The Bill Masterton Trophy isn’t the highlight of Craig Anderson’s 2016-17 season, but it’s a fitting way to cap an emotional year both on and off the ice.
Most importantly for Anderson and his family is that his wife Nicholle was declared cancer-free. Anderson spent significant portions of this past campaign by her side during her brave battle, but when he did play, the Ottawa Senators goalie showed remarkable poise.
He was a big part of the Senators making the postseason and then falling a mere double-overtime Game 7 battle short from advancing to the 2017 Stanley Cup Final.
Of course, this award is about more than what he did on the ice. You could see as much during his emotional acceptance speech, which left Nicholle in tears.
Say hi, Andersons! 👋 #NHLAwards https://t.co/TPqLk6VHgb
— NHL (@NHL) June 22, 2017
The other finalists were Derek Ryan (Carolina Hurricanes) and Andrew Cogliano (Anaheim Ducks).
This seems like an appropriate moment to also mention this year’s charity award winners.