Freddie Andersen
The rumor is that the Toronto Maple Leafs are circling back to their former starting goalie Freddie Andersen to see if there is a reunion to be had. Jack Campbell took the starting job last season, and Andersen was watching as the Maple Leafs were knocked out of the first round AGAIN. While there’s a conversation between his agent and the Leafs, and the reunion seems unlikely. That agent is former New Jersey Devils star, Claude Lemieux.
Usually, those connections don’t matter, but it could mean something for the Devils who are always looking for a leg up. Andersen is only 31 years old, so he still has a lot left in the tank. He was excelling at times in Toronto, but that media market was not very fair to him. He took a lot more blame than he deserved. He’s probably looking to go to a place that’s a little less stressful.
Andersen is coming off two straight seasons where he wasn’t as good as he was earlier in his career. For the first time in his career, Andersen had a full season under a .900 save percentage. Andersen was once one of the best in the league. Now, he’s fighting to figure out where he fits.
The Devils could definitely get Andersen to sign on for two or three years and let a player like Nico Daws or Akira Schmid grow in the AHL before they are ready to take the backup or starting job in a few years.