Henrik Lundqvist retires after legendary 15-year career

Last year, the Rangers bought out Lundqvist’s contract. He then signed a one-year deal with the Washington Capitals. The future Hall of Famer was looking to add a veteran presence for the Capitals’ young netminders Ilya Samsonov and Vitek Vanecek. Or at the very least be an insurance as the team moved on from Braden Holtby.

Unfortunately Lundqivst never played a game for Washington. He was diagnosed with a heart condition ahead of the 2020 season, requiring him to undergo open-heart surgery in January. There was a chance he could return in time for the playoffs. But, ultimately his attempt was shut down by doctors after suffering a setback.

“I was hoping I would be 100 percent by this time,” Lundqvist told Larry Brooks of The New York Post. “But I was told that inflammation takes a long time to correct and with medication I might be out of the woods, but it could be another full year before I would be 100 percent.

“So I thought about this, talked with my closest friends, my family and my wife, Therese. This year was probably harder for her than for me. She is such a strong woman. It came down to how badly I wanted to push it, how much of a gamble did I want to take? And I came to the conclusion that there are too many unknowns and too much risk for not enough reward for me to keep playing.”

Henrik Lundqivst, 39, retires as the sixth-winningest goalie in NHL history. He registered 459 wins in 887 games — all with the Rangers. He finishes with a .918 save percentage and 2.43 goals-against average.

Lunqvist is a five-time All-Star. He won the Vezina Trophy in 2012. While he never won a Stanley Cup, he led the Rangers to the 2014 Final. He also won an Olympic gold medal in 2006 and silver medal in 2014 with his native Sweden.

The Rangers announced the club will retire and raise Lundqvist’s jersey in the rafters of Madison Square Garden.