Devils take down Rangers, 4-1 to even East Finals at two

The New Jersey Devils beat the New York Rangers, 4-1 in a spiteful encounter to tie the Eastern Conference Finals at 2-2 as escalating tension between the cross-river rivals boiled over.

Three players, Mike Rupp and Stu Bickel from the top-seeded Rangers, and New Jersey's Ryan Carter, were each given 10-minute misconduct penalties after a brawl in the 3rd period that began when Rupp punched Devils goalie Martin Brodeur.



A total of 18 penalties, 12 against the Rangers and six against New Jersey, were issued during the hostile game, triggering an ugly spat between the opposing coaches, the Devils' Peter DeBoer and the Rangers' John Tortorella, who began shouting at each other during the final period.

The two teams head back to Madison Square Garden in New York for Game 5 this Wednesday night.