EDGE stats behind Andersen’s postseason success for Hurricanes

NHL.com's fantasy staff continues to cover the latest trends and storylines in the League through the lens of NHL EDGE puck and player tracker stats. Today, we take a look at the advanced metrics behind Carolina Hurricanes goalie Frederik Andersen's strong performance in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

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Backed by outstanding advanced stats in the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs, Frederik Andersen has led the Carolina Hurricanes to the Eastern Conference Final for the third time in the past six years.

The 35-year-old goalie is 7-2 with one shutout in nine games this postseason and leads the NHL with a .937 save percentage. Andersen is quietly one of 15 goalies in League history with at least 80 career playoff games and a save percentage of .915 or better (Andersen’s is .916), with other names on that list, including all-time greats at the position like Dominik Hasek, Martin Brodeur, Patrick Roy, Ken Dryden and Andrei Vasilevskiy.

Here are three EDGE stats behind Andersen’s postseason success:

1. High-danger saves

Andersen stopped 30 of 31 high-danger shots faced in five games against the Washington Capitals in the Eastern Conference Second Round and leads the NHL in high-danger save percentage (.923) this postseason. Andersen also leads goalies from the remaining playoff teams in percent of games with greater than a .900 save percentage (77.8; seven of nine games).

By far the winningest Denmark-born goalie (308 career regular-season wins; tied for 36th in NHL history), Andersen has persevered through injuries and a health concern (limited to 16 games last regular season because of blood-clotting issue) in recent years. He’s been a consistent performer when healthy since joining the Hurricanes in 2021-22: he has 100 wins, a .915 save percentage and 10 shutouts in 152 games over that span (regular season and playoffs combined) and leads the NHL in win percentage (.658) over that four-season span (minimum 50 games). On May 3, Carolina signed Andersen to a $2.75 million contract for next season.

2. Goal differential

Andersen has the best goal differential (plus-15) among NHL goalies this postseason. The Hurricanes, a perennial possession juggernaut in the regular season and playoffs, continue to thrive in those metrics: Carolina has the best offensive zone time percentage (46.6) and 5-on-5 shot attempts percentage (58.4) this postseason.

Six other goalies this postseason have seen the same or more goal support than Andersen (27 goals for; tied for fifth), including one timeshare goalie (Calvin Pickard of Edmonton Oilers: 28 goals for) and two goalies whose teams have been eliminated (Jordan Binnington of St. Louis Blues and Adin Hill of Vegas Golden Knights: also 27 goals for each). So, while Andersen may have been a product of the Hurricanes’ structured system in the past, he’s doing enough to carry the team this postseason to be considered its top Conn Smythe Trophy contender through two rounds.

3. Offensive zone save percentage (shots off cycle)

Per NHL EDGE IQ, powered by Amazon Web Services, Andersen has excelled against opponent shots on goal attempted off the cycle (offensive zone save percentage; excludes inferenced shot attempts coming within five seconds of crossing the opposing blue line). Andersen leads the League by a wide margin in save percentage against these shot types (.968); he is the only qualified goalie (minimum one playoff start) with a greater than .900 save percentage on shot attempts from an offensive zone play. The Capitals, who scored just four 5-on-5 goals in five second round games, had the fifth-highest Projected Goal Rate (PGR) on shot attempts from an offensive zone play during the regular season (5.37 percent).

The Hurricanes have a much higher offensive zone time percentage (48.2) than the Capitals (35.5) in the second round and also limited the New Jersey Devils in that category (37.8) in the first round, so Andersen's efficiency when either Washington or New Jersey has had extended zone time this postseason has helped the Hurricanes establish and maintain control of each series.

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More: NHL EDGE stats for Andersen