TAMPA, Fla. - This is familiar territory for the Rangers. No, not George Steinbrenner Field or The Trop or the shops selling hand-rolled cigars in the historic Ybor City neighborhood. We're talking about being tied 1-all in yet another best-of-seven Stanley Cup playoff series.
In the first and second rounds of this postseason, the Blueshirts were tied 1-1 with the Penguins and the Capitals and moved on. They took Game 3 in Pittsburgh and won the series in five. They lost Game 3 in Washington but prevailed in a seven-game series. And here they are again, knotted with the Lightning after a 6-2 thrashing on Monday at Madison Square Garden.