so easy for New York. The Devils grabbed Game 1 in double overtime before the Rangers responded with a win in Game 2 and an overtime victory in Game 3.
New Jersey smacked New York in Games 4 and 5 to go up 3-2 in the series and put the Rangers on the brink of elimination. Another win would have given the Devils their first trip to the Stanley Cup Final in franchise history.
Messier made it clear after Game 5 that was not going to be the case with a simple message.
"We're going to go in there and win Game 6."
While some of his teammates, including Hall of Famer Brian Leetch, were amused by Messier's prediction, the New York captain was all business. He not only talked the talk, but he walked the walk.
The Devils were up 2-1 late in Game 6 and it seemed like Messier's guarantee would not be coming to fruition. That is until Messier himself scored the game-tying and go-ahead goals to put the Rangers on top 3-2. He added an empty netter to complete the hat trick and send the series back to New York for a winner-take-all Game 7.
"[Messier's] game would have been one for the ages anyway, even without having that come out," Leetch said in a New York Times article. "But the fact that he was able to back up what came out in the paper was phenomenal."
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The Rangers went on to win Game 7 in overtime thanks to a Stephane Matteau game-winner. New York then faced Vancouver in the Stanley Cup Final, completing the same 3-2 series comeback against the Canucks as they did the Devils to earn the organization its first Stanley Cup win in over 50 years.
Rangers-Devils postseason history
The 2023 playoff series between the Devils and Rangers is the seventh time the two Metropolitan clubs have met in the postseason.
The two teams first met in 1992, and before this year, the last time the Rangers and Devils squared off in the postseason was in 2012.
In total, New York has the edge in postseason success, defeating New Jersey four times while the Devils have beaten the Rangers twice.
| Year | Series Result |
|---|---|
| 1992 | Rangers 4, Devils 3 |
| 1994 | Rangers 4, Devils 3 |
| 1997 | Rangers 4, Devils 1 |
| 2006 | Devils 4, Rangers 0 |
| 2008 | Rangers 4, Devils 1 |
| 2012 | Devils 4, Rangers 2 |
