Henrik Lundqvist, the legendary Rangers goalkeeper who joined the Capitals during the off-season, announced that he will be serving out the 2020-21 NHL season due to a heart condition.
Lundqvist, 38, said the condition was discovered after weeks of testing.
“It breaks my heart (literally) to share this news: I’m not going to the Capitals next season,” Lundqvist wrote in a post on Twitter. “After many weeks of testing and discussions with specialists across the country, it has been determined that heart disease is preventing me from taking to the ice. Together we have decided that the risk of playing before I fix my condition is too high. So I’ll spend the next few months figuring out the best course of action.
“For the past 2 months I have been so inspired by the opportunity to play in DC and dedicated to my game every day on the rink to prepare for the upcoming season. The news was very hard to digest, but after the last test result earlier this week, we knew there was only one way to go from here.
“I would like to thank the entire Capitals organization for not only giving me this opportunity, but also for their support in this challenging time. I will be taking the time to spend the next few weeks with my family and will be back to share the next steps. “
Lundqvist played 15 legendary seasons with the Rangers before buying the last year of his off-season contract. He then signed a one-year contract with the Capitals.