A Look at the 1993-94 New York Rangers

Long before the Toronto Maple Leafs and their fans were reminded about 1967, the New York Rangers and their fans were constantly reminded about 1940. At that time, 1940 was the last time that the Rangers captured the Stanley Cup, and their attempts to win one during that span were met with dead ends every time. Entering the 1993-94 season, the Rangers hadn't reached the Conference Finals since 1986, which saw them defeated by the eventual Stanley Cup Champions, the Montréal Canadiens. Then on October 4, 1991, the Rangers received Mark Messier, a five-time Stanley Cup Champion, from the Edmonton Oilers in a trade. That would normally be the thing that propels a team to glory, but the road hit a bit of a snag: after losing in the Elite Eight in the 1992 playoffs, they completely missed out in the 1992-93 season--the first time that Messier missed the playoffs in his hallowed career.

The Rangers decided to use that season to motivate them for the 1993-94 campaign. They hired Mike Keenan as their head coach, and in their first year with Keenan, they went 52-24-8 (1993-94 was the NHL's second and last 84-game season), resulting in 112 points and a Presidents' Trophy. Messier had 84 points (26 G/58 A) that season, which was second behind Sergei Zubov's 89 points (77 of them were assists). Adam Graves had 79 points, but 52 of them were goals, giving him the team lead! Brian Leetch had that same amount, scoring 23 goals and picking up 56 assists during the campaign. Mike Richter was their top goaltender, going 42-12-6 during that season, with a 2.57 GAA, a .910 SV%, and five shutouts.

1993-94 saw some changes in the NHL. The historical division and conference names were gone and replaced with geographical names, with most of them still in use today. The Wales Conference became the Eastern Conference, and the Adams and Patrick Divisions were known as the Northeast and Atlantic Divisions, with the Rangers in the latter at that time. The Campbell Conference became the Western Conference, and the Norris and Smythe Divisions were known as the Central and Pacific Divisions. The playoff format also changed, as it became conference-based, with the division winners seeded 1-2 while the six other teams were seeded 3-8 according to point total. After the first round, teams were reseeded.

The Rangers' first obstacle in the 1994 Stanley Cup Playoffs was their crosstown rivals, the New York Islanders. This was their eighth and most recent playoff meeting, and this one wasn't even close. The Rangers swept the Isles in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, outscoring the Isles by a combined score of 22-3 in the series! In the Eastern Conference Semifinals, the Rangers faced the seventh-seeded Washington Capitals, only needing five games to take down the Caps, making them 8-1 so far in the playoffs. The Eastern Conference Final, however, was a tough one, as they faced the New Jersey Devils, who were third in the East, but finished five points better than the Northeast Division Champion Pittsburgh Penguins.

The two teams split the first two games at Madison Square Garden, though it was the Devils who struck first with a double overtime win in Game One. The Rangers took Game Three in double OT, but the Devils ended up winning the next two and moving one win away from their first Stanley Cup Final appearance. Following the Game Five loss, Mark Messier famously guaranteed victory in Game Six, and in that very game, he had a hat trick in the third period en route to a 4-2 win. Game Seven saw Brian Leetch open the scoring in the 2nd period, but just when it looked like Mike Richter was going to pick up a series clinching shutout, he gave up a game tying goal to Valeri Zelepukin with only 7.7 left in regulation. The first overtime saw nothing scored, but 4:24 into the second OT saw Stephane Matteau (who only played 12 games during the regular season) put one past Martin Brodeur, sending the Rangers to the Cup Final.

In their first Stanley Cup Final appearance since 1979, the Rangers faced the Vancouver Canucks, who were making their second appearance overall. The Canucks took Game One in overtime, but the Rangers answered back with three straight wins in Games 2-4, moving one win away from ending their long-suffering drought. However, they would have to wait a while, as the Canucks took Games Five and Six, outscoring the Rangers 10-4 in those two games. Game Seven at MSG saw the Rangers open the scoring with two in a four-minute span late in the first period (Leetch and Graves with the goals), though the second frame saw Trevor Linden put Vancouver on the board. However, that same period saw Mark Messier put the Rangers up 3-1, though Linden scored again in the third to cut it to one. Nathan Lafayette nearly tied it up late, but his shot hit the crossbar, and after the final horn sounded (after three stoppages late in regulation), it was party time in New York City.

The Conn Smythe Trophy went to Brian Leetch, who had 34 points in 23 games played, with 23 of those points being helpers. Leetch became the first U.S.-born player to capture the Conn Smythe Trophy, with only Tim Thomas (2011), Jonathan Quick (2012), and Patrick Kane (2013) joining that short list of American-born players who won the trophy. The most memorable moment from the evening of June 14, 1994 was Mark Messier celebrating with his sixth Stanley Cup, which is a lot for a player who never played for the Canadiens. Messier won five of his Cups with the Oilers, though I would think that the one he captured as a member of the Rangers has to be the one he treasures the most. Messier played six seasons with the Rangers after playing 12 with the Oilers, and the final year of his first run with New York saw him reunited with former Oilers teammate Wayne Gretzky. He would sign with the Vancouver Canucks and play three seasons before returning to the Rangers in 2000, where he played the final four of his 25 seasons.

The Rangers' 1994 Stanley Cup run remains one of the most memorable in the last three decades, mainly due to the fact that they ended what was the longest Cup drought in the NHL. It would be 20 years before the Rangers returned to the Stanley Cup Final, but they would be soundly defeated by the Los Angeles Kings in five games. The Rangers' recent playoff run in 2022 saw them come within two wins of reaching the Final, and with the team they have now, they are definitely a threat to win their first Cup since 1994. Even so, I think the Rangers' 1994 Stanley Cup Championship was definitely their greatest Cup run, and one of the most legendary in the league's history.