On This Date in Sports May 27, 1994: Matteau, Matteau!!
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
The New York Rangers survive a seven-game battle with the New Jersey Devils to reach the Stanley Cup Finals. In the finale at Madison Square Garden, the Rangers win 2-1 in double overtime on a goal by Stephane Matteau. The Eastern Conference Finals may have been the most drama-filled series I NHL history, as three games went to double overtime and that does account for Mark Messier’s guarantee.
Separated by eight miles the rivalry on the Hudson River reached new heights during the 1993/94 season as the New Jersey Devils with the arrivals of Martin Brodeur, who wins the Calder Trophy as the had become a true Stanley Cup contender, having the best season in franchise history to date as they posted a record of 47-25-12 under coach Jacques Lemaire. I the playoffs the Devils passed an early test when they needed seven games to slip past the Buffalo Sabres in a series marked by great goaltending on both sides. In the second round, the Devils rallied to beat the Boston Bruins in six, winning four in a row after dropping the first two games at home.
The New York Rangers were a franchise marked by frustration and ghosts as they had not won the Stanley Cup in 54 years. Two years earlier, the Rangers appeared to be on their way as they had the best season in franchise history. However, their momentum was thwarted by a late-season strike as they went down in the second round against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The following season saw more disappointment as the Rangers were ravaged by injuries and missed the playoffs. Hoping to get back on track they hired Mike Keenan who used visual motivation editing past New York victory parades to let his team know how it would feel. The motivation worked as they again won the President’s Trophy and had the best season in franchise history at 52-24-8. In the playoffs, the Rangers path to the Eastern Conference Finals was easy, as they resembled Danereys Targaryen in King’s Landing the opening round, sweeping the New York Islanders, by outscoring them 22-3 in four games. They then took down Washington Capitals in five games.
The Devils and Rangers were the two top teams in the regular season. The Rangers got an early lead on a goal by Sergei Zubov, while John MacLean tied the game. Sergei Nemchinov put the Rangers back in front in the second period. The teams continued to battle back and forth in the third as Steve Larmer gave the Rangers their third lead of the game after a game-tying goal off the stick of Bill Geurin. Late in the third, the Devils tied it again when Claude Lemieux scored on a scramble with 43 seconds left. The teams would go on to battle into double overtime when Stephane Richer netted the game-winner for New Jersey. After the Devils 4-3 win in Game 1, the Rangers responded big in Game 2, winning 4-0 as Mike Richter and the Rangers defense limited the Devils to 16 shots.
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As the series shifted to the Meadowlands for Game 3, the series began to kick up in intensity as the teams traded goals in the first two periods, with Adam Graves and Larmer scoring for the Rangers, while Slav Fetisov and Valeri Zelepukin scored for the Devils. From there it was overtime and double overtime again as Stephan Matteau who was acquired at the trade deadline gave the Rangers a 3-2 win. Much like the Rangers did in Game 2, the Devils came out strong in Game 4, taking a 2-0 first period lead on goals by
Richer and Guerin. The Rangers got a goal from Matteau in the second, as Mike Keenan raised some eyebrows when Glen Healy came on in relief of Mike Richter. The Devils meanwhile recorded a 3-1 win, with Zelepukin scoring in the third period.
Back at Madison Square Garden for Game 5, the Rangers came out flat, as Bernie Nichols gave the Devils an early lead with a shorthanded goal. It had been a familiar theme in Rangers history when things got tough in the playoffs, they would wither and die. This was certainly the case in Game 5, as they lost 4-1 in an uninspired effort. As the Devils got a second goal from Nichols along with goals from Mike Peluso and Tom Chorske. While Esa Tikkanen scored the lone goal for New York.
The Rangers were as down as a team could be after two straight losses. Skating into the Meadowlands things seemed bleak when Captain Mark Messier stuck his neck on the line and guaranteed the Rangers would win. The Rangers would not respond right away as the Devils seeking to clinch the Eastern Conference Championship got first period goals by Scott Niedermayer and Claude Lemieux to hold a 2-0 lead. The lead would stand at 2-0 until Alex Kovalev put the Rangers n the board late in the second period. As the third period began the Rangers faced the biggest period in team history down 2-1. It was in the next 20 minutes that Mark Messier went from captain to messiah for the Rangers, as he scored three times in the third period to give the Rangers a 4-2 win, making good on his guarantee.
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Game 7 would be at the Madison Square Garden, with enough intensity handing over the Hudson River to light the Manhattan Skyline. Neither team was able to score in the first period, final near the game’s midway mark Brian Leetch slipped on by Martin Brodeur. The game remained 1-0 into the final seconds when Valeri Zelpukin scored with 7.7 seconds left to tie the game and force overtime. From there the game became a war as both teams could have won it several times as the game went into double overtime for the third time in the series. At 4:24 of double overtime, the Rangers got the break they needed as Stephane Matteau skated around the back of the net and found the flaw in Brodeur’s game and slipped in the game winner. The play led to a dramatic radio call from Howie Rose as the Rangers went to the Stanley Cup Finals with a 2-1 win.
The Rangers would go on to beat the Vancouver Canucks to win the Stanley Cup. The Devils meanwhile got over the heartbreak and won the Stanley Cup in 1995, as their series against the Rangers became a learning experience. It can be argued that the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals is the greatest seven-game series in the history of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.