Hail To The King

There had been writing on the wall that his was coming for some time. Now it has finally happened. After 15 years and a brilliant career, Henrik Lundqvist is done in New York. The Rangers have bought out Henrik from his contract, allowing him to become a free agent. This comes with one year left on Hank's contract, which was worth a reported $8.5 Million. The end of an era has finally come.

With that, the Rangers are now, apparently, going with Igor Shesterkin and Alexandar Georgiev in goal from here on out. What does this mean for Hank?

Well, with this coming down, Hank can now go to any team he wants. Having never won a cup in his 15 year career, he might want to look to go to a contending team. At 38 years old, there's no real sure thing for Hank. His age could be a factor as to what a team might take a flyer on him. The money and his age could be interesting.

But with his time in New York, aside from coming short on a championship (which is a shame really), he's had a damn good career. He was drafted in the 7th round in 2000, and by the time all was said and done with the Rangers, he had pretty much re-written their goaltending records. Hank closed out his career with the Rangers with 459 victories (sixth-most in history), 64 shutouts and 61 postseason wins. In 887 career games played, Lunqdvist boasts a 2.43 GAA and a .918 save percentage. Those are truly amazing numbers for this franchise. He won the Vezina in 2012 and was a finalist four other times in his career.

No disrespect to Eddie Giacomin and Mike Richter, who are considered two of the greatest netminder in the history of this team, Hank leaves them in the dust. Hank has done everything he possibly can to keep the Rangers in title contention. He deserved a ring for everything he's done in his career.

This is coming from an Islanders fan, it really was a pleasure watching that man play goal. He drove me nuts cause he always found a way to be a thorn in the Islanders side. But as a fan of the game of hockey, he was truly outstanding to watch in the net. Thanks for everything you've done for New York Hockey Hank. Best of luck and I really hope you do end up with a ring.