Rest assured
Lundqvist reveals he’ll play less to start season
It is going to be different this year, and Henrik Lundqvist knows it. Gone are the seasons in which the Swede starts nine of the first 10 games, 23 of the first 26 and 35 of the first 41 as he did two years ago for Alain Vigneault, or even seven of the first eight, 13 of the first 16 and 25 of the first 32 as he did last year under David Quinn. “I always like to get going with a lot of games early, but we’ve already talked about it, and how the league is trending in an opposite direction from one goalie having such a heavy workload,” Lundqvist told The Post following Monday’s training camp practice. “The way the game is going, how intense it is and how many scoring chances there are, I know how much it takes — and takes out of you — to play a game. “So it is going to be up to me to adapt to whatever schedule or rotation the organization thinks is best. I have to adjust to make it work. I’m going to work on that. If I’m not playing as much as I’m used to, the key will be to work hard in practice. But this isn’t something I’m worried or concerned about. I’m just very excited to be back here and get the season going.” Lundqvist is 37 and entering the penultimate season of his contract. Those are facts that perhaps might be pinned to the top of every piece analyzing the King’s game and status not only around the NHL, but within the organization where Alexandar Georgiev and Igor Shesterkin are pressing up behind Lundqvist on the depth chart.
The organization will dictate the goaltending rotation in the early going, likely dividing somewhere around 60/40 between Lundqvist and presumably, Georgiev, but the goaltenders’ play will determine how it all shakes out over the full 82. It’s a fool’s errand to attempt to project the final number of starts that will be awarded to each member of New York’s goaltending crew.
Of course, that in and of itself represents a massive change in the dynamic. Since Lundqvist’s 2006-07 sophomore season, one could routinely pencil in No. 30 for between 65 and 75 starts. That not only reflects the reality of NHL trends, it reflects the reality of Lundqvist’s 2-11-3/.906/3.19 meltdown the final two months of 2018-19 during which he admittedly became overwhelmed with frustration over the direction of the season.
But the summer gave Lundqvist the distance required to put last season in the rearview. Signing Artemi Panarin and trading for Jacob Trouba, in addition to drafting Kaapo Kakko, didn’t hurt either.
“I needed to get away from everything before I could put my focus on this season,” Lundqvist said. “The second half of last season was so hard. I needed to recharge. I wanted to stay away from hockey as long as I needed to get back to the feeling where I’d missed it and would feel excited about coming back.
“That’s where I am. I’m super excited about being back, very excited about being with this group. The signings and the trades have put us in a very good position to compete and accomplish a lot of things. I think we can move forward with this group, and that’s important from a mental perspective.
“Last year it was kind of like we were taking one step forward, then one or two back, and so on.”
Lundqvist, who was consistently at the top of his game through last season’s opening two months (9-8-2/.920/2.62), said he did not change his workout regimen. He is “slightly lighter,” at 181 or 182 pounds, than he’s been for a few seasons after playing at 198 for most of the first 10 years of his career.
“The last couple of summers I’ve done more work with my legs,” Lundqvist said. “And I think playing at this weight helps me the way the game is played.
“But I can tell you that I feel really good, and that’s physically, technically and mentally. I’m excited. I like our direction here. I have good feelings about the team. I just want to do my part in helping us win and getting us to the playoffs.
“That’s what it’s all about.”