Lundqvist Stones Habs; Gotham Braces for Cup Eruption

New York City has always understood special occasions.

And the Rangers are on the precipice of providing one.

Even though the Blueshirts have been around since 1926, and even though the NHL consisted of only six teams for almost half of that span, this spring will see them play for the Stanley Cup for only the sixth time. For the record, they've only won twice.

By putting the clamps on Montréal's Canadiens last night, the Rangers have guaranteed pandemonium at the Garden and nearby environs for another two weeks, and it may take that long to get through last night's video montage:

To say Henrik Lundqvist has nearly reached übermensch status among the Rangers faithful may still be an understatement, but to date, he still hasn't done what Mike Richter has: anchor a Stanley Cup champion.

But now he has his shot. Deservedly so, especially after last night's heroics. While his teammates limited the Canadiens to only 18 chances on net, two of them were destined for lighting the lamp and only thwarted by the magificence of King Henrik. This save in particular -- off the lethal stick of Thomas Vanek -- will live in Ranger immortality.

This is a team whose playoff run has been fueled by Alain Vigneault's system, Lundqvist's splendor, and raw emotion headlined by the off-ice endurances of Martin St Louis and Dominic Moore. Last night, it was the latter who stealthily maneuvered into the slot and to take a brilliant feed from Brian Boyle and snipe the goal that propelled the Rangers into the finals:

If there's such a thing as fate shining a light on the deserving, it found Moore last night.

The Rangers will be definite underdogs against either the Blackhawks or Kings, but the way their spring has sprung to date, that's of little consequence to them.