Lundqvist: It was tough knowing teammates could be traded at deadline

The last few weeks have not been easy for the New York Rangers.

On Feb. 8. general manager Jeff Gorton and president Glen Sather penned a letter to fans regarding the retooling of the team's roster, with the reality being that fan favorites would be traded for picks and prospects.

The team stuck to its word, dealing captain Ryan McDonagh, Rick Nash, J.T. Miller, Michael Grabner, and Nick Holden ahead of the deadline. For goaltender Henrik Lundqvist, all that movement hit him hard on Tuesday.

"I woke up today and it's almost like you can't believe it," Lundqvist said on Tuesday, according to NHL.com's Kevin Woodley. "It's been so many years playing together, going through so many things, and it's just a different team."

Knowing that teammates could be traded anytime between when the club released its statement and the deadline was certainly taxing on the players.

"It's been a really tough stretch here for a few weeks knowing this might happen," said Lundqvist. "A big part of our team, good friends, they are gone. … I've never experienced anything like this. It was new, but I totally understand where we are and what needs to be done."

On the flip side, the Rangers were able to kick-start their rebuild with the moves they made, acquiring two first-round picks, a conditional first, a second, a third, a seventh, Vladislav Namestnikov, and Ryan Spooner, along with some prospects and younger players, setting themselves up nicely to quickly turn things around.