Great interview with the Swedish goalkeeper icon in front of the Hall of Fame
Updated at 00.47 | Published on 00.24
New York. Henrik Lundqvist is back!
Well, not really of course.
But as for the upcoming Hall of Fame ceremonies, for the first time since his active career, he’s wearing shin guards again for an exhibition match — and the preparations have already got the New York King’s old juices boiling.
– I realized that there is something very liberating about focusing on one thing. disk. It happened spontaneously when I tested a little and felt like “yes, this is it”. very simple. It was a great feeling, Henke said when Sportbladet caught up with him before the Toronto festival.
It’s happening this weekend.
Henrik Lundqvist will be enshrined once and for all in hockey eternity.
Of course, it could be argued that he’s been there for a long time – yes, at least since his shirt was lifted to the roof of Madison Square Garden in January of last year during a memorable celebration.
But when he, as the eighth Swede in history, is elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame, it gets more official — even beyond New York City.
“It seems like that’s the last thing that happens, and then we’re really done,” he says with a smile over lunch in the lobby of a salty hotel in lower Manhattan.
– Of course, it is very honorable, but the token has not yet taken root, and it will probably only happen when you are there. The shirt lift was a great ending, which of course would be the icing on the cake. It’s really fun to try in something like that.
Only four male players — who must be retired for three years — are elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame each fall, and most must wait for the honor for many years. But the best of the best are welcomed into the already exclusive company on the first try, and that’s exactly what happened for the 41-year-old New York Rangers goalie icon.
– You think at times like this of all the hard work and all the intense focus your whole life, or at least since the age of seven. And passion for hockey. Now that I have progressed in life, I realize how great this passion is. It ruled one’s life perfectly. How you felt, how you lived, and how you prioritized. I loved it and this will be a receipt that thanks to this passion I have achieved something.
“There will be about 30 guests.”
But at the same time, there’s a little sadness that it ended this way. After all, Hinkie was planning to continue in Washington when he discovered he had a heart defect that required surgery, thus closing the way for a return.
-I feel like I did everything I could, but I still want to do more. I wasn’t quite finished when it was over. I would have liked to play more and achieve more. But it wasn’t in my cards.
But this isn’t something you’re bitter about is it?
– No, not at all. I know it was the right decision to retire, because it took a long time to try to get back to 100%. So, on the contrary, it is good that after some initial thoughts about other methods and other medications, I made this particular decision. I have moved on now and am in a good place in life.
Naturally, the eighth Swedish Hall of Famer – after Böre Salming, Mats Sundin, Peter Forsberg, Niklas Lidström, Daniel Sedin, Henrik Sedin and Daniel Alfredsson – will celebrate with family and friends during balloon parties in Canada’s largest city.
– Yes, but it is much lower than when the shirt was lifted. Then I had 120 guests here. Now it would be about 30. The closest.
Have you started presenting the speech yet?
– Yes, I’m starting to think about it. I want to make sure to thank those who should be thanked, without going on too long, hehe.
But you’re not nervous about the performance itself? There are a lot of people who find it difficult to speak in front of many others? You’re used to it, of course.
– Well… maybe it’s a little tense. But you should also feel alive when you can challenge yourself a little.
“I’m too young to twiddle my thumbs.”
Then, in keeping with long-standing Hall of Fame tradition, the game will be played at Scotiabank Arena as well. For the first time since his retirement, Hinkie will guard the box against a host of other retired legends – including Peter Forsberg.
– I actually didn’t think I would wear the equipment again and I didn’t imagine it would be so much fun, I was afraid it would hurt my knees and feet. “But it was great now that I had tested a bit beforehand,” he says.
– Above all, I realized that there is something very liberating about focusing on one thing. disk. It happened spontaneously when I tested a little and felt like “yes, this is it”. very simple.
Interesting that your mind and body remember you reflexively?
– Exactly as if you programmed the system in a certain way many years ago. It was probably a little weird for the first few minutes, but then I got into it pretty quickly. It was just that…before the heart said no, he felt better technically and physically than he had in years and So It wasn’t long. But most of all my reaction now, as you said, is the feeling I had when concentrating on just stopping the disc again.
Yes, with that familiarity, it must have seemed very unfamiliar, because since his retirement from hockey, the holder of all New York Rangers goaltending records has focused on more things than any outsider could keep track of. The question is whether there is a more active retiree than Henrik Lundqvist. He works as a studio expert for local channel MSG in New York and for TNT nationally in the USA – with Wayne Gretzky among others. He’s also an ambassador for Madison Square Garden, runs the Club 30 podcast and just launched his own fragrance.
Included…
-I’m too young to sit and fiddle with my fingers. I’m big in sports, but not in life. “I think it’s fun to challenge myself and do new things and do projects that inspire me a little bit,” he explains.
“A lot of stories with Gretzky.”
Television work…is it rewarding?
– Yes I think so. It’s a bit difficult. It’s very different from sitting around talking about yourself during your career and constantly relying on your performance or the team’s performance. Now I judge others. You then try to use your own experiences to explain why certain things happen, and how you think, both when things go well and when things go wrong.
You seem to be having fun.
– Yes we have. Either in MSG or TNT. I work with very good bands. In the end, that’s all that matters to me.
You wouldn’t have thought as a teenager that you’d be a partner on the radar with Gretzky in the TV studio?
– Haha no. It is of course fun to work with him. There will be a lot of stories and probably about ten percent will be included in the broadcast…
So what can you tell us about your role as a park ambassador? What does it mean to be one?
-We had discussions during the first year after my hockey career because I have many interests in different areas of MSG, such as entertainment, sports and media. We tried to create a role where I could tie everything together and that’s what happened. It benefits them and I get to do things I find fun. Go to matches, concerts, meet people, do TV, do charity work. I feel at home at Jardin after all these years, and it’s good to be part of the organization, albeit in a completely different way.
Perfumes and private investments
So, like you said, do you also have a podcast? 30 club?
-It’s part of my deal with MSG. I probably had no idea about it, but I got the question and started thinking and came to the conclusion that I wanted to do it with Jay Liddell, one of my best friends. We talk briefly with guests who interest us Things What matters to us.
Did you have a fair number of famous profiles in the studio?
– Yes, the first season had John McEnroe, A-Rod (baseball icon Alex Rodriguez), Eli Manning, Mike Richter, Marcus Samuelsson, Lindsey Vonn, JJ Redick, and Hans Vestberg. We have just filmed the second season, and it will be released soon. Then I meet more people who I didn’t have a relationship with before, it’s going to be exciting.
You’ve just co-launched your own fragrance, what can you tell us about that?
-I’ve thought about it for several years and now the timing is right. It is about niche perfumes and it takes a long time to develop them. Sixteen months and we are working on all the details. It’s like working with fine wines, where niche perfumes live, e.g.
And more? Do you have more projects?
– Well, I’m doing some investments and I work with a guy who runs a hedge fund. I get involved a little bit in that. They’re completely different things, you see, and that’s what I want. It’s been just one thing for a very long time, so it’s fun with many kinds of challenges and many kinds of impressions. I’m in charge of my time now, in a way I never was before. I decide what to do and when to do it. It’s great to feel.
So speaks a true multitasker – who, thanks to his past bias, is now written into history.