-Ed-Mulholland-USA-TODAY-Sports-91
(New York, NY) – With the New Jersey Devils set to host the New York Rangers for game 1 of their opening round NHL Stanley Cup Playoffs series, we’ll be hearing a lot about the intense rivalry between the two clubs.
But for the youngest generation of fans, that rivalry may be taken for granted. It’s the type of regional battle for dominance that feels like it’s been around forever. But in reality, the rich history of intense back-and-forth contests dates back to the 1990s.
In the summer of 1982, the Colorado Rockies relocated their franchise to East Rutherford, New Jersey. The team’s ownership was forced to pay territorial fees to the Philadelphia Flyers, New York Islanders, and New York Rangers. From there, the Devils were largely non-factors, until their rise to prominence later in the decade.
The Rangers and Devils first playoff meeting was during the 1992 Patrick Division Semi-Finals. The Rangers, who won the President’s Trophy that year, survived to win in seven games. Things really picked up in intensity during the 1993-1994 season, when the Rangers snapped an over-50-year drought to win the cup. Before they could vanquish the Vancouver Canucks to win Lord Stanley’s Cup, the Blue Shirts had to fend off their pesky rivals. It was during their intense seven-game series in ‘94 when “The Hudson River Rivalry” was truly born. New Jersey took games 4 and 5, putting the Rangers on the brink of elimination.
Captain Mark Messier famously guaranteed victory, and then scored a hat trick in game 6. That set up a dramatic game 7, in which defenseman Stéphane Matteau scored a goal in overtime, sending New York to the finals. Adding further fuel to the Hudson River Rivalry, New Jersey came back in the following season and won the cup, sweeping the Detroit Red Wings, after taking down fellow rival Philadelphia in the Eastern Conference Finals.
In 2012, the rivalry was renewed between the Rangers and Devils, when they met in the Eastern Conference Finals, before New York won and went on to lose against the LA Kings. Heading into Tuesday night’s series, the Rangers hold the all-time edge in the Stanley Cup Playoffs, with 18 wins to New Jersey’s 16. In the regular season, New Jersey has won more contests overall. Now, the latest chapter will be written into the record books, with fans on both sides of the Hudson sure to ratchet up the intensity.
