NEW YORK CITY — The New York Rangers playoff-fever took to the skies on Saturday when over 80 Rangers fans boarded the first ever "Fan Flight" taking them from LaGuardia Airport to Newark Liberty International to witness the 1 p.m. clash against bitter rivals the New Jersey Devils in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals.
The home team brought home a win, with a 3-0 victory at the Prudential Center, in the third game of the Eastern Conference Finals.
But diehard fans enjoyed a double treat as Rangers legend Ron Duguay and Hall of Famer Rod Gilbert were on hand for them that morning, unveiling a newly branded aircraft with the new Rangers logo, before they joined the Blueshirts faithful to follow them on their journey across the Hudson River.
The first-of-its-kind Delta flight, (the official airline of the New York Rangers,) took off shortly after 9:30 a.m. and carried the Rangers fans to Newark.
"This is great," said Rosalyn Lim, 9, from Queens. "Who takes an airplane ride to watch an ice hockey game? I don't think I'll ever forget this."
Captain Wayne B. Lancaster was happy to be piloting the Rangers fans to face their Jersey rivals, and told DNAinfo.com New York: "I'm thrilled to part of the New York Rangers team, and especially [among] their fans."
"Unless Newark holds us up, we should be there in about 22 minutes," he added. "Let's go Rangers!"
The flight was supported by the Garden of Dreams Foundation, a nonprofit charity that partners with Madison Square Garden Company (as well as the New York Knicks and the WNBA Liberty team) to provide children access to some of the Garden's biggest athletic heroes.
