ST. PAUL, Minn. – All season long, Henrik Lundqvist has been the voice of reason in the Rangers' locker room, reminding everyone that the current Blueshirts are young, and rebuilding, and can’t be expected to challenge for a playoff spot, much less a Stanley Cup, anytime soon.
But it’s getting harder for Lundqvist, and for all the Rangers, to maintain that perspective as the 2018-19 season spirals down toward an ugly finish. For a while, they hung in there, losing one-goal games, and even gaining points with overtime or shootout losses against the likes of first-in-the-league Tampa Bay and defending Stanley Cup champion Washington.