First it was at the rink to participate in a morning skate, then it was a full-team practice, and come Thursday, it’s going to be dressed and on the bench as the backup.
Henrik Lundqvist is getting closer to his natural spot as the starting goalie for the Rangers.
The franchise netminder will backup Cam Talbot against the red-hot Senators on Thursday night in Ottawa, the first time Lundqvist has dressed for a game since Feb. 2, after which the severity of the blood-vessel injury in the back of his neck was discovered and sidelined him for almost two months.
“It’ll be a good feeling to be back on the bench, and we’ll take it from there,” Lundqvist said after Wednesday’s practice in Westchester, his first full-scale activity since suffering the injury. “It’s just good to be on the locker room and get the game-feeling back, and we’ll see when I play.”
Coach Alain Vigneault said the decision of when Lundqvist will make his return as the starter should be made Friday, as the team travels from Ottawa to Boston for Saturday afternoon’s start of a weekend back-to-back, finishing Sunday at home against the Capitals. Lundqvist is supposed to work out on Thursday morning at Canadian Tire Center, while the rest of the team gets the morning off.
Lundqvist will come off long-term injured reserve on Thursday, and the team sent 20-year-old rookie MacKenzie Skapski back to AHL Hartford on Wednesday. As far as why Lundqvist is returning before he’s ready to start, Vigneault answered, “To get him back in the rhythm.
“Even though he’s not the starter, you expect your backup goaltender to get ready just in case you need him. We’ll go through that routine, he’ll go through the meetings, and it’ll be just another day of him working to get closer to get back in goal.”
Asked if he would be ready to play if called upon in Ottawa, Lundqvist could only crack a smile.
“I have to be ready,” he said. “I don’t expect myself to be perfect right away, but I’m going to battle and focus on the right things when I start playing, whenever that it is. It’s important too that you don’t overthink it, just go out and play. I had a good run before I got hurt, and hopefully I can get back to that feeling.”
Luckily for the Rangers, they still hold a six-point lead over the Islanders atop the Metropolitan Division, and are still in the midst of the race for the Presidents’ Trophy. They have gone 17-4-3 in the 24 games Lundqvist has missed, with Talbot getting 15 of those wins and 22 of those starts.
With 10 games remaining, there might be some concern over how the team would respond to the reintegration of Lundqvist, but Vigneault thinks the exact opposite is true.
“I would say our guys, with Hank coming back in goal, would want to play extremely well in front of him,” Vigneault said. “I’m sure they understand that he’s been out and hasn’t had the luxury of a lot of quality practice time with his teammates, so they’re going to push real hard to make that adaption period as smooth as it could possibly get.”
There also is no mistaking who the No. 1 goalie is.
“We still have a lot of hockey left to be played in a short amount of time, so I will use both goaltenders,” Vigneault said, “but there’s no doubt that Hank is going to be the guy.”
A strange subplot to this return is Lundqvist had six different masks designed and made as part of an auction for his namesake charity that he planned to wear in a game, also associated with his series on MSG, “Behind the Mask.” He wore one in Wednesday’s practice that had a checkered flag and the number “24” across the bottom for the episode of the show he did with NASCAR driver Jeff Gordon.
Lundqvist said he likes the feel of a new mask, and it won’t be a bother to try to get them all worn.
“And if not,” he said, “then we’ll figure something out.”
What has been figured out is that every day is one day closer to Lundqvist’s imminent return as the starter.
“It’s just a great feeling to be back,” Lundqvist said. “Obviously, walking around smiling, and usually I don’t smile that much around the rink, so it’s a good sign. I’m excited to start playing again, and I’m excited to be part of the group again.”