The New York Rangers did not make the playoff this year, but if they did and were playing today, you would be feeling very confident if you were a fan of the team. The reason for this is that May 13 is a date that historically has been very kind to the team on the ice.
May 13 also happens to be the anniversary of Derek Boogaard's death. He tragically passed away at just age 28 on May 13, 2011. It would be irresponsible not to make a small mention of The Boogie Man.
There's no good way to transition here, so let's just get right into the first May 13th game of note.
May 13, 2013: The Lockout Sprint Ends in a Shutout
This was the peak of the condensed schedule era. Because of the lockout, the Rangers and Washington Capitals were playing Game 7 just 24 hours after a grueling Game 6 at The Garden. I remember being a nervous wreck at the time because the home team had won every single game of the series up to that point. With the Caps coming off a shutout loss at MSG, the vibe was that they were going to come out and try to bury the Blueshirts early at the Verizon Center, a tough building to play in during those days.
Instead, the Rangers put on a clinic. Enforcer Arron Asham, of all people, quieted that crowd early, and then the floodgates opened in the second. Henrik Lundqvist was a wall, stopping all 35 shots he faced. It’s a bittersweet memory now, knowing how they got handled by Boston in the next round which led to John Tortorella getting fired, but for one night in D.C., the Rangers were untouchable.
May 13, 2014: Rangers complete the comeback
This is the one that still gives me goosebumps, and I look back on it fondly since it was my senior year in college. The Rangers were down 3-1 in the series vs. the Pittsburgh Penguins, and it felt over. Then Marty St. Louis' mother passed away, and the team just... transformed and rallied around him from that moment onward. His Game 6 goal on Mother's Day still gives me goosebumps to this day.
By the time May 13th rolled around, the momentum was an avalanche, and the team locked in for a clutch 2-1 victory in which Brian Boyle and Brad Richards scored.
Lundqvist just oozed this “f*ck you, we’re winning this series” attitude, and to complete that 3-1 comeback, he stopped 102 of the final 105 shots he faced. Peak Lundqvist was a cheat code, and he proved that again the following year.
May 13, 2015: "Stepan... in overtime!"
For the third year in a row, the Rangers found themselves playing on May 13, and it was yet another Game 7. The Rangers had once again been in a 3-1 hole, they had won two in a row to force a winner take all Game 7, and they needed one more to complete the comeback and get the job done.
Alex Ovechkin scored early for Washington, Kevin Hayes tied it later on the power play, and then we went to overtime. The end of this game is something that is easily seared into the brains of most Blueshirts fans, and this is where it makes sense to just play the clip.
May 13, 2022: A rare Game 6 for the Rangers
For a few years, the May 13th magic went dormant during the rebuild post Letter 1.0, but it came roaring back in 2022. Facing elimination in Pittsburgh, the Rangers proved they had that same May 13th DNA. New York fell behind 2-0 early, and it once again looked like the team was doomed.
Then Mika Zibanejad and Chris Kreider took over, with Zibanejad having a massive four-point night, and Kreider notching the game winner with less than two minutes left to force a Game 7. It wasn't a series clincher like the ones before it, but it kept the legend of the date alive. If it's May 13th, the Rangers find a way to survive.
May 13, 2024: A rare loss
I'd be remiss if I didn't mention May 13, 2024, a rare loss the team endured. The Rangers were once again looking to advance to the Eastern Conference Final, and they had a chance to take care of business at Madison Square Garden. The Blueshirts scored first with Jacob Trouba scoring shorthanded in the second period, but from there it was all Carolina.
Jordan Staal tied it 3:33 into the period, Evgeny Kuznetsov scored just over three minutes later, and Jordan Martinook added another goal just over three minutes after that. Martin Necas added an empty net goal for good measure, and it set up a Game 6 in Carolina. While the loss on May 13 was a huge bummer, Kreider's heroics in Game 6 made him a Rangers' legend for life.
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