Rangers in familiar spot, back home after 2 road losses

New York Rangers center Mika Zibanejad (93) skates off as members of the Tampa Bay Lightning celebrate a goal by Ondrej Palat during the third period in Game 4 of the NHL hockey Stanley Cup playoffs Eastern Conference finals Tuesday, June 7, 2022, in Tampa, Fla. (AP Photo/Chris O'Meara)

The New York Rangers have been in a similar position before in this postseason — looking to reverse the momentum back home after dropping two games on the road.

In the first round against Pittsburgh, they returned home after falling into a 3-1 series hole and won three straight to advance. In the second round, they were down 2-0 and won four of the next five to move on.

Now they come back to New York tied 2-2 with two-time defending Stanley Cup champion Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference final, hoping to turn the tide in Game 5 on Thursday night (8 p.m. EDT, ESPN) at Madison Square Garden. Two of the last three games will be at home, where they’ve won eight straight.

“I think we’re probably in the best spot we’ve been through three series,” forward Andrew Copp said Wednesday. “We got two games at home. I think we play really good at home. … I think we’re all confident where we’re at right now but there’s got to be an increased level of desperation for sure.”

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