As the Florida Panthers lifted the Stanley Cup after winning Game 6 of the 2025 Stanley Cup Fina l, former New York Rangers goaltender Henrik Lundqvist sat alongside his NHL on TNT colleagues, taking in the moment.
Lundqvist never had the chance to celebrate winning a Stanley Cup championship over 15 seasons with the Rangers , though the Hockey Hall of Famer did help Sweden win the gold medal at the 2006 Torino Olympics. The closest he got to winning it all in the NHL was in 2014, when the Rangers lost to the Los Angeles Kings in the Stanley Cup Final in five games, three of which were decided in overtime.
But the personal bonds Lundqvist forged with teammates during his Rangers tenure came to mind and made "The King" somewhat wistful as he watched the Panthers celebrate their latest championship together.
"I haven't played in five years," Lundqvist said. "Every year that goes by, you get more separation from the game, but when I listen to them talk about their group, the locker room, it makes me miss the game so much."
Like most athletes, it was never just about the competition, holding the spotlight, or even winning championships for Lundqvist. What he misses most now is the brotherhood formed inside the locker room.
"There's no better feeling than to be on a team where you feel like you're playing for each other," he added. "It's not enough to just have great players, you need that feeling you're playing for each other. I just get goosebumps when I hear them talk."
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As if on cue, the Panthers displayed their tight bond when it was time to pass the Stanley Cup after it was presented to captain Aleksander Barkov by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman. Instead of Matthew Tkachuk , Sam Bennett or any one of a number of Panthers stars that could've been deservedly first in line, Barkov handed it to veteran defenseman Nate Schmidt , a first-time Cup winner.
From there, Schmidt handed it to top-four defenseman Seth Jones , another first-timer acquired ahead of the trade deadline. He, in turn, handed it to veteran forward Tomas Nosek . You guessed it, another first-time NHL champion.
In all, 10 first-timers skated with the Stanley Cup, including five who weren't even in the lineup for the decisive Game 6, before third-string goalie Evan Cormier placed it in the hands of Sergei Bobrovsky .
"The first guys who touched the Stanley Cup were the guys that hadn't won it before," coach Paul Maurice explained postgame. "Some of those players never played in a [postseason] game, but they're all part of it. That's the Barkov effect in our room. He loves everybody. Everybody's a part of it."
Lundqvist broke it down even further for the TNT audience as the Cup made its rounds on the ice at Amerant Bank Arena.
"That's why we start playing the game as kids, too," Lundqvist said. "Yeah, we love the competition. But we love doing it together in a great group. I just absolutely love it. I might want to go skate tomorrow."
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