Sabres sign G Craig Anderson after playoff heroics with Caps originally appeared on NBC Sports Washington
Goaltender Craig Anderson has been signed by the Buffalo Sabres after one season in Washington. Anderson’s new deal in Buffalo is worth $750,000 over one year.
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Capitals fans will remember Anderson for his heroic, short-notice performance in Game 1 vs. the Boston Bruins in the 2021 Stanley Cup Playoffs. Starting netminder Vitek Vanecek went down in the first period of that contest with an injury, and Washington needed someone to step up.
Enter Anderson. Just six days before the Illinois native’s 40th birthday, he stopped 21 of 22 shots faced, enabling Nic Dowd to win the game in overtime by a final score of 3-2. Washington would end up losing the next four contests and bow out after the first round, but Anderson remained a local hero thanks to his Game 1 tour-de-force.
The signing also plugs the massive hole the Sabres had at the goalie position. They had literally zero netminders on the roster after losing Linus Ullmark to Boston in free agency. Buffalo also signed veteran Aaron Dell to an identical contract as Anderson. Dell played 32 games in San Jose in 2019-20. Anderson played a total of six games for the Capitals, posting a 2.13 GAA and .915 save percentage in the regular season.
