Stanley Cup Heroes, 2026 Special: Experience Pays Off
Frederik Andersen is one of the most accomplished playoff goaltenders of his generation. That statement may sound extreme at first, but I will explain.
In all of NHL history, there are just 22 goaltenders who have played 100 playoff games in their career. Frederik Andersen is one of those goaltenders. If we look at playoff wins, Andersen's 59 ranks 19th all-time. That number is ahead of some goalies you probably associate as playoff legends, like Jonathan Quick (49), Pekka Rinne (45), and Carey Price (43). Considering Andersen didn't play an NHL game until he was 24 and spent 5 years with a handicap known as "playing on the Leafs", these numbers are very impressive. However, they were all formed thanks to Frederik Andersen's 2026 playoff run.
Heading into the 2026 playoffs, the Hurricanes weren't respected. Looking at Sportsnet's predictions, 10/20 reporters predicted the Ottawa Senators to beat Carolina in round 1. There were a couple of reasons for that. The biggest one is that people had lost faith in the Hurricanes. They made the playoffs each of the 7 previous years, only to fall short. But the other reason came down to Carolina's goaltending.
For a team that finished with the 2nd most points, their goaltending was poor. Their team save percentage (.880) ranked 26th, only slightly above teams with notoriously bad goaltending like the Oilers and Ducks. Frederik Andersen was perhaps the biggest culprit, finishing with the 4th-lowest save percentage in the entire NHL (among qualified goaltenders).
Even if you thought the "cakewalk" narrative was BS, it was hard to ignore a fatal flaw that has destroyed so many contenders before them. Yet the Hurricanes immediately trusted Andersen between the pipes in round 1.
Freddy rewarded that faith by dominating the Senators in a sweep. He put up a fantastic .955 save percentage in 4 games, including a shutout in game 1, which gave him more shutouts in the playoffs than he had in the regular season. This performance was very much needed because the goalie on the other side, Linus Ullmark, was also brilliant. Ironically, he was another goalie who had been awful in the regular season, only to show up in the playoffs. Andersen ultimately won the duel, and if not for him, the Hurricanes may have stumbled in round 1.
The Philadelphia Flyers met Carolina in round 2, and they had a goaltender who was performing great in the playoffs while also being great in the regular season. Dan Vladar was a major reason why the Flyers upset the favoured Penguins in round 1; Andersen would have to carry over his strong round 1 form if the Hurricanes were going to beat the Flyers. Andersen did exactly that when he got another game 1 shutout. The Hurricanes swept the Flyers, and Andersen put up a .945 save percentage. Freddy had proven everyone wrong so far, but the conference finals presented a real challenge.
The Montreal Canadiens were the youngest team in the NHL, yet were closing out playoff series like veterans. They had beaten the Lightning and Sabres in 7 each, and many liked both those teams more than Carolina. Not to mention the Habs had their own special goaltender in Jakub Dobes, who had emerged as a young stud. He came up clutch in both series against Tampa and Buffalo, which reminded people of a certain other rookie Habs goalie who came up clutch for Montreal: Patrick Roy. Considering this was the 40th anniversary of that 1986 run, the narratives wrote themselves.
When Montreal won game 1 6-2 and left Freddy with a gross .762 save percentage, the Hurricanes and Andersen narratives ramped back up. They're frauds. Andersen is overrated. They're only here because they had an easy path. The real conference final was Montreal-Buffalo. You name it, someone probably said it.
Although the numbers weren't pretty the rest of the way, Frederik Andersen recovered and eventually thrived. This included a game 4 shutout that firmly turned the tide in Carolina's favour and allowed them to win in 5, making it to the Cup Final.
In the Cup Final, Andersen entered as one of the favourites for the Conn Smythe Trophy only to run out of gas. He struggled mightily and was eventually pulled for Bussi, who finished the job and won the Final in 6 games. That move likely killed any chance Freddy had of winning playoff MVP.
His playoff numbers don't do him justice. A .910 save percentage for the entire playoff run looks pretty good, but a .931 in the first 3 rounds shows he was essential to their success. If you think that is solely because of the team in front of him, you're wrong. His 11.5 goals saved above expected were 2nd best through 3 rounds, only behind Dobes. Even with -5.54 in his last 3 games, he finished 4th.
The Carolina Hurricanes beat all their narratives in the 2026 playoffs. Rod the Bod proved he could be a winning coach. The team proved their talent was enough to scare teams in the playoffs. And Frederik Andersen finally proved he could be a Stanley Cup hero.
