New York Rangers Report Card: Henrik Lundqvist

It was another rough ride for Henrik Lundqvist in 2018-19 as the toll of this New York Rangers rebuild finally showed.

Henrik Lundqvist: Grade C-

It is already proving to be a long off-season for the New York Rangers and the return of hockey to Madison Square Garden can’t come soon enough. But, in the meantime, keep yourself occupied with our 2018-19 Report Cards as we take a look at every Blueshirts player to have laced up their skates this season.

Today we assess the roller coaster of a year for ‘The King’ who endured arguably one of his toughest periods as a New York Ranger.

His season

It turned out to be a year of two halves for Lundqvist, who began 2018-19 in formidable form having put the Rangers on his back and led them to an unlikely and unexpected playoff charge.

He was unstoppable between the pipes at times and it was a welcome throwback to vintage Henrik Lundqvist.

Put it simply; it was a very good sign for the Rangers and for this rebuild.

Lundqvist posted a more than impressive .920 save percentage through the Christmas period – just consider the unit of defensemen he had playing in-front of him – and his string of heroics and game-winning performances earned him a fifth All-Star appearance.

The numbers compiled in the first-half of the year are even more impressive given that the Rangers routinely put out one of the youngest rosters in the NHL.

But that didn’t have any impact on Lundqvist’s play with the 37-year-old posting a 12-9-7 record in 29 games with a 2.81 goals against average and a  .916 save percentage.

Adding to just how vital Lundqvist was to the Blueshirts in the early throes of the season was the fact that he was selected as one of the game’s Three Stars in 13 of his 29 outings.

He was also tied for fourth in the NHL in saves with 891 and was tied for second among NHL goaltenders in games with 30 or more saves.

Consider some more stats before we move on too; Lundqvist was ranked first in saves and tied for third in wins in the Metro Division.

However, and almost in the blink of an eye, Lundqvist’s and indeed the Rangers’ season collapsed on top of them in dramatic and alarming fashion.

All of a sudden easy shots that were once routine saves were causing the hugely popular veteran all sorts of problems, and a porous blueline didn’t help his cause either.

The reality of not being in a position to realistically compete every night clearly had a negative effect on Lundqvist, who cut a frustrated and forlorn figure in the locker room post game on more than one occasion.

He also famously got very choked up after seeing close friend Mats Zuccarello traded at the trade deadline, with the knowledge that the Rangers aren’t currently a contender finally hitting home.

It was hard for everyone involved with the Rangers to watch Lundqvist’s season implode in such spectacular fashion, and it didn’t get any easier down the stretch.

Not only were his numbers poor but the face of this franchise also saw his throne well and truly threatened by the emergence of Alexandar Georgiev as a true heir.

Georgiev was handed a boatload of ice time in the final months of the season and he seized his opportunity with both hands, producing a plethora of stunning saves to prove that the future in net is bright indeed for the Blueshirts.

It must have been hard for Lundqvist to watch on, however, with the netminder having just endured what was one of, if not the toughest stretch of his NHL career.

Why the grade

As outstanding as he was in the first-half of the year, Lundqvist was a shadow of his former self in the latter stages of 2018-19.

The numbers don’t lie as they say.

He played only 52 games – the fewest number of games he’s played in his career since the lockout shortened season of 2012-13 – and he failed to reach the 20 win plateau for the first time since entering the NHL with the Rangers in 2005.

His .907 save percentage was also the worst of his long and distinguished career, as was his 3.07 goals against average.

It was a wretched finish to the season for Lundqvist who has perhaps never faced a period of turbulence like this in his career before.

It was alarming for Rangers fans to watch, given that we have all been used to seeing a calm and reliable figure between the pipes.

Rookie coach David Quinn should also take some responsibility for his tough second half by overusing him early in the season.   Riding the hot hand, Lundqvist started 17 of the first 22 games of the season, a pace that had to wear down the 36-year old netminder.

You also can’t downplay the effect a poor blueline has had on Lundqvist’s play, and that he’s had to take on a new role throughout this rebuild.

You don’t become a poor player overnight and Lundqvist showed at the start of the year that he’s still an elite NHL netminder on his day.

The task for Lundqvist now is to reset his game over the off-season and report back to training camp stronger and better than ever.

This New York Rangers rebuild needs vintage Henrik Lundqvist.

The numbers

Games: 52
Game Starts: 52
Wins: 18
Losses: 23
Overtime Losses: 10
Shots Against: 1,699
Goals Against: 158
Goals Against Average: 3.07
Save Percentage: .907
Minutes: 3,089

Next Report Card: Vlad Namestinikov