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New York Rangers: Four questions going into training camp

By Nicholas Zararis

PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 07: Ivan Provorov #9 of the Philadelphia Flyers watches the puck enter the net for a first period goal over a fallen Henrik Lundqvist #30 of the New York Rangers on April 7, 2018 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images)
PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 07: Ivan Provorov #9 of the Philadelphia Flyers watches the puck enter the net for a first period goal over a fallen Henrik Lundqvist #30 of the New York Rangers on April 7, 2018 at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Len Redkoles/NHLI via Getty Images) /
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LONDON, ENGLAND – JULY 04: Therese Lundqvist and Henrik Lundqvist attend day three of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 4, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Karwai Tang/Karwai Tang/WireImage )
LONDON, ENGLAND – JULY 04: Therese Lundqvist and Henrik Lundqvist attend day three of the Wimbledon Tennis Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis and Croquet Club on July 4, 2018 in London, England. (Photo by Karwai Tang/Karwai Tang/WireImage ) /

How long can Henrik Lundqvist do this?

For the first time in Henrik Lundqvist’s illustrious career, the Rangers are expected to be bad. The franchise has elected to reset in spite of their franchise player closing in on age 40. In the realm of goaltenders, winning the Stanley Cup at age 40 is possible but highly unlikely. This past season was the most trying of the Swede’s career as he was frequently pulled and hung out to dry.

The terrible combination of a bad defense and a clueless head coach put Lundqvist in the worst position imaginable. Somehow, Vigneault thought blaming the franchise’s signature player was a good method to motivate his underperforming team. Instead, it created a tension between the two in a lost season.

The only thing that stands between the Rangers and a top five lottery pick is Lundqvist. The veteran goaltender is simply too good of a player to allow the team to bottom out. Even when the writing was on the wall this past season, Lundqvist still stood on his head. The Western Canada trip last season was Lundqvist refusing to accept the lackluster play in front of him.

Next. The case for Lias Andersson as the second line center. dark

The ugly reality of the situation is that father time is undefeated. As great of a player as Lundqvist is, eventually, he will succumb to the aging process. The cracks have started to show, and on a terrible team, he might be pushed over the aging curve. A replacement level season from Lundqvist could throw the Rangers right into the Jack Hughes lottery.

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