photo: © IIHF / Hockey Hall Of Fame
During the 2025 IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship, short profiles of each of this year's Hall of Fame inductees will appear on IIHF.com in the build-up to the IIHF Hall of Fame weekend (May 24-25). There will be two ceremonies. The Contributors' Awards ceremony takes place on May 24, followed by the IIHF Hall of Fame Induction ceremony on May 25. Both ceremonies will be shown live on the IIHF's YouTube channel and IIHF.TV.
To understand how fickle the NHL draft can be, consider the case of Henrik Lundqvist, who was selected 205th overall by the New York Rangers in 2000 soon after leading Sweden to a bronze medal at the Men’s U18 World Championship. Despite this low selection, “King Henrik” went on to set records for Tre Kronor and in the NHL that leaves scouts from many NHL teams befuddled by their 204 missed opportunities in 2000.
Lundqvist developed slowly and was never in a rush to join the NHL. He played in the Swedish league, mostly with Frolunda, and didn’t go to New York until five years after being drafted. But when he arrived on Broadway, he was ready to embrace the moment. He had had two good tournaments at the World Juniors and was the number-one goalie at the 2004 senior Men’s Worlds, taking Tre Kronor to the gold-medal game before losing to Canada and settling for a silver medal.
In New York, Lundqvist quickly became the go-to goalie for the Rangers, playing 53 games as a rookie and winning 30 games. Indeed, he won at least 30 games in each of his first seven NHL seasons, the first goalie in league history to do so, and the team developed into a Stanley Cup contender. They qualified for the playoffs in eleven of Lundqvist’s first 12 seasons, culminating in 2014 when they advanced to the Cup finals.
“King Henrik” led Tre Kronor to gold at the 2006 Olympics in Turin.
Lundqvist earned the love of fans at Madison Square Garden for his solid positional play and his calm demeanour. A butterfly goalie, he was the opposite of the helter-skelter style of Dominik Hasek, choosing instead to be patient and steady on his skates. Over and above the team’s playoff success, Lundqvist represented his country at every opportunity. He played at the 2005 Worlds and then, most famously, was the main goalie at the 2006 Olympics, when Sweden defeated Finland, 3-2, to win their first Olympic gold since 1994. He played at the 2008 World Championships, in the IIHF’s Centennial year, and then again at the 2010 and 2014 Olympics. That third appearance, in Sochi, saw Tre Kronor advance to the gold-medal game again, but this time they fell to Canada, 3-0, and took silver.
After joining Sweden for the 2016 World Cup, Lundqvist played at the 2017 Worlds, helping Sweden go all the way and winning his first WM gold. His last appearance for the national team came in 2019. Little did he know at the time, but the next NHL season would be his last. As a new era of players was emerging with the Rangers, he was on the outside, looking in. He became a free agent in the summer of 2020 and signed with the Washington Capitals. A serious heart problem, however, required open-heart surgery, and although he tried to come back, he decided the health risks weren’t worth it and announced his retirement.
Lundqvist left the NHL with several notable records for a goalie. He was the fastest to reach 400 wins in league history and the first to record eleven consecutive 20-win seasons to start a career. He also recorded the most career wins by a European goalie (459). He won the Vezina Trophy in 2012 and was nominated as the league’s top goalie a total of five times. Lundqvist also came as close as any goalie to becoming the first to join the Triple Gold Club, and he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto in 2023.
Lundqvist developed slowly and was never in a rush to join the NHL. He played in the Swedish league, mostly with Frolunda, and didn’t go to New York until five years after being drafted. But when he arrived on Broadway, he was ready to embrace the moment. He had had two good tournaments at the World Juniors and was the number-one goalie at the 2004 senior Men’s Worlds, taking Tre Kronor to the gold-medal game before losing to Canada and settling for a silver medal.
In New York, Lundqvist quickly became the go-to goalie for the Rangers, playing 53 games as a rookie and winning 30 games. Indeed, he won at least 30 games in each of his first seven NHL seasons, the first goalie in league history to do so, and the team developed into a Stanley Cup contender. They qualified for the playoffs in eleven of Lundqvist’s first 12 seasons, culminating in 2014 when they advanced to the Cup finals.
“King Henrik” led Tre Kronor to gold at the 2006 Olympics in Turin.
© IIHF / Andre Ringuette
Lundqvist earned the love of fans at Madison Square Garden for his solid positional play and his calm demeanour. A butterfly goalie, he was the opposite of the helter-skelter style of Dominik Hasek, choosing instead to be patient and steady on his skates. Over and above the team’s playoff success, Lundqvist represented his country at every opportunity. He played at the 2005 Worlds and then, most famously, was the main goalie at the 2006 Olympics, when Sweden defeated Finland, 3-2, to win their first Olympic gold since 1994. He played at the 2008 World Championships, in the IIHF’s Centennial year, and then again at the 2010 and 2014 Olympics. That third appearance, in Sochi, saw Tre Kronor advance to the gold-medal game again, but this time they fell to Canada, 3-0, and took silver.After joining Sweden for the 2016 World Cup, Lundqvist played at the 2017 Worlds, helping Sweden go all the way and winning his first WM gold. His last appearance for the national team came in 2019. Little did he know at the time, but the next NHL season would be his last. As a new era of players was emerging with the Rangers, he was on the outside, looking in. He became a free agent in the summer of 2020 and signed with the Washington Capitals. A serious heart problem, however, required open-heart surgery, and although he tried to come back, he decided the health risks weren’t worth it and announced his retirement.
Lundqvist left the NHL with several notable records for a goalie. He was the fastest to reach 400 wins in league history and the first to record eleven consecutive 20-win seasons to start a career. He also recorded the most career wins by a European goalie (459). He won the Vezina Trophy in 2012 and was nominated as the league’s top goalie a total of five times. Lundqvist also came as close as any goalie to becoming the first to join the Triple Gold Club, and he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto in 2023.