King Henrik is adding a valuable item to his throne. The title of Hall of Famer.
Rangers legend Henrik Lundqvist was elected into the Hockey Hall of Fame as part of the Class of 2023, it was announced on Wednesday. It was the first year Lundqvist was eligible for the Hockey shrine.
“Grateful and extremely honored to be selected to the Hockey Hall Of Fame,” Lundqvist wrote on social media. “Thinking of all the great players in the HHOF that inspired me as a kid.
“Feels amazing to be included in this special group.”
The goaltender spent 15 seasons with the Rangers and led the original-six franchise to the playoffs on 12 occasions, including a 2014 run to the Stanley Cup Final before losing to the Los Angeles Kings.
Lundqvist tallied 459 career regular-season victories owning a .918 save percentage and is sixth all-time for wins. He has the most all-time wins as a goalie in Ranger history and the most by a European-born goaltender. He also recorded 64 shutouts.
The Swedish superstar, 41, recorded 61 career postseason win
While he never captured the elusive Stanley Cup, he does own two gold medals, one from the 2006 Winter Olympics and his second at the 2017 World Championships.
However, his career with the Blueshirts didn’t have a storybook ending. The Rangers bought out the final year of his seven-year, $59 million contract after the 2019-20 season handing the goaltending duties to Igor Shesterkin.
He then signed a one-year deal with the Washington Capitals but announced in December 2020 that he had been diagnosed with a heart condition and needed to step away from the game. He underwent open-heart surgery in January 201 and officially announced his retirement from hockey on Aug. 20, 2021.
Lundqvist headlines the Hockey Hall of Fame’s goalie-heavy class of 2023, which also includes Stanley Cup champions Tom Barrasso and Mike Vernon.
Selection committee chairman Mike Gartner announced the seven-person class Wednesday. Former NHL forward Pierre Turgeon and Canadian women’s hockey star Caroline Ouellette were the other players, while Cup-winning coach Ken Hitchcock and late executive Pierre Lacroix were picked to be inducted in the builder category.
The induction ceremony is Nov. 13 in Toronto.