Henrik Lundqvist, born 2 March 1982, is a Swedish professional ice hockey goaltender for the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL). Before winning the Vezina Trophy in 2012, he was nominated in each of his first three seasons, and is the only goaltender in NHL history to record 30 wins in each of his first seven seasons. His dominating play during his rookie season resulted in the New York media and Rangers fans giving him the nickname “King Henrik”. During the 2006 Winter Olympics in Torino, Italy, he led the Swedish men’s team to their second Olympic gold medal.
Before joining the Rangers, Lundqvist played for Frölunda HC in the Swedish Elitserien. During his years in Sweden, he developed into the league’s finest goaltender, winning the Honken Trophy three consecutive seasons; 2003, 2004 and 2005. In 2005 he also won two of the most prestigious awards in Swedish ice hockey, the Golden Puck and the Golden Helmet.
Lundqvist is considered a butterfly style goalie, though unorthodox because of the aggressive way he performs the butterfly. He is best known for his sensational quickness, athleticism and strong positional play.
ACHIEVEMENTS
Swedish Junior Champ | 1999 , 2000
Junior Hockey Player of the Year | 2002
Swedish Champ | 2003, 2005
World Championship Silver Medal |2003, 2004
Honken Trophy | 2003, 2004, 2005
Guld hjälmen | 2005
Guldpucken | 2005
NHL Rookie All-star Team | 2006
Olympic Champion | 2006
Olympic Runner-Up | 2014
World Champion Inline Hockey | 2006
Nominated for Vezina Trophy | 2006, 2007, 2008
Vezina Trophy Winner 2012
Finalist for NHL Foundation Player Award | 2015
Finalist for ESPN Sports Humanitarian of the Year | 2015
