East Rutherford, NJ (My Sportsbook) - Mark Messier scored with 3:35 remaining in the third period to lift the New York Rangers to a 4-4 tie with the New Jersey Devils at the Meadowlands. Dan Blackburn made 31 saves for the Rangers, who are 3-1-1 in their last five.

The Devils had scored twice in the third period to erase a one-goal deficit, but could not hold on and played to a tie for the first time this season. New Jersey is also 3-1-1 in its last five.

Patrik Elias notched a goal and an assist for the Devils, while Scott Gomez set up two goals. Brian Gionta, Jeff Friesen and Sergei Brylin also scored for New Jersey, and Martin Brodeur finished with 23 saves.

Petr Nedved and Radek Dvorak each posted a goal and an assist for New York, while Darius Kasparaitis picked up a pair of assists. Tom Poti added a goal.

The Rangers blew a 3-2 lead in the third, but Messier salvaged the tie for New York with his team-leading 10th goal. Matthew Barnaby did most of the work behind the Devil net and the puck came loose at the left side of the crease for Messier, who backhanded a shot past Brodeur.

Brodeur then had to stop five shots in overtime, while his teammates failed to produce a shot on Blackburn during the extra session.

The Devils tied it at 3-3 on a power-play goal by Friesen at 5:12 of the third. Gomez raced into the New York end along the right wing and had the puck roll off his stick as he approached the Ranger net. He regained control and sent a pass back to the right circle for Friesen, who had time to pick a spot and snapped a high wrist shot over Blackburn's glove for his fourth goal of the season.

Brylin then put New Jersey ahead with 8:56 left in the third after a giveaway by New York's Pavel Bure. Bure lost the puck in his own zone and Brylin chased it behind the Ranger net. The two battled into the left corner and Brylin freed it up for Turner Stevenson, who kicked it along the boards to Madden behind the net. Brylin, meanwhile, circled into the slot and one-timed Madden's feed past Blackburn for his fifth goal of the year.

Gionta gave the Devils a 1-0 lead just 4:06 into the game, scoring his third of the season on the rebound of an Elias shot.

The Rangers tied it just 3:49 later on Poti's second goal of the season while the teams skated 4-on-4. Poti took a pass from Bure and snapped a shot from the top of the slot that Brodeur stopped. The rebound came right back to Poti and he banged it past the netminder.

Nedved gave the Rangers a 2-1 lead at 7:51 of the second period with a soft goal. He crossed the New Jersey blue line at center ice and took a wrist shot toward the net. The puck deflected off the glove of Brodeur and dropped behind him, giving Nedved his eighth goal of the year.

The Devils tied it with 5:10 left in the second on Elias' sixth goal. Gomez won a battle for the puck in the left corner and backhanded a pass toward the slot for Elias, who one-timed a shot past Blackburn.

The Rangers again went in front just 3:01 later, moments after a power play expired. Nedved made a pass from the right circle to the left circle for Dvorak, who swatted at a bouncing puck and drilled a shot past Brodeur for his third goal of the season.