Photo: New York Post
Goaltender Henrik Lundqvist announced on Monday morning that he is about to undergo an open-heart procedure. Washington Capitals’ GM Brian MacLellan told the media last week that the 38-year-old has dealt with some heart issues throughout his NHL career.
Lundqvist told the public that he will have his aortic valve, aortic root, and ascending aorta replaced during his procedure.
He announced on December 17 that his heart condition will prevent him from playing this season.
Lundqvist signed a one-year contract with the Capitals as an unrestricted free agent on October 9 after 15 seasons with the New York Rangers, who bought out the final year of his contract that carried an $8.5 million cap hit on September 30. The Capitals expected him to mentor Ilya Samsonov through his first season as the team’s No. 1 goalie.
The Capitals announced on Sunday that they signed goaltender Craig Anderson to a PTO to compete with goalies Vitek Vanecek and Pheonix Copley for the team’s backup job.
Teams tweeted out their prayers for Lundqvist.
The Capitals and the entire hockey world are with you Hank, and wish you a speedy recovery. 🙏 https://t.co/DdDpTimaUe
— Washington Capitals (@Capitals) December 28, 2020
Our #Isles family is with you 💙🧡 https://t.co/eEaVpGHgWZ
— New York Islanders (@NYIslanders) December 28, 2020
By Harrison Brown
Scary news. Thoughts are with you, King.
Must be a Cap/Swedish thing,former capitals d-man Christian Djoos’ sister was affected by heart issues that had to be dealt with by surgery. She was able to join family in the States just before Capitals won the Cup. She’s doing very well,in fact gave birth to little boy few months ago and both are fine. Best of luck to the King!
I didn’t realize Djoos’ sister had heart issues. I saw she just had a child herself.
Wish Lundqvist a speedy recovery. Wonder if the issue is congenital or from an infection.