Craig Anderson Concludes 20-Year Career With One Final Victory Over Senators
Walking away on your own terms is a luxury not often afforded to professional athletes. But that is precisely what Buffalo Sabres goaltender Craig Anderson did Thursday night at the KeyBank Center.
Nothing about his future was confirmed before the game, though everyone within the organization knew it was the end of the road for Anderson. So it was fitting he took the ice one last time against one of his former teams, the Ottawa Senators.
The 41-year-old, who played 10 seasons in Ottawa from 2011-20, arrived at the arena and began preparing to enjoy his final NHL game – the 709th of his career. He spent 435 of those games with the Senators, the team he’d stand opposite of in his swan song.
To say receiving this start meant a lot to Anderson likely would’ve been an understatement, and rightly so. Maintaining his composure throughout the night was probably his toughest challenge.
A special tear-jerking moment kicked off the festivities pre-game as Anderson’s sons, Jake and Levi, announced the team’s starting lineup in the dressing room. And they did so while wearing the team’s throwback jerseys with their dad’s No. 41 on the back.
Anderson, playing with a heavy heart, led the Sabres onto the ice one final time and went through his usual pre-game routine. He took a few laps, stretched himself out and defended some warm-up shots prior to puck drop, ensuring he was ready one final time.
Following a scoreless opening frame, Henri Jokiharju and Victor Olofsson provided Buffalo with a 2-0 lead early in the second period, scoring just 2:03 apart. But then Ottawa’s skaters responded with three unanswered goals, carrying a 3-2 advantage into the third.
If the Sabres were to mount a comeback, they needed Anderson to hold down the fort the rest of the way, which he did en route to a 30-save performance. That bought time for Tage Thompson’s game-tying score – a power-play marker for his 47th goal of the season.
With both teams knotted at three goals apiece after 60 minutes, the contest headed to overtime, which lasted just 1:18 as Casey Mittelstadt potted the game-winner. But instead of celebrating Mittelstadt’s goal, everyone headed down the ice to congratulate Anderson on his final victory.
The Sabres weren’t alone in that fashion, either, as Senators skaters waited on the ice to shake hands with Anderson before departing – a classy gesture from a franchise he spent almost a decade with.
Once the on-ice celebrations concluded, Anderson skated over to the Zamboni entrance, where his wife, Nicholle and their two sons awaited. They embraced each other with teary-eyed hugs, savouring every last moment.
The crowd, meanwhile, cheered the veteran netminder every step of the way, chanting, “Andy! Andy! Andy!” before he left the ice one last time.
Anderson confirmed everyone’s suspicions post-game, saying, “This is it,” announcing his retirement after 20 NHL seasons. He finishes with a 2.86 goals-against average, .912 save percentage, 43 shutouts and 621 wins across 709 career games.
The Park Ridge, Illinois, native won the Bill Masterton Trophy in 2017, a season he left midway through to help his wife successfully battle cancer.
Originally drafted by the Calgary Flames in the 1999 NHL Entry Draft, Anderson re-entered the draft in 2001 after failing to sign a contract with the team. There, he was eventually taken 73rd overall by Chicago with whom he would spend the first 6 years of his professional career.
His final year in Chicago proved a tumultuous one as he was placed, and claimed on waivers three separate times. On January 19th he was claimed off waivers by the Boston Bruins. Twelve days later, the St. Louis Blues then claimed him from Boston, only to be subsequently reclaimed by Chicago 4 days later.
Ultimately his season would end with a trade to Florida in exchange for a 6th round pick in the 2008 NHL Entry Draft.
Anderson would spend 3 years with the Panthers organization before becoming a free agent. After inking a 2 year deal with the Avalanche, the well travelled netminder would earn a starting role after beating out incumbent goaltender Peter Budaj for the job in training camp.
Colorado would provide him with his first taste of playoff action, but his stint in Denver wouldn’t last long. On February 18th, 2011, Anderson was traded to Ottawa in exchange for Brian Elliott.
There he would spend the better part of 10 NHL seasons, setting numerous club records along the way, including lowest GAA in a season (1.69) and best single season save percentage (.941).
Despite being a fan favourite, Ottawa opted to move on from the veteran netminder in 2020 as part of their ongoing rebuild.
“I think I left it all out there. At the end of the day, I did everything I possibly could to make sure that I was competitive and gave the team a chance to win,” Anderson said. “You’ve got to be honest with yourself. And that’s just the way this game goes, Father Time always catches up to you.”
After playing just four games with the Washington Capitals in 2020-21, Anderson contemplated retirement and nearly hung up his skates for good back then. But then the Sabres came calling, who he ultimately signed with ahead of the 2021-22 campaign.
The 6-foot-2 netminder quickly became an instant favourite amongst Sabres players as he became an off-ice leader over the last two seasons, adding to the emotion of Thursday’s goodbye.
“It was emotional. Yeah, I mean, you don’t get to write your own ending very often, especially in this sport,” Sabres captain Kyle Okposo said. “We wanted that one for him. Just an incredible scene.”
Anderson’s final season saw him appear in 26 games, posting a 3.06 GAA, .908 save percentage and an 11-11-2 record. He earned a 40-save shutout versus the Los Angeles Kings on Dec. 13, 2022.
Buffalo would go on to wrap up their season in Columbus against the Blue Jackets, however the hockey gods likely couldn’t have scripted a better finish to Anderson’s career.
-Thomas Hall
Twitter: @ThomasHall85
Photo: Jenn G. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.