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Maple Leafs Made a Mistake Letting Frederik Andersen Go

Originally posted on The Hockey Writers
By Rupert McDonald | Last updated 5/9/24

There are too many reasons to count as to why the Toronto Maple Leafs continue to frustrate their fan base year after year. Some seasons the main focus has been coaching, others goaltending, and almost always, the core four of Auston Matthews, John Tavares, William Nylander, and Mitch Marner.

The main target this year is Marner, who had just two points in their first-round series loss to the Boston Bruins. The 27-year-old struggled to make an impact, registering just a goal and two points in the seven-game series. As a result, there has been plenty of speculation that he could be moved this summer, though he has control over his future thanks to a no-move clause in his contract.

Though it hasn’t been as scrutinized, goaltending has also been blamed for this year’s exit. Ilya Samsonov wasn’t horrible, but didn’t play exceptional, either, registering a 3.01 goals against average (GAA) along with a .896 save percentage (SV%). Joseph Woll, who started Games 5 and 6, proved that the Maple Leafs were capable of winning with good goaltending.

The 25-year-old won both of his outings, kicking aside 54 of the 56 shots he faced. Unfortunately, he was hurt in the dying seconds of Game 6, which meant the Maple Leafs had to turn back to Samsonov for Game 7. Overall, he played well, but wasn’t good enough to get the win. Set to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, it is highly unlikely he is back, and calls into question why the Maple Leafs didn’t keep a more reliable starter they had on their team four seasons ago in Frederik Andersen.

Andersen a Major Upgrade From Current Situation

Andersen was acquired by the Leafs ahead of the 2016-17 season in a trade with the Anaheim Ducks. He wound up being their starter for the next four seasons, before ultimately being supplanted by Jack Campbell during the 2020-21 campaign.

Given his struggles both in the crease and with health in that 2020-21 season, the Leafs chose to let Andersen walk that offseason, believing that Campbell was the better option. For a brief period of time, that appeared to be the right call, as Campbell came out of the gates hot to start the 2021-22 campaign and was even selected to play in the All-Star Game.

Campbell, however, struggled immensely in the second half of 2021-22, and was part of the reason as to why the Maple Leafs wound up being upset in the first round of the playoffs by the Montreal Canadiens. His collapse in the second half of the season made management very hesitant on bringing him back, and he instead wound up signing a big deal with the Edmonton Oilers.

With Campbell now out the door, the Maple Leafs decided to try their luck with Matt Murray and Samsonov. To little surprise, Murray was unable to stay healthy, and wasn’t very good when he was on the ice. Samsonov, however, impressed, posting a 2.33 GAA and a .919 SV% in 42 appearances.

Thanks to the strong play, the Maple Leafs chose to give Samsonov a one-year extension, and had him penned in as their starter this past season. However, as mentioned above, that failed entirely, and will force now general manager (GM) Brad Treliving to find another option to pair with Woll for 2024-25. Looking back now, it’s safe to say that former GM Kyle Dubas’ decision to let Andersen walk was a major mistake.

Andersen Playing Great Hockey for Hurricanes

While Andersen has never been considered an elite goalie, he is in the next-highest tier and has been for quite some time. It isn’t as if he took a huge deal when leaving the Maple Leafs, instead signing a very reasonable two-year, $9 million deal with the Carolina Hurricanes. He has since signed another two-year extension with the ‘Canes for $6.8 million.

Though he has continued to have some troubles staying healthy and dealt with a blood-clotting issue, Andersen has provided the Hurricanes with great goaltending when he’s been able to go. In the 102 games he has played for them, he has a rock-solid 2.22 GAA and a .918 SV%. Those numbers are not only better, but are far more consistent than the Leafs have gotten from anybody since.

While Dubas was often looked at as a sage GM during his time in Toronto, it is becoming clearer as time goes on that he made several mistakes. It may not be at the very top of the list, but choosing to let Andersen walk was certainly one of them. It’s impossible to say whether or not they would have won a Stanley Cup had they chose to keep him around, but they would certainly have had more reliable goaltending, which wouldn’t have hurt for the playoffs. The decision to walk away from him was undoubtedly a mistake.

This article first appeared on The Hockey Writers and was syndicated with permission.

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