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TSN Toronto Maple Leafs Reporter

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TORONTO – No NHL goaltender has carried a heavier workload this season than Frederik Andersen. But after backstopping the Toronto Maple Leafs to a 1-0 win over the Florida Panthers on Tuesday with a brilliant 40-save performance, it’s little wonder why the Leafs put so much trust in their starter.

A first-period marker from James van Riemsdyk was the game’s only goal in a back-and-forth affair that was ultimately decided by the puck-stopping prowess of Andersen and Panthers veteran Roberto Luongo. For the fifth time in 2017-18, Andersen halted all comers to set a new individual career-high in shutouts in one season. The victory was also Andersen’s 30th of the season, marking back-to-back seasons with the Leafs that he’s achieved that benchmark.

“It’s great, [when] you play well and have a good team in front of you; you’re going to be in this position. And when you play a lot, you’re hopefully going to get a lot of wins,” said Andersen. “These are always fun. The game was tough from the beginning, the ice was a little tough; pucks were bouncing on guys’ sticks so I knew it could be a low-scoring game. Had to be sharp.”

Andersen became the franchise’s fifth goaltender since 1955-56 to register multiple shutouts in a season when making at least 40 saves, a feat he previously accomplished on Nov. 16 with 42 stops in an overtime win over the New Jersey Devils. The 28-year-old has not only made more starts than any goalie in the league (51) and significantly more saves (1,611), but his .928 save-percentage since Nov. 1 is now tops among regular starters.

So when Tuesday’s action turned into a goalie duel with Luongo, Andersen was prepared to flash his mettle once again. The Leafs (37-20-5) started slow out of the gate, getting outshot 7-1 by Florida (26-25-6) in the first five minutes and 31-40 by night’s end, but the early work helped Andersen establish a rhythm he wouldn’t break away from.

“He made some big stops for us and was the difference in the game, for sure,” said van Riemsdyk. “I thought both teams played pretty well. We made some good little plays up and down the ice and were able to create chances off of that. I thought we played hard and tried to make it as hard as possible on them, and then Freddie was there when we needed him to be.”

That’s been a recurring theme for the Leafs all season, and Andersen has answered the bell more often than not. The Leafs give up the third-most shots on goal per game in the league (34.2) and have the third-most giveaways (746), but their goaltender has kept them alive at every turn. On Tuesday, some of Andersen’s most show-stopping saves came against Florida’s top scorer Aleksander Barkov (like during the first period when Andersen deflected the puck under himself) and on the penalty kill, when Colton Sceviour took off on a short-handed breakaway in the second that Andersen calmly thwarted.

“I don’t know if I’ve ever seen him not calm,” said defenceman Jake Gardiner, jokingly. “He makes it easy for us, plays the puck great, just real solid for us. He was unbelievable [tonight], had some huge saves, made every save we needed him to. He’s been good all year and that just shows tonight, he’s got confidence and he’s playing well.”

Andersen has also been the linchpin in Toronto’s season-long success in one-goal games, but on Tuesday proved he’s not the only factor either. With Tuesday’s victory, the Leafs move to 19-3-5 on the season in those situations; that number would be even higher if empty-net goals weren’t taken into account as well. Even on a night when the Leafs ceded 40 shots on goal, Andersen can see his teammates sticking to their systems, which helps him better anticipate what will unfold in front of him.

“[It was] very structured, especially given the fact everyone knew it could be low-scoring. We settled in and made sure we played tight defensively,” he said. “Everyone was blocking shots, even [Auston Matthews] at the end.”

“I also think you gave up shots there at the end because you’re ahead,” added coach Mike Babcock of his team’s defensive performance. “I thought their team played hard. I thought their goalie was good. I thought our goalie was good. We both had some good opportunities.”

As the Leafs’ indisputable MVP this season, and with a workload that’s not projected to decrease any time soon, Andersen will keep taking his opportunities as they come. Whatever criticisms may come Babcock’s way for playing his starter as much as he does, the challenge complements where Andersen is at in his career, mentally and physically.

“With him, I think the biggest thing that strikes you about him he is just wants to get better every day and is always looking for an edge,” said van Riemsdyk. “When you have that kind of attitude with the skill set that he has, he’s going to get better and better every day and every year, so we’re lucky to have a guy like that and he’s a huge part of our team.”

TAKEAWAYS

Little time, big rewards for JVR

Trade deadline season hasn’t been the easiest time of year for van Riemsdyk the last couple NHL seasons. His name is perennially in the headlines as a possible trade target, and tuning out the noise isn’t always as easy as players make it out to be. Whether it’s because of deadline distractions or just the depth of the Leafs shining through, van Riemsdyk has seen his even-strength time on the ice decline over the last couple of weeks, to the point he’s one of the least used top-nine forwards on Toronto’s roster. Since Feb. 7, van Riemsdyk has recorded the third-fewest minutes in 5-on-5 play, averaging 12:08 per game. Only rookie Kasperi Kapanen and journeyman Dominic Moore are playing less at even strength in that stretch. On Tuesday, van Riemsdyk played only 8:49 at 5-on-5, fourth-lowest among Leafs. Yet van Riemsdyk has found ways to produce in his limited even-strength minutes, recording his fifth such point in the last seven games with a first-period strike on Tuesday and his second game-winner in the Leafs’ last four games. The winger has an uncanny ability to put himself in the right position on the ice to maximize his scoring opportunities and he was able to do that again by catching Luongo off guard with a quick shot. Van Riemsdyk, who has at times been replaced higher up in the lineup by defensive specialists like Leo Komarov, may never be a strong two-way forward, but he continues to find ways to have an impact by maximizing the high-end offensive skill set that is projected to earn him a major contract when he hits unrestricted free agency on July 1. The goal on Tuesday was van Riemsdyk’s 25th of the season, putting him four shy of last season’s goal total in 82 games after only 61 games he’s played this season. He also recorded the third-highest possession of any forward on the ice for Toronto (57.14 per cent) This is the fifth season of van Riemsdyk’s nine-year NHL career that he’s potted at least 20 goals.

Marathon man

As the longest-tenured NHL player on the Leafs’ roster, Patrick Marleau seemingly hits a new milestone twice a month. On Tuesday, he skated in his 1,555th game, moving past Jarome Iginla for 12th on the NHL’s all-time games played list. When Toronto signed him as a free agent in July, Babcock said he expected Marleau would score 20 goals and bring a good veteran presence to the young Leafs, both of which have already materialized after just 62 games. Marleau came close to adding to his goal total on Tuesday, when Nazem Kadri fed him with a pass through the slot on a 2-on-1 rush, but Marleau missed the net from the short side. His line was back in the middle of the action later in the frame with another great chance teed up by Kadri for Marleau, but the Panthers smothered a second opportunity rebound before he could get a stick on it. Kadri’s line with Marleau and Mitch Marner has been Toronto’s most consistent trio since first being assembled in late January, and they were the strongest of Toronto’s top three lines against the Panthers as well. Marner has been electric during this last month, and was creating chances all over the ice for his linemates, which is positive until he passes up an open shot (like he did twice in the second) to feather a pass elsewhere. He set up Marleau again for another scoring chance in the third, but Luongo sealed off the post to hold Kadri’s line at bay. By night’s end, that trio had combined for seven shots on goal while hovering around 50-per-cent possession, second among the Leafs’ four rotating lines. And speaking of milestones, Gardiner also had a seminal game, recording the 200th point of his NHL career with an assist on van Riemsdyk’s goal.

Keeping up with Kapanen

After a couple of quiet games where he wasn’t as visible on Toronto’s fourth line, Kapanen had a solid outing against the Panthers alongside Moore and Komarov. On Tuesday morning, Babcock had spoken about the need for Kapanen to have the energy of a regular NHLer on a daily basis, and to be able to consistently sustain it through practices or games. On Tuesday, Kapanen was hard to miss each time he stepped on the ice, leading the way among Leafs forwards in possession and in even-strength shot attempts (10 for, three against) after 40 minutes. In the first period, he was one of the Leafs’ strongest skaters in an otherwise average frame. Other speedy wingers before him have had the same struggles trying to have a regular impact on the game playing fourth-line minutes, but each time Kapanen hits a lull, he’s found a way to adjust and come back strong. His play in the third period was especially strong, establishing a couple strong offensive zone shifts where he had the puck on a string and was feeding Moore and Komarov in front of the net. Kapanen led the way for Leafs in possession against Florida (68.75 per cent). When Babcock was asked after the game about how ice time has been distributed lately, he made a point of noting he could play Tyler Bozak’s third line more often, but he’s thought the fourth line has been really good of late. Kapanen is a major reason why. As he continues to evolve as a professional at this level, those minutes could inch even higher.

Next game

The Leafs continue their three-game homestand on Thursday against the New York Islanders.​