Day 3. Surgery went really well. About 5 hours to get it all taken care of. Really appreciate the great staff here at the Clevland Clinic. Last few days has been pretty crazy but feel like I’m in really good hands. Every day is a step in the right direction pic.twitter.com/wjMTosFWQy
3:47PM: The Rangers released a statement on twitter saying “we have no doubt that Henrik Lundqvist will face this challenge with the same fierce determination and grace that made him one of the greatest goaltenders to ever play the game of hockey, and an inspiration to all of us. He and his family are in our thoughts during this difficult time. He will always be part of the New York Rangers family.”
Capitals GM Brian MacLellan said in a statement “Henrik is one of the greatest goaltenders in NHL history, and we are pleased to have him join our organization. Henrik has the competitive drive and the ability to help our team compete for a championship. We feel he will be an excellent fit for our team and provide leadership to our organization and our young goaltenders.”
Adam Rotter: The Capitals are the best fit for Lundqvist for a ton of different reasons. They are a contender/win now team, they are close to NY, they have close friends Carl Hagelin and Nicklas Backstrom, he doesn’t have to be the starter and he will get the chance to play the Rangers multiple times.
Washington has Ilya Samsonov as their starter and Lundqvist is going into this situation knowing he’s the back up and he’s okay with it. This may be Lundqvist’s last shot at the Stanley Cup and, as Larry Brooks wrote, he and the Capitals may have to go through the Rangers for it. Lundqvist will likely wear his old number of 35 with the Caps as Samsonov wears #30.
If fans are allowed at MSG when the Caps first visit the Rangers then Lundqvist will get his Eddie Giacomin moment amidst a celebratory video that could last as long as the actual game would and still not touch on everything he did as a Ranger. It will be jarring at first to see Lundqvist in a Caps jersey and celebrating with Alex Ovechkin after a win but this is the best spot for him.
Rangers President John Davidson was on MSG and said:
On the Henrik Lundqvist decision, “Both players, when you think about Marc Staal and Henrik, we were sitting and talking about it as, combined, almost 30-years of service for the Rangers and both of them playing with a great deal of compassion, competitiveness, won a Presidents Trophy, have gotten to a Stanley Cup Final. These are the type of things you really have to weigh when you make these decisions, these are the hardest to make. You have to sit here and look at it and say, “we’ve gotta do what we have to do, the cap is different, it’s going to be flat for three-years, there are young people going through this build and everything adds up. All in all, it’s about what they did for the Rangers. They will always be Rangers, great Rangers. With Hank, when you are called the “King,” you are called that for a reason. We have good relationships with both players, we will continue that way and anything they need, we are there for them and we just have to keep moving, going north.”
On having a personal relationship with Hank, “the first time I ever saw Henrik Lundqvist play, it was at the training center, in training center, his first day. The media have a certain area at ice level, 30 feet from where Henrik is in goal, and I said to myself ‘this guy is good, this guy is really good.’ You could see it in the first five minutes and then he went onto an incredible career with the Rangers. When it’s goalie-goalie you talk a little about things here and there and when it gets down to these types of decisions, I really like that Hank asked me to go have a discussion with him, and we did. It was very honest with both people involved about thoughts and ideas and future and the one thing I really respected about what Hank said was ‘wherever this goes, I just want to make sure, whatever my decision is, that I don’t have any regrets. That is a great way of looking at things. With us, we have to make these hard decisions, it’s part of the business. I’ve thought about athletes in New York, Tom Seaver went on and left, Walt “Clyde” Frazier, a lot of great athletes in this City, some of them went on and played, Eli Manning didn’t play for another organization, some did. The player had to make that determination in his own heart and feelings and I know Henrik is going to really weigh things as he moves forward.”
Did you seek out any advice on what to do, “When you go through these decisions you try and weigh every single option that is available to us. You work with Hank, Hank works with his family, Hank has his agency that he works with and he believes in their help. Everyone gets together and makes this decision. We have Chris Drury here, Jeff Gorton here, the coaching staff, the owner, Jim Dolan, he has immense respect for Hank. All these things have to weigh and a lot of times you get a ledger sheet and go through pros and cons and just try to weigh them and make these tough decisions and hopefully they are right ones. All I know is, this organization and Hank, the marriage is still going. It’s an incredible marriage and when you think Rangers, you think NYC and what Hank has been able to do in NYC and the NY area, helping people, making life better for a lot of different people. That is something that will continue. The hockey part of it is changed right now but I think the big picture is what you try to look at. I have immense, really immense respect for what Hank has been able to do. He’s been skating here at the training center and taking shots with a lot of our young and older players who want to work on their conditioning and do things. Hank can come up any time he wants to the training center and work out, take shots. It’s still a good marriage.”
On what stands out about Marc Staal, “Whenever you talk about Marc Staal, the word that comes up with a lot of different people is ‘warrior.” He was a warrior, a lot of fans, I don’t think realize, when you play the way he did all those years, you play banged up and hurt and nicked up and bruised and some injuries that are tough. He toughed his way through all of those. He also, over this last year I got to know him a little better and what he meant to the franchise. There is leadership value there too and that is something he will always have as part of his resume, wherever he plays hockey or whatever he’s doing. He’s a good man, plays the right way, cares about people and he has that ability to be a voice.”
10:48AM: Lundqvist’s agent Don Meehan told Pierre LeBrun that it’s “to be determined” whether Lundqvist will continue to play.
10:01AM: The Rangers have announced that they have officially bought out the final-year of Henrik Lundqvist’s contract.
The following statements were released as part of the announcement:
Rangers owner James Dolan said: “Few players have been as important to the Rangers franchise as Henrik Lundqvist, and we are incredibly grateful for all he has done for our organization. Over his 15-year tenure, he not only established himself as one of the best goaltenders to ever play the game, he has also been one of hockey’s fiercest competitors and most effective ambassadors. He will always be a part of the Rangers family.”
Rangers President John Davidson said: “We would like to thank Henrik for his immeasurable contributions to the New York Rangers. From the time I met Henrik when he first came to New York in 2005, he has been the consummate professional. His tireless work ethic, passion for the game, and love of the Rangers and New York City enabled him to become one of the greatest goaltenders in hockey and one of the best players in the history of our franchise. We all wish Henrik and his family the best going forward.”
Lundqvist had one-year left on his contract and a cap hit of $8.5 million.
The buyout will save the Rangers $3 million in cap space but they will still have a cap charge of $5.5 million this season and $1.5 million next season.
tHANKs. HOF goalie & great guy. Anytime you talk about rangers you think of hank. Best goalie in ranger history. #Henryhttps://t.co/ksBtVJoUM3
What an honor is was playing with these two Rangers legends. Thank you for all you’ve done for this organization and showing us new guys what it means to be a @NYRangerspic.twitter.com/JQSH8oq4Nh
Grew up watching these guys show what it meant to be a New York Ranger. Was an honor to get to play with them and see what great leaders they were for our team. Going to miss seeing Marc and Hank at the rink #Legendspic.twitter.com/MoNQaMlhNj
I remember fondly the chants of “Hen-rik! Hen-rik!” in 2005 when we were rookies together and again in 2014. So many memories with @HLundqvist30 that @NYRangers fans will always remember. Here’s to the King pic.twitter.com/RdThJyAp35
Adam Rotter: There are nearly 20 pages for Henrik Lundqvist in the Rangers 2019-20 media guide, and that should say everything about the player who has been the face of the Rangers for the last 15-or-so years. He’s meant everything to the Rangers on and off the ice, and in the community, since coming over from Sweden and now it’s all over.
I expected Glen Sather to also have a statement, in addition to James Dolan and John Davidson, as part of the release as well as some acknowledgement, even though it’s obvious, that no Ranger will ever wear #30 again. In any case, Henrik Lundqvist’s time as a New York Ranger is over. Hopefully this isn’t too personal for Lundqvist and that over time he, like Brian Leetch and Adam Graves, can re-join the Rangers in some capacity after a breakup. Mark Messier returned from his breakup to play four-more seasons, and then serve as an advisor to Glen Sather for a few years, but returning as a player doesn’t seem likely. The real hope is that Lundqvist is back working with the Rangers and can provide help, in player development, in hockey ops or another area, and be part of the overall group that does bring the Stanley Cup back to MSG.
