Rangers, Lundqvist miss another chance
On Saturday, the New York Rangers were attempting to keep their 2015-16 season alive. Unfortunately for the Broadway Blueshirts, they were all but dead on arrival.
The Pittsburgh Penguins finished off the five-game romp of the Rangers in the Steel City, winning the final three games of the series to earn a trip to the Metropolitan Division finals, where they will face either the Washington Capitals or Philadelphia Flyers.
For the Rangers, another long offseason begins. New York was supposed to seriously compete for the Stanley Cup, but instead were easily dumped on its collective ear by the Penguins. Pittsburgh is a quality team led by stars Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Phil Kessel. But the Rangers had the advantage of Henrik Lundqvist in net against the duo of Jeff Zatkoff and Matt Murray in place of Marc-Andre Fleury, who is out with a concussion.
It didn’t matter. Lundqvist was lit up throughout, playing behind bad defense and a forward group that never seemed all that interested in advancing. The Rangers have been one of the toughest teams in hockey to eliminate over recent seasons, going to the Eastern Conference finals four straight years. This time, they went out without more than a mild whimper.
While the loss is tough on all the fans and players associated with the team, the biggest pit in the stomach belongs ot Lundqvist. The Sweden native is one of the best goaltenders in the last 25 years, and he is without a ring and only a single Stanley Cup Final appearance, coming in 2014.
Lundqvist has a Hall of Fame resume for the most part, especially if you give him a few more seasons like his recent history. He stands at 374-229-72 and has enjoyed 10 30-win seasons and 59 shutouts. His dominance can’t be overstated in a league that is increasingly going towards a two-goalie system, and yet many point to the one hole in his career.
At 34 years old, Father Time is coming for Lundqvist sooner rather than later. He has been able to play at least 53 games per season in eight of his 10 campaigns, with one of the others being the strike-shortened season of 2012-13. He has been durable and steady, but at some point, that won’t be the case.
The Rangers need to do everything they possibly can over the next few seasons to win a Cup. Once Lundqvist is either gone or seriously decreased in ability, New York will always wonder why it didn’t cash in when it had the chance.
Lundqvist has long been known as The King. If he doesn’t win a Stanley Cup, he will never earn that moniker.
