Capitals Goalie Henrik Lundqvist To Undergo Open-Heart Surgery

Washington Capitals goaltender Henrik Lundqvist announced on social media that he will undergo open-heart surgery.

Two weeks ago, Lundqvist announced that he will miss the 2020-2021 NHL season because of a heart condition. On Monday morning, he revealed more details that he needed to have open-heart surgery because of a heart condition. He tweeted out, “Scheduled for an open heart surgery now- Aortic Valve replacement, Aortic Root and Ascending Aortic Replacement, to be more exact.” The 38-year-old affirmed that he was going to stay positive, “Staying positive here and set on the road to recovery.”

The iconic goalkeeper had spent the majority of his career with the New York Rangers. In his 15 seasons with New York, he emerged as a superstar with them. Lundqvist helped lead the Rangers to playoff success as they made it to the Eastern Conference Finals three times and one Stanley Cup appearance. Lundqvist won the 2012 Vezina trophy, and in 2014, led the team to the Stanley Cup Finals, where they lost to the Los Angeles Kings in five games. The goalkeeper became a beloved sports figure in New York, as fans gave him the nicknames “The King” and “Hank.”

After the conclusion of last season, he was bought out of his contract. Lundqvist signed with the 2018 Stanley Cup Champions the Capitals in an effort to win one Stanley Cup in his illustrious career. He was set to make his debut with Washington in the 2020-2021 season but that is no longer the case because of his heart condition and upcoming surgery.

The former Vezina Trophy winner has played in more than 1,000 games including playoffs, career goals-against an average of .243 and a .918 save average in the regular season. His postseason GAA is a .230 and a .921 save average.