The New York Rangers are one win away from reaching the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1994.
After Martin St. Louis’ overtime goal gave them a 3-2 victory in Game 4, the Rangers seized a 3-1 series lead.
While the excitement of being that close to booking a trip to the Final is certainly there, Rangers alternate captain Brad Richards knows the job isn’t done yet as Andrew Gross of Ranger Rants shared.
“This is far from over,” Richards said. “I remember sitting in here down 3-1 against Pittsburgh. They will feel bad tonight, but tomorrow they will wake up in front of their home crowd and once that game starts, 3-1, you throw that out the window and it is back in the battle again.
“We have to realize the longer it goes the more life and more belief they get, so it’s going to be a very important start to the next game.”
That last line fits in well with what St. Louis told NBCSN’s Pierre McGuire after the game saying the Rangers had to “finish it” in Game 5.
The last thing the Rangers want to do is give the Canadiens any inspiration the same way the Penguins did for them in the previous round. New York came back from being down 3-1 to the Penguins buoyed by Henrik Lundqvist’s stellar play in goal.
If Montreal is going to turn the tables on New York the same way, it’ll be on Dustin Tokarski to make it happen.