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Maple Leafs’ Big Unit Came Back: He’s Lonely Without Us, Marner Reports

Toronto Maple Leafs goalie Frederik Andersen lost in overtime, but his body seemed healed. What did Mitch Marner say about his teammate?

The Toronto Maple Leafs lost in overtime to the Ottawa Senators by a score of 4-3. What was special about the game was that Frederik Andersen was back in the Maple Leafs’ net after almost two months of healing and rehab. Andersen had noted recently that the injury was his knee, which didn’t allow him to move side-to-side with strength or speed in the net. That lack of movement is not so good for an NHL goalie.

Related: Maple Leafs’ Short Shots: 6 Thoughts about the New-Look “Playoff” Lineup

The Game Was a Great Tune-up for Andersen

The game as a tune-up start was perfect for Andersen; as a win for the team – well, not so much. On the night Andersen let in four goals on 28 shots in the overtime loss to a rapidly-improving Senators team. Make no mistake, Ottawa is going to be good over the next few seasons.

It was Andersen’s first start since March 19, but it didn’t take long to hit the showers in overtime. Young Ottawa center Josh Norris deposited a good pass from Brady Tkachuk on a 2-on-1 rush to score just nine seconds into overtime when Mitch Marner made an ill-advised pass off the boards that Tkachuk anticipated and – by the time the Maple Leafs knew what was happing – it was in the back of the net.

Frederik Andersen Toronto Maple Leafs
Frederik Andersen, Toronto Maple Leafs

With the loss, Andersen’s record fell to 13-8-2 on the season, with a goals-against-average of 2.91, and a save percentage of .897. As noted, the game was a tune-up and, although the team worked hard to win, the fact that (a) Andersen showed that his body was up to the task and (b) no Maple Leafs’ player was injured in the game were more important in the long run than the extra point the team would have gained had they won.

Jack Campbell’s Great Season or Not, Andersen’s Team Loves Him as a Teammate

Prior to the game tonight, Maple Leafs’ forward Marner – who ironically made the errant pass that was converted into the Senators goal that won the game – spoke about why it was so great having Andersen back in the net. In short, Andersen gives Maple Leafs a sense of confidence.

In the video below, Maple Leafs’ forward Mitch Marner discusses just that – what it means to have “the Big Unit” back in net. However, the interview was insightful for a couple of other reasons. First, it’s obvious that the team is close knit: even when Andersen was out of the lineup, he was missed by his teammates.

[Maple Leafs’ fans recall that Andersen spent much of the COVID-19 break with Auston Matthews at Matthews’ home in Arizona. They got close. No surprise – that’s part of being a team.]

The second thing Marner said was that he was pleased that Andersen’s mental game had stayed strong even though he had experienced a really tough stretch of time off due to injury.

Mitch Marner on His Friend and Teammate Frederik Andersen

In the video, Marner noted that Andersen was “a big part of this team. It (having him back) does a lot for us when he’s in that net and so everyone’s excited to have the Big Unit back. We got to make sure we play smart and be ready in front of him.”

Finally, Marner commented on Andersen’s long road back from his knee injury. What was interesting about what Marner said was that a difficult part of the rehab was that Andersen was by himself healing and rehabbing.

Marner put it this way, “I’m sure there’s times when he definitely felt by himself or felt lonely and stuff like that, especially when we went on those road trips and he had to stay back.”

Marner added as a final comment: “We know what kind of goalie he is in the net for us and what he brings to this team confidence-wise. He’s grinded. He’s worked his butt off to get back into the shape [where] he thinks he’s the best possible goalie he can be.”

Related: Maple Leafs’ Shots: Simmonds, Der-Arguchintsev, Liljegren & More

The NHL Is a Profession and All That, But …

For me, listening to Marner talk and thinking about other things I’ve heard this season, it makes me pause to consider what happens when Andersen moves to a different team – which I expect him to do this offseason. These guys become good friends as they hang out and work together to go after their goal of winning a Stanley Cup.

It can’t be easy leaving a team you’ve spent so many years being a part of – if, indeed, that happens with Andersen. He will be missed.

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  4. Pingback: Maple Leafs’ Frederik Andersen Deserves More Appreciation

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