NHL Playoffs 2012: Rangers Must Draw Inspiration from 1994 Team Ahead of Game 6

Stop me if you've heard this before.

The New York Rangers must play Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals on the road against the New Jersey Devils with their season on the line after losing Game 5 at Madison Square Garden.

That was the challenge the 1994 Rangers faced en route to their Stanley Cup championship, and it's the same situation this year's team is in, but this time there's no Mark Messier to guarantee victory in Game 6 and score a hat trick to force Game 7.

The Rangers must draw inspiration from the 1994 team because the challenge of winning Game 6 in New Jersey and Game 7 back in New York is very doable.

During these playoffs, the Rangers have proven that they can get the job done when their season is on the line.

In the first round against the Ottawa Senators, New York fell behind 3-2 after a Game 5 loss but won the next two games to take the series in seven. In the second round, they won a decisive Game 7 against the Washington Capitals.

Just like Messier took on the leadership role and instilled confidence back into his team before Game 6 in 1994, someone on the Rangers must do the same this year.

Captain Ryan Callahan is a tremendous player and one of the NHL's better leaders, but he has struggled in this series offensively and has no Stanley Cup experience.

Brad Richards, the high-priced veteran free agent that general manager Glen Sather brought in over the summer to be the final piece of the championship puzzle, must be this year's Messier.

He doesn't have to guarantee a Game 6 win, but he has to be a leader for the Rangers and make sure his teammates are confident that they will win in New Jersey on Friday night and take the series in seven games.

Richards has gone through this sort of situation before in the 2004 Stanley Cup Final with the Tampa Bay Lightning.

He was the Conn Smythe Award winner that year as playoff MVP and helped the Lightning overturn a 3-2 series deficit to beat the Calgary Flames for the title. The Game 7 hero that year was Ruslan Fedotenko, who scored the Cup-winning goal. Fedotenko is, of course, part of this year's Rangers squad.

The Rangers know they can win at the Prudential Center to force a Game 7 for many reasons. They have won there already in this series (back in Game 3), they won there twice in the regular season, and there are sure to be many Rangers fans who will make the trip to New Jersey for Game 6.

One of the great attributes of this Rangers group is their character and ability to perform at a high level when their backs are against the wall. The 1994 team had these qualities as well, and the Rangers must stay focused and believe they can win this series.

A Game 6 victory would swing the series' momentum in New York's favor and create an opportunity for someone to be a Game 7 hero like Stephane Matteau was in 1994.

Eighteen years after their triumphant Eastern Conference Finals series victory over the Devils and their return to the NHL throne, the Rangers face the same situation and are equally ready for the challenge.

Many recent Rangers teams have looked to the 1994 championship group as inspiration, and for this year's Blueshirts to reach their goal, they must do the same.

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Nicholas Goss is an NHL Featured Columnist for Bleacher Report and was also the organization's on-site reporter for the 2011 Stanley Cup Final in Boston.