Beyond the staggering numbers, Anderson's legacy can quite literally be seen as the bridge between generations of the Senators history books. The early stages of his Senators tenure saw him as the last line of defence for teams that featured Ottawa legends like Daniel Alfredsson, Chris Phillips and Chris Neil. The latter part of his tenure saw him playing alongside current leaders Brady Tkachuk and Thomas Chabot.
Additionally, Anderson back the Senators during their most successful seasons since their 2007 trip to the Stanley Cup final. during the team's 2017 playoff run, Anderson nabbed the team 11 wins while boasting a 0.922% save percentage and just a 2.34 goals against average.
While it may be easy enough to sum up Anderson's legacy by the wins and his name littered throughout the Sens record books, his greatest accomplishment may have come off the ice. During the 2016-17 NHL season when his wife Nicholle was diagnosed and battling throat cancer, Anderson opted to take time away from the game he loved to be there for the one he loved when she needed him most. In all Anderson played in just 40 games that season, 20 fewer than the year before, however while he and his family fought the fight of their lives off the ice, he put up one of his best ever seasons on the ice. Claiming 25 wins with a 0.926% save percentage and just a 2.28 goals against average, Anderson carried his weight and then some that year.
His efforts were not lost on the NHL world as he took home the Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy that season, awarded to the player who best exemplifies the qualities of perserverance, sportsmanship and dedication to ice hockey. To say that he summed that up during the 2016-17 NHL season and subsequent playoff run almost sounds like an understatement.
