Craig Anderson, 41 years old, wins remarkable 53-save victory vs. his former team
Although it may seem unbelievable to some, goalie Craig Anderson of the Buffalo Sabres is still in the NHL this season. However, his former team took notice of him Friday night. Anderson, 41, was the oldest goalie to record 50 saves in NHL history, which helped the Sabres win a 3-1 victory over the Florida Panthers.
The Sabres will be closing Friday after a surprisingly strong goalie performance. in an equally surprising position: the East’s second wild card.
Craig Anderson’s goalie history against an ex-team
Anderson — set to turn 42 on May 21 — made an impressive 53 saves, only allowing a single goal by Carter Verhaeghe.
The Sabres shared another stat of interest: Anderson is the first goalie over 41 to have at least 40 saves in multiple games while allowing only one goal.
On Dec. 13Anderson pitched a 40-save shutout of the Los Angeles Kings.
As much as a team would prefer to shelter a goalie of Anderson’s age (or any goalie, really), he’s been able to keep Buffalo in many back-and-forth contests. Friday’s 53-save clinic pushed Anderson to a save percentage that sparkles for netminders of any age: .920. Interestingly, Anderson’s record (8-7-2) isn’t as impressive as that of Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen (14-8-2), even though the younger goalie sports a shaky .894 save percentage.
Anderson does some of his best work in situations where others consider him to be out of reach.
Anderson only played four games in 2020-21. Anderson struggled with his final three seasons as a Senator, posting a save rate of.903 between 2017-18 and 2019-20.
His first season with Buffalo was last season and only reinforced the notion that Anderson might be leaving the NHL. The league was surprised by Anderson and Sabres.
Florida’s Sabres are very much in the playoff picture. Another painful setback
Anderson started his career with Chicago Blackhawks and was drafted twice. He found his feet with Panthers as an ingenious backup. Anderson had a remarkable.928 save rate in 53 games, 2006-07 through 2008-09. Anderson must have felt elated to be able to achieve such an impressive performance against his former team. in a place where he still owns a home.
Anderson and Sabres are becoming more realistic with every unexpected performance.
The Red Wings and Sabres have 64 points each in 57 games, while the Sabres and Red Wings have 64. However, Buffalo has tiebreaker advantages, so they are the second East wildcard. The Panthers have 64 points in 61 games, which is a stark reminder of how devastating this loss is. The Islanders, the top East wild card team, lost in regulation Friday (67 points in the 62 GP), while the Penguins (63 in the 57 GP GP), and Capitals (62) are in slumps.
The Sabres aren’t all the way there to a Cinderella run yet, but nights like these make you wonder if Anderson, along with his young Sabres teammates, has some magic left.