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In his 16-year NHL career, Keith Yandle was known for being one of the better puck-moving defenseman of his day, and one of the most durable players in the League. In fact, the former New York Rangers blueliner holds the second-longest string of consecutive games played in NHL history, 989, just behind Phil Kessel\u2019s record of 1,064 straight.<\/p>\n
Yandle was also one of the friendliest and funniest players in the League. He was known as much for his quips and big smile as he was for being a three-time NHL All-Star and his five 50+-point seasons.<\/p>\n
But it\u2019s that big personality which almost landed Yandle in hot water after the Rangers acquired him in a trade with the Arizona Coyotes during the 2014-15 season. You see, around the Rangers in those days, there was an unwritten rule that no one bothered the uber-intense Henrik Lundqvist before a game. <\/p>\n
No one, that is, except for the newcomer Yandle.<\/p>\n
\u201cI remember one of my first times in that area where the guys would eat at MSG, like a little lounge area, and Hank would come in wearing a three-piece suit looking like a dime with his headphones on and I was like, \u2018Hey, what\u2019s up Hank?!\u2019 and give him a high-five,\u201d Yandle recounted on a recent Spittin\u2019 Chiclets podcast<\/a> he co-hosts with Paul Bissonnette and Ryan Whitney. \u201cAnd everyone is like \u2018You do not talk to him on game day.\u201d And I\u2019m like, \u2018Yeah, we do. We talk to him.’\u201d<\/p>\n The story surely resonated with Lundqvist, the podcast guest sitting across the couch when Yandle told the tale. Lundqvist laughed at the memory, though neither he nor Yandle shed any light on whether Yandle approached The King like that again through their next season as teammates.<\/p>\n Lundqvist did, however, explain his game-day intensity.<\/p>\n \u201cI had days I don\u2019t think I spoke. I was quiet on game days,\u201d he said. \u201cI think I got better over the years but I was so in my head just thinking about the game and just kind of dealing with the pressure.\u201d<\/p>\n Lundqvist grew even more reflective.<\/p>\n \u201cI put a lot of pressure on myself and maybe sometimes a little too much. And that made me, maybe, a little intense at times.\u201d<\/p>\n Related: Rangers legend \u2018never really had a chance to say goodbye\u2019 until Chris Drury phone call changed everything<\/a><\/p>\n Henrik Lundqvist, Keith Yandle recall failed Cup run with Rangers in 2015<\/p>\n Lundqvist had a quip of his own when asked on the podcast what kind of teammate Yandle was.<\/p>\n \u201cGreat guy in the locker room. Maybe not the best shot blocker \u2026 but he wouldn\u2019t screen me!\u201d Lundqvist said, cracking up the co-hosts, including Yandle.<\/p>\n \u201cBut I was pretty intense, so it always great to have teammates that kind of made you smile every day. I loved that.\u201d<\/p>\n Yandle helped the Rangers win the Presidents\u2019 Trophy in 2014-15. He also had seven points (two goals, five assists) in the 2015 Eastern Conference Final, when the Rangers lost in seven games to the Tampa Bay Lightning. Overall, Yandle had 11 points (two goals, nine assists) in 19 postseason games that spring.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n Lundqvist and Yandle discussed how decimated the Rangers lineup was when they dropped Game 7 against the Lightning at Madison Square Garden.<\/p>\n \u201cI have to say, that I thought \u201915 was going to be our year after losing the year before (in the Stanley Cup Final to the Los Angeles Kings) and 2015 we had a great team,\u201d Lundqvist explained. \u201cBut then we came up short against Tampa in Game 7.\u201d<\/p>\n Then Yandle piped up.<\/p>\n \u201c[Dan] Girardi had a broken foot. I had a separated shoulder. [Kevin] Klein had just broken his arm,\u201d Yandle recalled, forgetting to mention how captain Ryan McDonagh also played with a broken foot.<\/p>\n That led to the former teammates discussing the Rangers other major injury that spring. Mats Zuccarello took a slap shot to the head in the first round against the Pittsburgh Penguins and didn\u2019t play the rest of the playoffs with a frightening injury.<\/p>\n \u201cHe couldn\u2019t speak. He speaks like four languages and he couldn\u2019t speak anything,\u201d Yandle offered.<\/p>\n \u201cHe skated off the ice and he couldn\u2019t say one word,\u201d added Lundqvist. \u201cIt hit a part of the brain that controls your speech. \u2026 He came back about a week or so later and came to dinner and he was struggling speaking. Everyone was like \u2018Oh my God.’\u201d<\/p>\n That 2015 run was pretty much the last go-round for that Rangers core, which had reached the conference final three times in four years. Yandle was traded to the Florida Panthers after the 2015-16 season and shortly thereafter the rebuild was on in New York. <\/p>\n Lundqvist had his contract bought out after the 2019-20 season and heart surgery soon followed, ending his career.<\/p>\n But, as this interview pointed out, the good memories trumped the bad or bittersweet ones. And the special friendships carry on.<\/p>\n \t\t \t\tJim Cerny is Executive Editor at Forever Blueshirts and Managing Editor at Sportsnaut, with more than 30 years of … More about Jim Cerny<\/a><\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tMentioned in this article: Henrik Lundqvist<\/a> Rangers History<\/a> <\/p>\n![\"NHL:](\"https:\/\/www.foreverblueshirts.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/07\/NHL-Stanley-Cup-Playoffs-New-York-Rangers-at-Pittsburgh-Penguins-8531388-788x552.jpg\")
Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<\/p>\n