Henrik Lundqvist, a legend between the pipes for the New York Rangers, announced his retirement from hockey in a social media post on Friday.
Lundqvist’s opened his post saying, “It’s time.”
“For the last 30 years, I have devoted my life to the game of hockey…and now it’s time to walk away from the game I love and begin a new chapter. The future excites me. I’ve met so many amazing people over the years and that will help to guide and inspire me in my new journey. There are many things I love about this game: From the excitement I felt as an 8-year old at my first practice to the 15 years of butterflies I had every time I took the ice in the greatest city in the world. I’m extremely grateful for what hockey has brought me and taught me in life. These lessons will never leave me.”
In the post, the 39-year-old went on to thank Swedish hockey, the Rangers, New York City and the NHL.
Following the announcement, the Rangers thanked their longtime goalie and made an announcement about the upcoming season.
Lundqvist played 15 seasons for the Rangers, winning the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goaltender in 2012 and leading the Rangers to an Eastern Conference championship and Stanley Cup Final appearance in 2014. He signed with the Washington Capitals before the 2020-21 season, but missed the entire season after needing open heart surgery for an aortic valve replacement, aortic root and ascending aortic replacement. While he did make it to the practice rink for the Caps, Lundqvist did not appear in a game with Washington.
In addition to winning a Vezina Trophy, Lundqvist retires with the sixth-most wins in NHL history, 459, which is the second highest number among goaltenders to have not won a Stanley Cup. He was selected to five All-Star Games, played in 887 regular season games (eighth among goalies in NHL history), and is 10th in league history in save percentage.
