Former Maple Leafs Goalie Frederik Andersen Overcoming Injury Issues and Thriving With Hurricanes in the Playoffs
A Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender for five seasons, Frederik Andersen looks like his old self again after chronic injury issues had limited his effectiveness as a starter.
Before the 2023 Stanley Cup Playoffs began, the Carolina Hurricanes had been enduring an issue with Frederik Andersen that his previous team — Toronto Maple Leafs — had seen too many times before.
He was hurt. And he was hurt often.
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But when healthy, Andersen has always been a capable starting goaltender. After recovering from an illness and a lower-body injury, he got a chance to take back the net in Game 6 in the Hurricanes' first-round victory against the New York Islanders.
It was a breakthrough moment.
Although experienced in the playoffs before, Andersen had lost eight straight games when attempting to clinch a playoff series before making 33 saves on 34 shots in a 2-1 overtime victory against New York.
When Andersen began his five-year stint in Toronto, he started strong. He posted back-to-back seasons of a .918 save percentage and consistently started in over 60 games per season. But a lack of playoff success and injuries became a theme for the Danish goaltender.
Things finally came to a head in Toronto when a knee injury limited Andersen to 24 starts in a 56-game pandemic-shortened 2021 season and he was passed by understudy Jack Campbell as the team's starter for the playoffs.
Despite the fall in numbers and injury concerns, that did little to deter Hurricanes GM Don Waddell from signing Andersen to a two-year, $9 million contract.
In his first year with Carolina, Andersen posted a .922 save percentage and along with Antti Raanta, won the William M. Jennings Trophy for allowing the fewest goals of any other team.
But Andersen's season ended abruptly on Apr. 16, 2022, when he fell awkwardly in a game against the Colorado Avalanche and suffered an MCL tear.
He expressed frustration following the end of the season that he could have been able to return had the team got past the New York Rangers in the second round.
"Yeah, I was getting real close," he told reporters. "Obviously adds to the bitterness and frustration about losing. Very disappointing not being able to play and being that close."
Injuries became a problem for Andersen again this season. The goaltender was limited to 34 games, but underperformance also became a theme. At times healthy, Andersen was relegated to backup status for Raanta or Russian goaltending sensation Pyotr Kochetkov.
Since getting the net back in Game 6 against the Islanders, Andersen is playing his best hockey with a postseason record of 5-1-0 and a .936 save percentage. The lone loss came on Thursday after making 57 saves on 60 shots in quadruple-overtime madness.
With the Hurricanes falling 1-0 in their best-of-seven series with the Florida Panthers, Andersen's recovery will be key. Perhaps Carolina opts for Raanta in Game 2 to give Andersen a rest. But Andersen is hot right now and the club can ill afford to go down 2-0 in their best-of-seven series.
Toronto seems to have the right mix of goaltenders for their future right now with Ilya Samsonov and Joseph Woll performing well. But Andersen's breakout playoff shows you why the Leafs were so high on him when they acquired him from the Anaheim Ducks in 2016 and signed him to a five-year, $25 million contract.
An unrestricted free agent at the end of the season, Andersen is bound to get some interest on the market. The big question that remains is how much are teams willing to commit to a player that is injury prone.
In a two-goalie system, Andersen has value and that will only increase with each game he helps Carolina excel.
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