The 28-year-old put up his fifth 40-plus-save game of the 2017-18 campaign Wednesday in a 3-2 shootout win over the Nashville Predators. The outing - along with Andersen's overall strong play - has people talking about a potential Vezina Trophy nomination, including teammate Tyler Bozak.
"You watch the game versus Nashville and you can just show them that tape and that should put him in the conversation right there," Tyler Bozak said, according to TSN's Mark Masters.
Meanwhile, the soft-spoken Dane was asked last week about possibly winning a Vezina someday, and he was blunt in his response.
"Of course," Andersen said, according to The Athletic's Jonas Siegel. "We've seen stretches of what I can do and I think it's something that I obviously strive to be better and be in that top-goalie conversation."
Andersen sits ninth in the NHL in save percentage (.922), is tied for fourth in shutouts (four), while leading all goalies in shots against and saves.
Scheifele has been out since Dec. 27 after a collision with Edmonton Oilers defenseman Brandon Davidson. The Jets will certainly be thrilled to have arguably their top center back in the fold, but the fact is, they fared just fine while he was on the shelf.
The Jets have gone 11-2-3 in Scheifele's absence and sit just three points back of the Vegas Golden Knights for top spot in the Western Conference.
On Thursday afternoon, the New York Rangers brass announced their bold strategy to blow up their roster and rebuild for the future.
It's an interesting tactic, given it comes with the club sitting just three points out of the final Eastern Conference wild-card spot, and it proves how much the organization prides itself on not just making the playoffs but legitimately competing for a Stanley Cup.
General manager Jeff Gorton and president Glen Sather understand the club doesn't currently hold a candle to other strong teams in the East such as the Tampa Bay Lightning, Boston Bruins, Washington Capitals, or Pittsburgh Penguins. In fact, the Rangers currently rank 16th in goals for, 23rd in goals against, 18th on the power play, and 21st in shots per game - numbers that simply are not up to scratch, comparatively speaking.
So, for now, the smart decision is to sell players while they still have top value and attempt to turn around a club that has shown solid regular-season performances while not being able to make it out of the second round of the playoffs in the last two years.
So what could this pending rebuild look like?
Already in the system
First, it's worth noting the young pieces the club has developing. Though the likes of Jimmy Vesey and Brady Skjei, at 24 and 23 years old respectively, are still getting the hang of things at the NHL level, the team's two first-round picks from last season - Lias Andersson, plucked seventh overall, and Filip Chytil, snagged with the 21st selection - are both showing particular promise.
Andersson, who might be remembered for hurling his silver medal into the crowd at last month's world juniors, began the year playing men's hockey for Frolunda in Sweden, where he tallied 14 points in 22 games. He has since joined the Rangers' AHL affiliate in Hartford, where he's put up five points in six games.
Meanwhile, Chytil, excepting two games with the big club, has spent the season with the Wolf Pack, where he's been just shy of a point per game with eight goals and 22 points in 27 outings.
With two talented centers making big strides, the Rangers can head into the trade deadline knowing they already have two major building blocks at their disposal.
Trade deadline craziness
Here's where the fun begins.
With the Rangers seemingly the only club that has shown their hand ahead of the deadline, much of the noise regarding potential deals has involved their bigger-name players, as well as their quest to acquire first-round picks, which looks to be a priority.
Sure, that sounds like a common-sense strategy for any club looking to rebuild, but for the Rangers, it should be even more so as prior to last season - when the aforementioned Andersson andChytil were taken - the club had not made a selection in the first round since drafting Skjei 28th overall in 2012.
It appears to be just a matter of time until the club deals forward Rick Nash, who should garner a big haul. On Tuesday, Bob McKenzie reported on TSN's "Insider Trading" segment that the asking price for Nash was a first-round pick, a high-end prospect, and another lesser player, pick, or prospect.
TSN's Darren Dreger followed that up by noting Nash's agent had spoken to as many as 10 interested teams and that his top preferences were the Nashville Predators and the Dallas Stars.
Also believed to be on the trading block is Michael Grabner, for whom, according to McKenzie, the Rangers are seeking a first-round pick.
Then there is captain Ryan McDonagh, who could also be disposable. There's no reason to think he couldn't also fetch a first-round selection - although, unlike Grabner and Nash, he is not necessarily a rental player given he's signed through the 2018-19 season with a $4.7-million cap hit.
A couple other names also reportedly getting looks are Nick Holden, J.T. Miller, and Chris Kreider. On top of that, the Rangers also placed defenseman Brendan Smith - who they signed to a four-year, $17.4-million deal just last summer - on waivers Thursday.
All of this is to say there are plausibly no untouchables on the Rangers roster, meaning they are wide open for business.
Potential offseason moves could create quick turnover
What is also interesting about the Rangers' attempted rebuild is the thought this might not necessarily be a multi-year endeavor.
There is some belief that since both Nash and Grabner enjoy playing in New York, they might not be averse to re-signing with the Rangers again in the offseason after being dealt before the deadline, Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman noted during last Saturday "Headlines" segment.
On top of that, there is another potential name to consider: Ilya Kovalchuk. As you might recall, the former New Jersey Devils forward - who currently resides in the KHL and will participate for the Olympic Athletes of Russia at the PyeongChang Games - attempted an NHL return last season but never managed it, partly due to his rights being owned by the Devils.
However, next season he will be an unrestricted free agent, and it is believed he would prefer to play in New York if he is to return to the NHL, Friedman wrote in his "31 Thoughts" column.
One final way the team can rebuild on the fly is by electing not to deal arguably their most valuable commodity.
Given the goalie landscape, his long-term contract, and what he means to the franchise, the player with perhaps the best odds of surviving the overhaul is Henrik Lundqvist.
While he has had a shaky past five games, overall Lundqvist has been solid this season, rocking a record of 21-17-4 with a .917 save percentage and a 2.77 goals-against average. And with him manning the pipes, the Rangers can at least bank on the fact that no matter how much they strip things down, they have one largely dependable mainstay at their disposal.
There's no question the next few weeks and even months will be interesting in the Big Apple, and while the team might have warned its fans about a total revamp, it seems the Rangers will be better off for it in the not-so-distance future.
On Thursday, the New York Rangers took the unusual step of sending an open letter to their fans - from president Glen Sather and general manager Jeff Gorton - to inform them that “we consider you a part of the New York Rangers family,” and also that the team will be selling off anyone and everyone it can in the next two weeks leading up to the trade deadline.
Will other teams follow suit? There certainly are a few who could.
Let’s see what’s in those drafts folders.
__________
As a supporter of the bleu, blanc, et rouge, we know that you don’t understand why blue is the first color listed when we’re described that way, given that we’ve worn red jerseys for more than a century. We’ve just always been called that, and if there’s one thing we know about here, it’s clinging desperately to the past.
Well, that, and the whole needing to speak French thing. It’s why I have this job, and why anytime we want to make a coaching change, we only have like three viable candidates, but I digress.
s you know, we last won the Stanley Cup in 1993, our 24th time claiming hockey’s greatest prize. While we are extremely proud of that, we also recognize that almost a quarter century is a long time, and maybe we should stop living in the past. Haha, just kidding, we’ll never do that, but we do need to think about the future, and in the next couple of weeks, we will focus on ways to make our team a contender for that 25th Stanley Cup in the years to come.
Unfortunately, due to the actions of a front-office employee whose identity doesn't particularly matter, we have $18.3 million in cap space devoted to two guys in their 30s, on contracts that run through 2026. They’re not going anywhere, and while there are other moves we wouldn't mind making, it’s really hard to envision exactly who else we could trade that would both help us build a better team, and not result in a five-day shutdown of the entire metropolitan area for a public airing of grievances. Our promise to you is that we will listen to talk radio, see who you are trying to run out of town, and accommodate your wishes. Because, frankly, we're kind of terrified of you.
There are no fans like Canadiens fans. You call 911 for things that happen on the ice in hockey games, endangering the safety of your fellow citizens by hindering emergency services. You haven’t done that in a while, because we haven’t given you quite so much reason to care, but that’s really amazing. We appreciate that you've always been this, uh, spirited, going back to when our best player knocked a linesman unconscious, and you responded to his suspension by rioting in the streets.
We will say very little as we continue to try to figure out how to shape a contending team around the aging players whose decline phases for whom we've paid a dear price. Thank you for the blind support you show the Montreal Canadiens, and please remember that we've won 24 Stanley Cups. That’s the most of anyone!
Geoff Molson Owner
Marc Bergevin General Manager
___________
As a member of Blackhawk Nation ... oh, wow, that sounds extremely wrong. Seeing it written out like that, jeez, okay, yeah, we’re going to have to do something about that. Okay, anyway, that’s not what this letter is about.
As much as we tried over the summer to change things after our playoff exit, in which we scored three goals in four games and took it as a sign of organizational failure rather than an ill-timed slump for a 109-point team, we find ourselves in a position where it's time to face the fact that this season isn't working out for us.
We recognize that, for many of you, this three-year Stanley Cup drought is the longest you've experienced, although a good segment of that group has shifted allegiances to the Cubs. You know, for a city with a reputation for extreme devotion to its sports teams through thick and thin, many of you sure do seem to be bandwagon jumpers.
That’s okay, though, because it's our goal to improve as soon as possible. We may not win the Cup again for a while, because, well, have you seen the no-move clauses on the extremely long-term deals we’ve given out, before even considering our circumvention of the salary cap that’s so blatant, they’re going to have to rewrite the rules?
But we'll do the next best thing, which is to consistently appear in outdoor games because the NHL knows they can put us anywhere in the Midwest, and you guys will show up. To do that, we have to add some good, young talent, which we plan to acquire after we win the draft lottery this spring.
It’s hard to say goodbye to familiar faces, and thanks to those no-move clauses, there’s absolutely no chance we will. Instead, we'll spend the next two weeks, and really the rest of the season, evaluating various other methods that will allow us to assemble the next great Chicago team with nearly three consecutive decades of playoff appearances, maybe with a championship thrown in this time.
Thank you for your support, and for all the things you do to forget exactly how problematic our best player is, through all the inexplicable endorsement deals and placements as one of the faces of the sport. We don’t get it either. See you outside next year!
Rocky Wirtz Owner
Stan Bowman General Manager
__________
As part of the Golden Phalanx, we know you've come to expect excellence from our organization, and we always want to be sure that every message associated with the Vegas Golden Knights, no matter how short, reflects our commitment to be the class of the National Hockey League. Today, we want to express ourselves at some length to tell you exactly what our plans are moving forward.
As you know, we were the beneficiaries of the most friendly expansion draft rules in National Hockey League history, and cajoled a few teams into making side deals that ... well, you can ask those teams about how those things went, but we won’t name names ... let’s just say "Plorida Fanthers."
So, we fleeced some suckers, but even then, our expansion draft probably could've been better, and there was the whole Vadim Shipachyov thing, too. That was not our finest hour, and we feel we should be honest about that. Even so, it's hard to imagine improving upon beginning our existence with 27 wins in 38 games.
Since then, however, we've won only half our games. We know that's not the standard you've come to associate with Vegas Golden Knights hockey, and we want to offer our most sincere apologies to you, the greatest and most dedicated fans in the NHL.
Over the next two weeks, we'll be evaluating all our options to bring Las Vegas - sorry, Vegas - the Stanley Cup for which you've waited so long. Would it be possible for us to once again take one player from every other team, in exchange for nothing? We don’t know, but we intend to find out.
We recognize we may have to part with some longtime fan favorites, players who have been Golden Knights since before we even played a game as a National Hockey League franchise, four long months ago. But, let’s be honest, since every week these days feels like three years, that would be like trading players who have been with us for more than a decade.
Our goal, as it's been from the beginning, is to lull everyone into a false sense of security, let them think they’re just out here having a good time, then take them for all they’re worth. That’s the Vegas way, always has been, always will be. We intend to honor that, and to continue making a mockery of everything the rest of this silly league has held dear for 100 years. It’s why we gave ourselves a ridiculous team name that doesn’t even have our whole city name in it, and it’s why we hope to win the Stanley Cup in our very first year of existence.
Stone has missed nine games due to a lower-body ailment, while Brassard missed two games with an undisclosed injury.
The Sens are playing some of their best hockey of the season, going 4-1-0 in their last five games.
Though the Sens are well out of the playoff picture, Stone's return will undoubtedly help at both ends of the ice. He leads the team with 44 points in 44 games, but also leads with 47 takeaways - good for 10th in the NHL.
Brassard, on the other hand, has 13 goals and 16 assists in 51 games this season. Though he's under contract for next season, there's a possibility he'll be moved at the trade deadline.
It's easy for Maple Leafs supporters to take Frederik Andersen for granted. Understandable, even. In Toronto, it's often been better to not think about the goalies.
Andersen is none of those guys, but he is Toronto's undisputed MVP.
He proved it again Wednesday against the Nashville Predators, winning while making 40-plus saves for an NHL-leading fifth time and sending the Stanley Cup finalists away with only one point when they entirely deserved two.
The crowd at Air Canada Centre noticed, too, as chants of "Freddie! Freddie! Freddie!" bellowed throughout the third period, overtime, and shootout, as Andersen single-handedly got his team a point and then stole another.
The unassuming 28-year-old has done the impossible - he's provided the Maple Leafs with legitimate No. 1 goaltending, finally, and despite a heavy workload has, for the most part, somehow managed to fly under the radar.
Until Wednesday.
Andersen, two nights after being removed from Monday's game following a skate to the head, demanded that everyone take note. There's no longer any doubt: He's as important - if not more - as any of the kids the rebuilding-on-steroids Maple Leafs have been built around.
Leafs are on a hot streak again at 6-1-0. Even strength save percentage during run is .961, tops in NHL. Possession is 49.6%. #vezinandersen
Toronto, with deep playoff aspirations, will go as far as Andersen takes the team, despite Matthews' otherworldly talents.
Andersen was absolutely worth the price (a first- and second-round draft pick, and $25 million over five years) - paid to acquire and sign him.
The truth is, Andersen can already claim he's the best Maple Leafs goalie in modern times. He's been that good - and mostly everyone before him was that bad.
Numbers don't lie
Goaltending hasn't been the Maple Leafs' strong suit. Especially since the 2004-05 lockout. A lack of quality in the crease is arguably the main reason Toronto's hosted only six playoff games in 13 years.
Another fact: Andersen's the best Maple Leafs goalie to play at least 100 games for the club in the save-percentage era.
Goalie
SV%
GP
Andersen
.920
112
Jonathan Bernier
.915
151
James Reimer
.914
207
Ed Belfour
.912
170
Curtis Joseph
.910
270
Yep, the list of Toronto goalies with at least 100 caps and a .910 save percentage is only five deep. Told you, it's been bleak in the crease.
It gets better for Andersen. He's doing what he's doing while facing, on average, the most shots per game of any Maple Leafs goalie to play at least 100 games in the save-percentage era:
Goalie
Avg shots faced per game
GP
Andersen
32.17
112
Bernier
30.71
151
Allan Bester
30.70
205
Ken Wregget
30.64
200
Felix Potvin
30.17
369
Reimer
29.56
207
Belfour
28.09
170
Vesa Toskala
27.71
145
Jonas Gustavsson
27.22
107
Joseph
26.88
270
Andersen, it seems, thrives on the extra work.
Elite and cheap
It gets better, still.
Below are this season's top goalies who've played at least 30 games with at least a .913 save percentage (the 2016-17 league average), and their salary-cap hits:
Goalie
SV%
Cap hit
Age
Andrei Vasilevskiy
.929
$3.5M
23
Pekka Rinne
.926
$7M
35
Tuukka Rask
.925
$7M
30
Connor Hellebuyck
.924
$2.25M
24
Andersen
.922
$5M
28
Mike Smith
.922
$5666667
35
John Gibson
.922
$2.3M
24
Sergei Bobrovsky
.920
$7.425M
29
Jonathan Quick
.919
$5.8M
32
Ben Bishop
.919
$4916667
31
Henrik Lundqvist
.917
$8.5M
31
Devan Dubnyk
.917
$4333333
31
Braden Holtby
.915
$6.1M
28
Robin Lehner
.913
$4M
26
Cory Schneider
.913
$6M
31
Martin Jones*
.913
$3M
28
*Jones signed a six-year extension with a $5.75-million cap hit that kicks in next season.
The main takeaway: Among this season's league-leading goalies who are 28 or older, Andersen has the third-lowest cap hit at $5 million per season. Only Devan Dubnyk and Ben Bishop come cheaper, and they're three years older than Andersen, with Dubnyk turning 32 in May.
These details are crucial, especially when you remember Marner, Matthews, Nylander, and Kasperi Kapanen - all 21 and younger - will need long-term contract extensions.
The Maple Leafs are set in goal through 2021. That's their Stanley Cup window.
Feeling lucky
Trading assets for Andersen and committing to him for five years and $25 million two months after finally bottoming out - and only a few days before drafting Matthews - was a risk. A massive one. Especially considering "The Rebuild" was mercifully underway, and factoring in Toronto's history of bringing in goalies with not-too-big track records from California; Toskala's career essentially ended after his Maple Leafs stint, while Bernier, despite a phenomenal first season in Toronto, remains a backup, albeit a serviceable one.
The Athletic's James Mirtle put it best in June 2016, writing in The Globe and Mail:
... the Leafs see something exceptional in Andersen, something that warranted what looks like - from the outside - a risky bet on a goalie without a long track record.
In the past, those bets haven't turned out well in Toronto.
What's curious about it all is the Leafs had time on their side here. They didn't need to unearth a high-end goaltender right now because they don't need to be very competitive next season, not with how young the roster is and not with how far they have to climb from 30th place. They're not winning the Stanley Cup in 2017. They could have made some lower level wagers on younger, cheaper goaltenders and waited to find "the one" when the flurry of movement comes at the position sometime in the next 12 months.
Whatever the outcome, this is one trade and one contract that will go a long way toward defining Brendan Shanahan's time in charge.
It's that big of a move. It's a goalie.
No, the Maple Leafs weren't winning - and didn't win - the Stanley Cup in 2017. But who could have imagined, despite their clear flaws, they'd be in the conversation, on pace for more than 100 points, in 2018?
The gamble paid off. Andersen's the real deal. He's going to need some rest down the stretch, but for the first time since Belfour in 2004 - the last 100-point season for the blue and white - Toronto's set in the crease.
The Maple Leafs continue to get it right. One day, maybe, that'll get easier to believe. We're not there yet. But, like the Maple Leafs themselves, we're awfully close.
Smith was placed on waivers on Thursday after struggling this season, producing one goal and eight points in 44 games.
"Everybody that's followed him since he's been here, there's no doubt that he has played better for us in the past, and this year he got off to a slow start. We worked with him in a number of different ways, and he seemed to be having a hard time to find his game, so at the end of the day, this might be a little bit drastic here, but coaches and management felt that this was the way to go for our team right now," head coach Alain Vigneault said on Thursday, according to Newsday's Steve Zipay.
Smith getting assigned to the Rangers' affiliate means the club will now be able to bury $1.025 million of his $4.35-million cap charge in the minors, according to Zipay.
The 29-year-old inked a four-year, $17.4-million contract with the Rangers this past offseason after being acquired from the Detroit Red Wings last February.
The Ottawa Senators signed defenseman Ben Harpur to a two-year, one-way contract extension, the team announced Friday. He will earn $650,000 in 2018-19 and $800,000 in 2019-20, for an average annual value of $725,000.
Harpur has suited up in 20 games for the Sens this year, collecting one assist in nearly 15 minutes of ice time. In 16 games with Ottawa's AHL affiliate in Belleville, he's shown more offensive prowess, collecting two goals and seven assists in 16 games.
The 23-year-old's greatest asset is his size, as he stands 6-foot-6 and weighs 222 pounds. He's displayed a willingness to throw his weight around, averaging two hits per game this season. Harpur was a fourth-round pick by the Sens in 2013.
Edmundson has been placed on injured reserve and will be re-evaluated in six weeks. In a corresponding move, the club recalled defenseman Chris Butler from the AHL's San Antonio Rampage.
The 24-year-old Edmundson was a surprise performer in last year's playoffs, recording three goals and six points in 11 games, including the overtime winner against the Minnesota Wild in Game 1 of their first-round series.
Edmundson has already matched his career-high in points with 15 and set a career high with six goals, besting last season's marks in 13 fewer games.
