The King's reign at Madison Square Garden is over.
The New York Rangers bought out the final year of Henrik Lundqvist's contract on Wednesday.
Lundqvist thanked fans in a series of messages posted to Twitter.
"Representing this organization has been the biggest source of pride and joy in my life," he wrote. "Iβm so grateful for the opportunity, for the friendships and for all the great memories created wearing the red, white and blue. I will always cherish my time as a Ranger."
Lundqvist has been the Rangers' starting goaltender for the majority of his time with the team, dating back to his first year with the club in 2005-06. That year, he helped lead the franchise to its first playoff appearance since 1997.
His high point with the Rangers came in 2014, when he led the team back to the Stanley Cup Final for the first time in 20 years (he shut out the Canadiens 1-0 in the clinching game of the Eastern Conference Finals). However, the Rangers lost to the Kings in the Stanley Cup Final in five games, and the team never got back.
Lundqvist won a Vezina Trophy, awarded to the NHL's best goaltender, in 2012, and was a five-time All-Star. His 459 career wins are the most by a Ranger goaltender, as well as by an NHL goaltender born outside of Canada.
But he became expendable for the Rangers after two younger goaltenders - Igor Shesterkin and Alexandar Georgiev - emerged as starting-caliber options in the past season. Lundqvist found himself sitting out games completely at times, and with him commanding a significantly higher salary than either Shesterkin or Georgiev, the Rangers decided to move on.
Lundqvist had one year remaining on a 7-year, $59.5 million contract he signed after the 2014 season. The Rangers will pay out the remainder of his contract over the next two seasons.