Why former Rangers coach told Henrik Lundqvist ‘You're not the f***ing King!'
Dubbed 'The King' early in his career, Lundqvist was the undisputed No. 1 goalie and face of the Rangers franchise for 15 seasons, beginning in 2005-06. He's the winningest goalie in Rangers history, and sixth all-time in the NHL, with 459 victories. His six Game 7 victories in the Stanley Cup Playoffs are tied with fellow Hall-of-Famers Martin Brodeur and Patrick Yor for most in League history.
But like any athlete, Lundqvist had some rough patches during his career. He wasn't perfect.
And Lundqvist revealed on the Spittin' Chiclets podcast that one difficult stretch prompted coach John Tortorella to shred the superstar goalie during a 1-on-1 meeting.
'I was playing good, but then had a few games when I was not very good. I was terrible, OK?,' Lundqvist told co-hosts Paul Bissonnette, Ryan Whitney and Keith Yandle. 'And I get a text one day, 'Hey Hank, Torts wants you in his office tomorrow morning at nine.' So, I get there and we have this long conversation. 'I don't know what you're doing. Where's your focus at? I saw you at The Garden watching a show the other night and you're not playing great,' and this and that. And there was a list of things he didn't like.
'He ends with, 'People treat you like you're The King around here. Guess what? You're not The f***ing King!' Then there was a lot of yelling, not from my side, mostly from Torts.'
Woah!
Remember, Tortorella coached the Rangers from 2009-13 during the rise of Lundqvist's powers, including his Vezina Trophy-winning season in 2011-12. So, that was a serious power play by Torts.
Though not thrilled with the coach's outburst, there was one thing more than anything which upset Lundqvist. It was the notion that attending a concert on a night off hurt Lundqvist's focus on doing his job properly.
'I didn't say much because I knew I didn't play great,' Lundqvist explained. 'I just said, 'You can never question my commitment to the game.' I know that in my heart always.'
Related:
Henrik Lundqvist appreciated 'that energy and fire' of former Rangers coach John Tortorella
What you need to know about Lundqvist is that — aside from the jab at his focus — he accepted what Tortorella said and didn't hold a grudge. All in all, the two had a very good relationship.
In fact, Lundqvist told the Spittin' Chiclets crew that Tortorella is the one coach who impacted him most of the four he played for in New York (also Tom Renney, Alain Vigneault, David Quinn).
'I resonated with him a lot, in terms of that energy and fire. That part I really enjoyed … that part of Torts is what really resonated with me. The fire,' Lundqvist explained. 'I love going out into a game and feeling like we're going to war. And if I had a coach that helped us as a group get there, even better.'
Tortorella certainly was that.
'That passion that he brought to every game, every practice, the speeches, I was fired up for every game.'
And when it came to confrontation with Tortorella — who seemed to thrive on such moments — Lundqvist pointed out one very important factor that helped make Torts such a successful coach.
'That's the good thing about him, you clear the air and move on. It's over.'
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