Kim Klement – USA TODAY Sports
In 1994, Mark Messier guaranteed victory before Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the New Jersey Devils, and backed it up with a hat trick to force a Game 7.
In 2015, Derick Brassard did not guarantee victory, but nonetheless put up a legendary performance of his own with a hat trick in a 7-3 New York Rangers victory in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Will it be remembered or revered as much as the guarantee? Probably not, but that’s the thing about the 2014-15 New York Rangers. They don’t need to make brash proclamations to the media prior to an elimination game. They never panic when their season is on the line. The Rangers seem to thrive on the most adverse of situations with quiet confidence, and aside from the great goaltending of Henrik Lundqvist the majority of the time, seem to have a new hero every single game.
That hero in Game 6 was Brassard, although he had plenty of help from Lundqvist and linemates Rick Nash and J.T. Miller. It is the Rangers’ fourth consecutive victory in elimination games, and now they have an opportunity to return to the Stanley Cup Finals with a win at home in Game 7 on Friday night.
Up until Game 6, Brassard had been an afterthought in this series, following an excellent performance in the first two rounds of the playoffs. The Rangers needed someone other than Lundqvist to help carry the team to victory. On that night, Brassard was the guy. In Game 4, it was Nash and Martin St. Louis. In their 3-1 series comeback against the Washington Capitals, it was Chris Kreider and Derek Stepan. If the Rangers win Game 7, will the hero be those guys or someone else entirely?
The myriad of possible answers is why this Rangers team is so special, and why it seems like they are destined to be in this moment, similar to 1994. If the current Rangers can get a Messier-like performance in Game 6, then it is not far-fetched to think they will have a Stephane Matteau-like hero in Game 7.
Matt Stillwell is a New York Rangers contributor for www.rantsports.com. Follow him on Twitter @MattNYR12!
