At the start of NHL free agency, the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Carolina Hurricanes swapped goaltenders.
The Toronto Maple Leafs and Carolina Hurricanes signed the other’s unrestricted free agent. It marked the end of the Frederik Andersen era and the beginning of Petr Mrazek’s time with the club. While a comparison of the two stoppers will give insight into who the teams have between the pipes, it was a recent interview that shed light on Andersen’s perspective on the developments.
J.D. Bunkis of Sportsnet interviewed the Maple Leafs former starting goalie on Thursday. The perspective shared in the conversation, suggests that Andersen may be unhappy with the way things ended between him and the Buds.
Andersen, who said that he’s currently feeling good and healthy, has begun skating in preparation for next season with the Canes. That’s good news because as he explained, he played through a knee injury last year when Jack Campbell was hurt. “It wasn’t the best idea long term, looking back,” Andersen shared.
Toronto Maple Leafs and Freddie Andersen
For someone who gave as much as he did to the team, it’s not surprising that he wasn’t overly pleased with not having the team repay him for his sacrifice. He wasn’t allowed to take to the net in the playoffs, which is something that didn’t sit well. Andersen said, “not getting to play in the playoffs this year was obviously not fun.”
The real surprise from Bunkis’s interview is the information that Andersen gave about his negotiations with the Toronto Maple Leafs before he signed with Carolina for two years at a $4.5 million AAV. When Bunkis asked about choosing the Hurricanes, Andersen explained, “Toronto never really became that serious to offering anything so that was where I was just really grateful and happy that I was able to go to a good team like Carolina.”
When Bunkis pressed for more information on the negotiations, Andersen pushed back. He said, “I wasn’t the one talking too much to the team. That’s what agents do.” It’s not clear exactly what GM Kyle Dubas offered the goaltender and his camp to return to Toronto but it appears that from Andersen’s perspective, it was not even in the ballpark to get a deal done.
Perhaps the Maple Leafs were ready to move forward and take the team in a new direction with the tandem of Campbell and Mrazek. If that’s the case, it may not have been easy for Andersen, who gave so much to the Leafs, to feel as though the level of respect wasn’t reciprocated.
Andersen was a workhorse for the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was and is an excellent goaltender and hopefully, he is able to be very successful with Carolina.