from Dave Feschuk of the Toronto Star,
Still, no matter how much Andersen believes in his greatness, it’s fair enough to wonder how many NHL teams will be willing to bet he’s correct.
Andersen, after all, is coming off the worst season of his NHL career by a lot of measures. In a year ravaged by injury and inconsistency — and he’d no doubt like the world to believe the health concerns led to the slump — he put up his worst save percentage (.895) and worst goals-against average (2.96). After four seasons of largely stellar regular-season work as the hardest-working puck-stopper in the league, his wobbly fifth season proved undeniably costly.
Now facing impending free agency without the benefit of any recent success, he’s asking would-be suitors to cast their memory back to his better days while ignoring the not-so-good stuff that’s more top of mind. He has appeared convinced his career resumé will be enough to attract offers.
“I know what I’m worth,” Andersen said back in April.
That may be true. But there’s no denying he’s negotiating from a difficult place. He’s undoubtedly got a lot to prove. He’s only asking to get paid before he provides the on-ice evidence.
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