Andersen a Part of Leafs Practice, How Team May Address Cap Issues

There is good news if you’re a Toronto Maple Leafs fan as goaltender Frederik Andersen took part in Monday’s practice with the team and reports are he’s making progress when it comes to a return to the team, and prior to the end of this year’s regular season.

How that would work exactly isn’t entirely clear when it comes to the salary cap, but Shawn McKenzie and Chris Johnston of Sportsnet talked about that a little during a report today, noting that a conditioning stint in the AHL might be an option to get Andersen some game action. Doing so won’t require the team take him off of LTIR. Of course, the Leafs will have to watch their step as the NHL has already noted they’ll crack down on teams who have healthy players and only activating them for the playoffs when they could be ready sooner.

Considering Andersen said he’d like to play prior to just being thrown into the playoffs, it’s clear the Maple Leafs will have to figure things out.

Andersen took part in a full practice for the first time in over a month. He was out there for over 90 minutes and while Johnston says his return isn’t imminent, the Leafs are leaving it up to the player to determine how his knee feels. The signs were good and this was a big step forward for the goaltender.

Andersen said is focus is to take things day by day and hopefully get into the some game action, but he suggests there’s a little time. He said getting up to speed is the first challenge and he wants to keep up with the pace of play and that’s where he’s focusing his time.

What About His Value and Contract?

When asked if getting back into games was at all a result of thoughts regarding playing in a contract year, Andersen said that didn’t weigh in on his decision. He just wants to be a part of the team, contribute to the group and that he knows what his value is as a goalie in the NHL.

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