It appears I am going to write another NHL/epic/Game 7/balls in your throat/Iceman Cometh/Bleed Broadway Blueshirt piece.

Two go in. One comes out.

This should be better than Pacquiao vs. Mayweather.

And In King Henrik We Trust.

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The New York Post’s Larry Brooks wrote this week that we are living through the golden age of New York Rangers hockey and he is so right. In today’s 24/7 social media news cycle, it’s hard to fully appreciate the accomplishments of any sports franchise.

Tonight, the New York Rangers have the opportunity to play for the Stanley Cup, in consecutive years, by vanquishing the Tampa Bay Lightning in Game 7 of the Eastern Conference Finals. The last time the Rangers achieved this feat was in the 1932 and 1933 Stanley Cup Finals, where the Rangers lost to the Maple Leafs in 1932 and returned a year later to defeat Toronto in 1933.

Rangers fans have waited 82 years for this possibility to exist again. Being a cynical and pragmatic Rangers fan, there is no chance of this happening in my lifetime again. This is akin to hitting the lottery, winning the Scripps Spelling Bee and getting hit with lightning all in the same day.

1932-33 New York Rangers 

This edition of the Rangers is a flawed team anchored by a world class goaltender, Henrik Lundqvist. New York is a quagmire of ineptitude on the power play, they lack a true #1 center and struggle to win face-offs. Martin St. Louis is an aging future Hall-of-Famer, who has little left in the tank. If The Boss, George M. Steinbrenner, was alive, he would affix Rick Nash with the moniker of Mr. March.

The Rangers survive and advance because Henrik Lundqvist is the best goaltender in the world, and with where the game is heading, he may be the last master of his position who is under 6’5″. The 6’1″ Lundqvist is a tadpole compared to Tampa Bay’s goaltender, the 6’7″ Ben Bishop (Bishop played at Maine.  Maine Sucks!). Back in 1979, the Rangers advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals behind the stellar play of John Davidson between the pipes. At 6’3″, Davidson was considered one of the game’s first big goalies. Davidson’s ’79 squad lost to Montreal and ruined a twelve-year-old’s dream of a Stanley Cup.

JD

Hockey is not my favorite sport, but I make a greater effort to watch the Rangers and the NFL’s New York Giants than I do any other sports franchises. With the creation of the NHL Network, I tape one-hour re-broadcasts and religiously watch the Rangers as they provide some amount of heat in a long New England winter.

I root for no other NHL franchise. I possess a monogamous love for the Rangers.

The New Jersey Devils are more Bada Bing. The New York Islanders have a fan base comprised of Entourage’s Eric Murphy and Joey Buttafuoco. Boston Bruins’ diehards are fat men in unfashionable goatees who believe the Big Bad Bruins style of hockey is still relevant in 2015.

There is no coquettish and sexy competitor for my attention. The Rangers are my one true love, and no Long Island Lolita will ever change that.

Hockey is a cruel sport. Outcomes can sometimes be attributed to a lucky bounce of the puck, a deflection off the boards that defies the teachings of science and logic, and a call or non-call that has all the erudition and aplomb of an Antonin Scalia Supreme Court majority ruling.The Rangers will need the hockey gods and what remains of Madison Square Garden’s ghosts to overcome a young and talented Lightning squad,

But, most importantly, the Rangers will need Mr. GQ, Henrik Lundqvist, to lock down another Game 7. Lundqvist is the best big game goalie of his generation, and the Rangers will need every bit of his skill and experience to defeat the Triplets (Young Guns), Steven Stamkos (ASSHOLE!) and former Rangers, Brian Boyle (Boston College great) and Anton Stralman (Underrated).

PREDICTION: This game will rival the trial by combat between Gregor Clegane and Prince Oberon Martell. In typical one-goal give me an anxiety attack fashion, the Rangers will win tonight’s epic one for the ages Game 7 by a score of 2-1.