Hartnett: Debacle Against Pens Will Only Make Lundqvist Better

By Sean Hartnett
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For 12 straight seasons, the mantra of the Rangers' organization has remained the same: "In Henrik We Trust."

It has been this way since Henrik Lundqvist successfully made the transition from little-known seventh-round pick in 2000 to instantaneous franchise goaltender during a sparkling 2005-06 rookie campaign.

The label of franchise goaltender often gets thrown around too frequently by media pundits and fans. But make no mistake, Lundqvist is the absolute embodiment of such a netminder. The 34-year-old Swede carried the Blueshirts in seasons when goal-scoring went dry and in seasons when puck management and defensive sturdiness collapsed in front of his crease.

More than anything, the true mark of a franchise goaltender is measured by how he responds in times of doubt and when criticism weighs on his back.

On Thanksgiving Eve, Lundqvist was stuffed by the rival Pittsburgh Penguins to the tune of four goals on 17 shots. He was replaced by backup Antti Raanta at 12:57 of the second period. The Rangers were roundly defeated 6-1 on home ice and booed at the second intermission, as the Penguins salvaged a home-and-home split.

Pittsburgh has become a bogeyman opponent for Lundqvist of late. He has surrendered 14 goals on his last 58 shots against the Pens and has been yanked in three consecutive regular season/playoff appearances. His seasonal save percentage of .911 and goals-against average of 2.46 are off the pace of his overall career marks of a .920 and 2.29.

There have been calls from fans for head coach Alain Vigneault to ride the hot hand in Raanta. Through seven appearances, the 27-year-old Finn is 5-0, with a 2.21 GAA and a .934 save percentage. Prior to Wednesday's game, Vigneault was asked if he considered starting Raanta in consecutive games. His response was emphatic:

"No," Vigneault said. "Hank's the guy."

When you boil it down, the Rangers will sink, swim or seize Lord Stanley's Cup mainly because of Lundqvist's glove, stick and pads. Since he stole the No. 1 goalie role as a 23-year-old rookie from veteran Kevin Weekes in 2005, the net has belonged to Lundqvist. Steve Valiquette, Chad Johnson, Martin Biron, Cam Talbot and Raanta all joined the Blueshirts with the full understanding that their job was to spell Lundqvist. Nothing more.

There's going to be bumpy patches for goaltenders in nearly every season. Carrying the load the way Lundqvist does, the mental pressure and constant self-studying is an enormous undertaking. Heavy is the head that wears the crown and "King Henrik" has a never-ending duty is to strive and perfect his game.

"Right now, I am just focusing on myself and I know I got away from a couple things that I need to do good against this team," Lundqvist said after Wednesday's loss. "Obviously, awareness. They play a lot of side-to-side, and when you're not aware of players, the game becomes pretty tough and that's what happened, I think. In the first, my awareness was good. I don't think it was good enough in the second.

"You look at your own performance and see what you can do better," he continued. "If you can get a couple of saves there, it's a different game. I know that. I think everybody knows that. It's how you respond to that."

Responding is what Lundqvist's career is built on. Time and again, when a rough patch has swallowed him seemingly whole, the Swede has rebounded. And as has always been the case, his statistics have evened out over the course of a season. Since the 2009-10 season, Lundqvist has posted a .920 save percentage of better. There's little doubt that his current abnormal save percentage will rise to its usual level by the time the playoffs roll around in April.

To long-time teammates Marc Staal and Derek Stepan, there's no question that Lundqvist refocuses and rededicates himself whenever he is challenged.

"He's his hardest critic when things like that happen to him," Staal said. "He wants to respond in a big way. We're not passing blame around here. We weren't very good in front of him at all. We didn't really give him a chance to get comfortable. We need to be better in front of him. We gave up six goals as a team. We're going to respond and get back to work as a team tomorrow and move forward."

"I've been here with Hank long enough to know that he's a competitor," Stepan added. "This guy wants nothing more than to have success with this team. He'll bounce back. He always does."

Death, taxes and Lundqvist playing to his franchise goalie label. They are the three guarantees in life. Rangers fans should always be thankful for Lundqvist's unreal consistency and commitment to his craft.

Follow Sean on Twitter at @HartnettHockey