‘Just go get it’: In season full of bounce-backs, Hurricanes goalie needs one more
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Frederik Andersen posted a 12-2 playoff record with a 1.65 goals against average.
- Andersen recorded a .920 playoff save percentage and three shutouts in the run.
- Claude Lemieux, Andersen's friend and agent, died May 28; Andersen won Game 5.
For Carolina Hurricanes goalie Frederik Andersen, the winding road to league-leading success in the Stanley Cup Playoffs has not been an easy ride.
The Canes’ top netminder, a five-year member of the team and 13-year NHL veteran, did not find a lot of success during the 2025-26 regular season, playing fewer than half the team’s games and finishing with a 3.05 goals against average.
But, the Hurricanes’ Game 1 Stanley Cup Final loss to Vegas notwithstanding, Andersen has been stellar throughout the 2026 Stanley Cup playoffs.
The goalie known as the Great Dane is 12-2 with a 1.65 goals against average and a .920 save percentage, with three shutouts.
Andersen’s playoff journey has also been marked by the death of longtime friend and agent, Claude Lemieux, which he admitted has been hard. But, he’s pushed through.
Andersen’s bounce back
Andersen’s regular season started well — he went 4-1 in his first five starts, but things quickly turned sour. He won just three games in 16 starts in November, December and January combined. His save percentage remained below .850 across those games, and as the NHL approached the Olympic break and then the trade deadline, many across the league wondered whether the Hurricanes would make a move to replace Andersen in the lineup.
Brandon Bussi, who has been the Canes’ backup during these playoffs, played four more games than Andersen during the regular season after being claimed off waivers in the preseason, and finished with a remarkable 31-6-2 record.
Following the league’s Olympic break in February, though, Andersen found his form. He won six of his next seven games, and finished the season with an .874 save percentage in 35 regular season games played. Most importantly, he won nine of 13 starts, allowing two or fewer goals in seven of those starts.
Playoff Freddie, and fighting through loss
Then came the playoffs.
Behind Andersen, the Hurricanes swept their first two series against Ottawa and Philadelphia. Andersen didn’t allow more than two goals in any single game. After a brief aberration in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Final, in which he allowed six goals, Andersen was back to his old self in Games 2-5 — despite an unimaginable tragedy.
Between Games 4 and 5 of the Eastern Conference Final, on May 28, Andersen’s agent and friend Claude Lemieux died.
The next day, in Game 5, Andersen made 23 saves and led the Canes to a 6-1 victory, clinching their spot in the Stanley Cup Final.
Canes coach Rod Brind’Amour after that game said Andersen was “amazing.”
“We knew, obviously, that this was going to be tough for him with the nature of what happened. To be honest, we weren’t sure if he was going to be able to play. You just don’t know how that was going to shake out,” Brind’Amour said. “But obviously he shook it off and battled through it. And you saw the emotion after the game. It’s a tough time for him, but he made us all proud, for sure.”
This season, following team wins, the Canes have bestowed “The Rope” to a valued player, a symbol passed from player to player instead of the coaches.
Following Game 5, forward Sebastian Aho praised multiple players in the locker room before awarding the honor to Andersen, who became emotional.
“I just can’t thank you guys enough for the way you guys supported me [the] last two days,” he said, per a video from Canes social media. “It’s been special. Let’s get four more.”
TNT’s Jackie Redmond interviewed Andersen after Game 5. She asked what Andersen believed Lemieux’s advice would be heading into the finals.
Andersen’s answer summarized his journey all season.
“Just go get it,” Andersen told her. “[Lemieux] wanted it so much for me and this team.”
After another Game 1 setback in the Stanley Cup Final, Andersen and the Hurricanes will try to do exactly that. The Canes face the Golden Knights in Game 2 Thursday at 8 p.m. at Lenovo Center.
