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Messier On WFAN: Rangers Are Good Enough To Get To Stanley Cup Final

NEW YORK (WFAN) -- The playoffs are right around the corner.

With just five games remaining on the regular-season schedule, the Rangers are gearing up for their fourth consecutive postseason appearance.

To get to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time since 1994, the Blueshirts will have to get past the likes of the mighty Bruins and Penguins in the Eastern Conference.

Mark Messier

Are the Rangers good enough to get there? Mark Messier -- who knows a thing or two about Stanley Cups -- thinks they are.

"Absolutely," the Hockey Hall of Famer told WFAN co-hosts Boomer Esiason and Craig Carton on Wednesday morning. "There's no question. If you look at the East right now, Pittsburgh always has great regular seasons. Boston, over the last few years, has been a powerhouse. In order to beat Boston in a seven-game series, you would have to be at the top of your game ... But the Rangers are right there."

Heading into Wednesday night's action, New York is in second place in the Metropolitan Division with 90 points. The first-place Pens have 101 points and the third-place Flyers have 87 points.

If the season ended on Wednesday, the Rangers would be the No. 5 seed in the playoffs.

"The thing I look at at this time of year is, 'How are teams winning,'" Messier told Boomer & Carton. "They're not winning by one guy, by playing well in goal. They're not playing by one hot hand. They're winning by committee, they're getting great contributions from a lot of different people. And if you're winning the right way at this time of year, that's a good sign for me. And the Rangers are doing that right now."

The Rangers will close out the regular season against the Avalanche on the road before returning home to take on the Senators, Hurricanes and Sabres at Madison Square Garden. The finale is against the rival Canadiens on April 12 at the Bell Centre.

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