TSN analyst Ray Ferraro said it best on the TSN pregame show:
"...But the bar can't be lowered, once you play in the game you have to be held to the same standard. Anderson wants to hold himself to that standard and help his team turn around the loss in Calgary"
Facing perhaps the most explosive offense in the NHL, Anderson and his teammates shut down the Oilers, with the Ottawa goalie turning aside 37 shots for the shutout, including 18 in the third period as Edmonton pressed for the equalizing goal. There were at least half a dozen point blank, spectacular saves for Anderson in the game, and at the end of the night he showed his emotions as did his teammates, not to mention the fans in Edmonton when he was announced as the game's first star.
While Anderson's performance in such trying conditions was pretty remarkable, the team in front of him did the job as well. For the first ten or so minutes, it looked like they were in trouble and they were holding on for dear life against the speed of the Oilers. While Ottawa wants to play a fast game, the Oilers are simply fast, and it took a while for Ottawa to get to that pace.
After killing off three Oilers power plays in the first period, the play became more even and Mike Hoffman finally notched his first of the season off some nice work behind the net by Tom Pyatt just past the midway point of the game. That goal was a long time coming for Hoffman, and it seemed to spark his game and give him some confidence with the puck.
Ottawa was in good shape in terms of shots allowed, with 19 through 40 minutes, but as you would expect the Oilers pressed and put 18 shots on Anderson in the third to make it look more one-sided than it actually was. There were some close calls, and they were hanging on for dear life shift by shift over the last few minutes, but Bobby Ryan tallied in the empty net to ensure the Senators would come away with the win and Anderson did the rest for his second straight shutout (after a 22 save effort in Vancouver before taking his leave of absence).
Now the questions facing the club in goal are still present, because that type of performance would be difficult to duplicate, and the emotion and focus involved would be impossibly draining on him to expect that night after night. It will be a day to day thing for Anderson as the program for Nicholle Anderson's treatment gets put into place this week. Anderson could be here for a game, a week, or a month. Or, he might not be around at all for a while.
Whatever happens going forward, on a night that could have easily gone the other way, Anderson held himself to the standard, and did not lower the bar, and in fact he raised it to an almost impossible level.