Henrik Lundqvist is elected to the Hall of Fame.
Then he is praised – by none other than Wayne Gretzky.
– In New York everyone loves him, in Sweden too. He was always class, says The Great One.
Henrik Lundqvist was suddenly and quickly forced to end his NHL career when a heart defect was discovered. Lundqvist thus never had time to play for any team other than the New York Rangers, for whom he was the face for 15 years. Lundqvist was one of the best goaltenders in the world, and few players have ever been as popular and important to their teams as Lundqvist was to the Rangers.
Gretzky’s giant tribute
This summer, it was announced that Lundqvist had been selected into hockey’s absolute fine room. He was, as the eighth Swede, inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, and no one was surprised. During his career, Lundqvist won Olympic gold and World Cup gold, and in the NHL it was a mind-boggling 459 wins, the sixth most among goalkeepers in history.
One who knows what it means to be inducted into the Hall of Fame is Wayne Gretzky. The best hockey player of all time is now a colleague of Lundqvist as an expert on the television channel TNT, and during the night’s broadcast The Great One took the opportunity to give Lundqvist a super tribute, in connection with the Swede being elected to the fine room next weekend.
– It is well deserved. He was always good, and not just on the ice. He was class off the ice, and did so much for kids who didn’t have it easy. He was a given part of the Rangers organization, and people loved him, he says.
“Everybody loves him”
Wayne Gretzky himself ended his career with the New York Rangers, and knows what it means to play there.
– Believe me, I loved every second of playing in New York, I was treated so well by the fans, but it can be a tough place to play in. But “Hank” always stood tall, he deserves all the praise from the fans in Manhattan , and they love him. And not only in New York, in Sweden they love him too, says Gretzky.
Gretzky believes that there is something special about the Hall of Fame, and despite being inducted for over 20 years, he enjoys every time he is there.
– I would just tell Henrik that he should enjoy himself, gobble up everything. Be with your days for a few days and enjoy, there is nothing like it. I still go to the Hall of Fame sometimes, and to me it’s one of the best places there is, he says.
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