2011 - 12 New York Rangers season The 2011 – 12 New York Rangers season was the National Hockey League franchise ' s 85th season of play and their 86th season overall . The Rangers finished the regular season in first place in the Eastern Conference , winning the Atlantic Division title , the franchise ' s seventh division title , and their first since the 1993 – 94 championship season . In the playoffs , the Rangers reached the Conference Finals for the first time since 1997 , losing to the New Jersey Devils in six games . Off - season . On April 11 , 2011 , it was announced that the Rangers will open the 2011 – 12 NHL season in Stockholm , Sweden , on October 7 , 2011 , against the Los Angeles Kings , and on October 8 against the Anaheim Ducks as part of the 2011 NHL Premiere . On May 13 , Rangers forward Derek Boogaard was found dead in his apartment . Boogaard had played in 22 games for the Rangers during the 2010 – 11 season after signing a four - year deal with the Rangers in the previous off - season . On June 29 , Rangers captain Chris Drury ' s contract was bought out . On July 2 , free agent Brad Richards signed a nine - year contract worth almost $ 60 million with the Rangers . Richards had been considered to be the top free agent of 2011 . On August 4 , Sean Avery was arrested at his home in Hollywood Hills for battery on a police officer after pushing an officer that was trying to break up a party at Avery ' s home . On September 12 , the Rangers announced that Ryan Callahan would be the 26th captain in New York Rangers history . Brad Richards and Marc Staal were named as alternate captains . On September 26 , the NHL officially announced that the Rangers would face the Philadelphia Flyers on January 2 , 2012 , in the 2012 NHL Winter Classic at Citizens Bank Park , the home of the Philadelphia Phillies . As part of the Winter Classic festivities , the Rangers were featured in HBO ' s 24 / 7 series . The throwback jerseys the Rangers wore for the Winter Classic were unveiled at an event on November 28 . Regular season . On December 10 , the Rangers won their 2 , 500th game in franchise history at the Buffalo Sabres , 4 – 1 . On December 17 , in a game against the Phoenix Coyotes in Phoenix , Brad Richards scored the game - winning goal with 0 . 01 left in the third period to win the game for the Rangers 3 – 2 at the last possible moment in regulation . On January 2 , 2012 , the Rangers beat the Philadelphia Flyers 3 – 2 in the 2012 NHL Winter Classic , moving into first place overall in the NHL for the first time at this point in the season since the 1995 – 96 season . On January 6 , thanks to the Rangers 1st place standing in the Eastern Conference , head coach John Tortorella was named as one of the coaches for the 2012 NHL All - Star Game . The Rangers set an NHL record by not allowing more than 4 goals in regulation in a game through the first 69 games of the season . The Rangers , with back - up goaltender Martin Biron playing , lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins on March 15 by a score of 5 – 2 to break the streak . From March 11 to March 23 , the Rangers had a seven - game homestand ( playing every other day during that span ) , tying a franchise record for most consecutive games played at MSG . The other time this occurred was between December 10 and December 23 of the 2001 – 02 season . The Rangers became the first Eastern Conference team to clinch a playoff spot with a 4 – 2 victory over the New Jersey Devils on March 20 . With a victory on March 24 against the Toronto Maple Leafs , the Rangers reached the 100 point plateau for the seventh time in franchise history , and the first time since the 2005 – 06 season . On March 28 , Henrik Lundqvist notched his 250th career win as the Broadway Blueshirts netminder , thus becoming the 45th goalie in NHL history to reach this plateau , in a 4 – 2 victory over the Winnipeg Jets at the MTS Centre . With a 5 – 3 win at the Philadelphia Flyers on April 3 , the Rangers clinched the Atlantic Division title and first place in the Eastern Conference with their 51st win in their 80th game of the season . The Rangers had been in first place in the Conference since December 30 , 2011 . It was the first of either kind for the Rangers since winning the 1994 Stanley Cup . Postseason . On May 2 , 2012 , Marian Gaborik scored 14 : 41 into the third overtime of Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals to defeat the Washington Capitals 2 – 1 at the Verizon Center . This was longest playoff game for the Rangers since April 29 , 1971 , when Pete Stemkowski scored in the third overtime for a 3 – 2 win in Game 6 of the 1971 Semifinals over the Chicago Blackhawks at Madison Square Garden . Later in the series with Washington , on May 7 , 2012 , Brad Richards tied Game 5 with 7 . 6 seconds to go , the latest the Rangers have ever tied a playoff game . Marc Staal then scored to win the game at 1 : 35 of overtime . Playoffs . The New York Rangers ended the 2011 – 12 regular season as the Eastern Conference ' s 1st seed . They faced the # 8 seed Ottawa Senators in the first round . The Rangers battled back from a 3 - 2 series deficit to defeat the Senators in seven games . The Rangers defeated the # 7 seed Washington Capitals their second round opponent , in seven games . In the Eastern Conference Finals , the Rangers faced the # 6 seed New Jersey Devils . After leading the series 2 - 1 , the Rangers lost 3 games in a row and lost the series 4 - 2 . Key : Win Loss Transactions . The Rangers have been involved in the following transactions during the 2011 – 12 season : Draft picks . New York ' s picks at the 2011 NHL Entry Draft in St . Paul , Minnesota . Farm teams . Connecticut Whale ( AHL ) . The 2011 – 12 season will be the 15th season of AHL hockey for the franchise . This will be the franchise ' s first full season as the Connecticut Whale . Greenville Road Warriors ( ECHL ) . The 2011 – 12 season will be the 2nd season of affiliation for the Rangers and the Road Warriors .