Open Heart

What's the outfit?

Uh...

I'm going for black, double-breasted.

We've discussed the most recent testing,

and our thoughts and recommendations.

I just want to make sure if you have any questions.

If I was your brother, would you tell me not to play?

I would.

Playing here for 15 years...

it was intense.

What a save by Lundqvist!

Goodness gracious! What a save!

Everything that's happened over the last year and a half...

I think tonight, I just...

I look forward to say "Thank you."

We're gonna go up and around.

How many people will be here tonight? Look at that!

You walk out here...

You're gonna walk over here.

I'll be sitting here. - Yes, you'll be sitting there.

Save by Lundqvist!

A couple of talking points for the press conference.

Let's all put our hands in the middle here.

One, two, three... - Team!

We have to think about there's a risk of death with that,

a significant risk.

Henrik! Henrik! Henrik!

This is crushing.

Returning to Madison Square Garden ice...

A Rangers legend...

Henrik! Henrik!

A New York icon.

Number 30.

Henrik Lundqvist!

Henrik! Henrik! Henrik!

Henrik! Henrik! Henrik!

I grew up in Åre,

a small town in the middle of Sweden.

It's dark when you go to school.

Then around 2:00 or 3:00 in the afternoon,

it starts getting dark again.

For sure, it affects people.

Maybe a little more reserved.

They talk less, a little slower.

But I think they think more before they speak.

For the longest time, I was seeking performance.

Now I'm seeking life.

And the search for what comes next

takes me back to the beginning.

To grow up with a twin brother,

we always wanted to do the same thing.

Everything we did, we competed.

We were born with it, like, the...

The enjoyment of competing.

Hey! - Hiya!

Losing was not an option.

Maybe one won and the other had come in second,

and the one who won couldn't be happy because his brother was sad.

-My pulse is going up. -Yeah.

My heart rate went up, now that it's getting close to it.

It's hard to say why.

It was not like our parents pushed us to win or conquer.

But at the same time, even at an early age,

it came down to try to win.

It was everything.

I do think back of how it started.

And the journey.

Different teams, different levels, national team,

and winning championships in Sweden,

for me to get the opportunity to play my first game

at Madison Square Garden.

A very exciting time in my life, being 23,

then suddenly I move across the ocean and start a new life.

Winding. Big shot.

Glove save, Lundqvist!

Gomez to the net.

Save off the chest of Lundqvist.

Langenbrunner sets up McGillis.

Long shot. Save, Lundqvist.

John Madden to the net. Madden fakes, shoots.

Save, Lundqvist! He's got the puck!

Henrik! Henrik!

I could hear the crowd chanting my name.

And it blew my mind.

Henrik!

It was absolutely deafening. Roof almost blew off the Garden.

A terrific effort.

And the first NHL win for Henrik Lundqvist.

Henrik!

I wanted to do even more every game I played.

Because winning was so important.

Dumont heads to the net! Dumont!

Save by Lundqvist! What a save!

The Rangers hadn't made the playoffs in eight years,

and here we were, this kinda ragtag group of guys,

and now all of a sudden, Hank's, uh, in the net

and just proving himself to be a superstar.

Finds Zubrus, and a glove save!

What a save by Henrik Lundqvist!

Crowd goes nuts.

Cue the "Henrik" chant.

Nice pass, inside. Lundqvist made a save!

Oh, what a play he made!

Henrik! Henrik! Henrik!

Hearing the crowd definitely cut through.

It goes deep.

It goes all the way into your heart, and you get warm, excited.

Henrik! - He's a rock star.

The crowd loves him here at the Garden.

I think he likes it too.

It's a dream come true for an organization like New York

where you need that anchor

to start rebuilding and have something special.

And immediately you had that in this kid.

Henrik!

My first year in New York,

it really felt like I was living my dream.

I got to play in the NHL.

And I also got an opportunity to play for my country, Sweden,

in the Olympics.

With his kind of close-knit identification with Sweden,

I thought it was so cool, he goes back, changes jerseys...

"I'm here to win a gold medal."

Lundqvist has to play his best game of the tournament.

We go up 3-2, early, third period.

And then Finland tried to push and come back.

Moves in, a drive off of Lundqvist's shoulder!

Just being that close to winning Olympic gold,

30 seconds to go and-and the adrenaline is so high.

And the puck comes down...

Out of the bench area comes Selänne.

Has it scale to the half boards and battled for there.

Threw one in front! Save, Lundqvist!

And in that moment,

there's a Finnish player standing there, and he has a wide-open net.

Save, Lundqvist! Scramble in front!

It was more a desperation move to get across and reach for it.

Oh! Jokinen a shot!

Save remarkably made by Lundqvist!

And then we managed to clear the puck,

and the last few seconds, the clock ticking down, five...

Four seconds, and three, the gold goes to Sweden!

And you can just feel your body's about to

explode with emotions.

That's what hap... When you win,

you know, that rush is something that's, uh...

It's incredible.

You had a great match. Congratulations.

I think that put him on the map, a bit more than,

"Wow, this is a good young player for New York."

This is a superstar in the league.

And saved by Lundqvist!

Rangers win it!

Henrik Lundqvist gets his 29th win,

and ties the Rangers' rookie record.

You had him in there, playing the way he played.

It literally turned the whole trajectory of the New York Rangers franchise.

All of it.

"It" factor, swag, confidence,

belief, technique, competitiveness...

He was "box office" from the jump.

Know what it is to be "box office" at Madison Square Garden?

-How are you? -What's up? What's up?

Do the other goalies dress as well as you?

Um...

Yes and no. There's some guys that try.

You can say it. No, they don't.

-They don't! -They don't.

Henrik Lundqvist, everybody!

The NHL returns on Saturday!

Loves New York.

Loves being a New Yorker. Family loves it here.

He fit in like any movie star, actor, model...

He belonged here. He's a New Yorker through and through.

Over time, I developed these connections

and feelings for New York.

It was something that I loved.

I remember Larry Brooks wrote it,

"King Henrik" in the New York Post, and...

A couple of people yelled at me on the street one day.

I started laughing and didn't think much of it,

then the next week, same thing.

I was like, well, at some point, they gotta stop.

But it didn't.

Does he cover or does he shut the net down?

He shoots, right in front again, another shot!

Henrik! Henrik! Henrik!

What a stop by Henrik Lundqvist!

What a save by Lundqvist!

Henrik Lundqvist!

What a stop by Henrik Lundqvist!

Hamhuis centers there, deflection! Rebound chance!

Oh, what a glorious save that was!

Another stop by Henrik Lundqvist!

Okay, guys. Thank you so much.

Good luck, Henrik. Go get 'em.

For the next eight, nine years,

the team was getting better, we were winning more.

Winning to me brought so much joy...

Excitement.