Capitals' Henrik Lundqvist shares return to ice less than two months after open heart surgery
Less than two months after undergoing open heart surgery, Henrik Lundqvist is back on the ice.
The Washington Capitals goaltender, who announced in December he would miss the 2021 NHL season due to a heart condition that eventually required the surgery, posted on Instagram a clip of him stopping pucks in net on Tuesday.
"The best type of workday!" Lundqvist wrote with a smiling emoji.
The 38-year-old joined the Capitals last offseason after spending the first 15 years of his career with the New York Rangers, who bought out the final year of his contract after last season. Entering the season, his 459 victories ranked sixth all-time and are second among active goalies behind the Vegas Golden Knights' Marc-Andre Fleury.
During the announcement of his diagnosis Dec. 17, Lundqvist said "many weeks of tests and conversations with specialists around the country, it’s been determined that a heart condition will prevent me from taking the ice. Together, we have decided that the risk of playing before remedying my condition is too high, so I will spend the coming months figuring out the best course of action."
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But 11 days later Lundqvist revealed he would be undergoing open heart surgery, a procedure that took place in early January at the Cleveland Clinic and included an aortic valve replacement, aortic root and ascending aortic replacement.
On Feb. 3, four weeks after surgery, Lundqvist said on Twitter he felt "strong, both body and mind filled with positive energy" and that recovery was going well. Two weeks later, he even went out for a run, writing, "Today is a good day. The checkup with the doctor this morning reaffirmed what I’ve been feeling last few weeks, everything looking great."
I was not sure what to expect the first month after surgery. 4 weeks today and I feel strong, both body and mind filled with positive energy. Recovery is going well💪🏻😎 pic.twitter.com/62V7yGc958
— Henrik Lundqvist (@hlundqvist35) February 3, 2021
Today is a good day.
The checkup with the doctor this morning reaffirmed what I’ve been feeling last few weeks, everything looking great. It energized me so much I had to go out for a run (FYI, I’m not a runner)
Today is a good day! 😃👍🏻#Stepbystep pic.twitter.com/AXrZzMDbts— Henrik Lundqvist (@hlundqvist35) February 17, 2021
It's unclear whether Lundqvist will rejoin the Capitals — currently at 21 points (9-5-3) and second in the East behind the Boston Bruins — this season.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Henrik Lundqvist, Capitals goalie, returns to ice after heart surgery
