GREENBURGH, N.Y. — Henrik Lundqvist had his game-day face on at practice.
He still smiled and answered all the questions thrown at him Monday about the Los Angeles Kings — the New
York Rangers’ long-awaited opponent in the Stanley Cup finals.
If there wasn’t already enough pressure on Lundqvist to lead his team to its first championship since
1994, he is now part of the hype machine heading into Game 1 on Wednesday.
Headlines are screaming: “King Henrik vs. the Kings.”
The Rangers were waiting since Thursday to find out their next opponent. They took two days off before
returning to practice on Sunday. Most of the players said they watched at least part of Los Angeles’
third road Game 7 win of this playoff year that night.
So practice on Monday had a bit more focus for the Rangers as they knew exactly who was standing in their
way next.