Anderson stopping pucks at a record pace
By Aaron Bell
JP Anderson is taking stingy to a whole new level and it’s got him a place in the record books.
The 18-year-old netminder for the Mississauga St. Michael’s Majors posted three shutouts and just one goal against in the Majors’ opening round playoff sweep of the Belleville Bulls.
Anderson surrendered a goal early in the second period of Game 1 of the series before shutting the door for the next 215:47, including a 21-save shutout in Game 4 on Tuesday to close out the series. He’s the first goalie to post three consecutive shutouts in the OHL playoffs.
“I think that just as a whole our team has done a really good job in the playoffs,” Anderson said. “The guys came out hard and they really paid attention to detail at both ends of the ice. They did a really good job on the penalty kill and just working hard to get pucks down low and that made my job easier.”
Anderson enjoyed a tremendous season and helped the Majors win their first Hamilton Spectator Trophy as the OHL’s regular season champions. But in the playoffs, he’s taken things to a whole new level.
Anderson allowed just one goal on 79 shots in the entire series. The Toronto native has a remarkable 0.25 goals against average and .987 save percentage so far in the playoffs.
“JP had to make some tremendous saves when called upon,”Majors’ co-coach James Boyd said after the Game 4 win. “There were a few times due to specialty teams play that he went a long time without seeing any action and then they had a few quick chances in a row. It was a difficult series for him to play in as a goaltender but he was certainly sharp.”
Despite Anderson’s remarkable accomplishments in the opening round of the playoffs, he is keeping an even keel to make sure that he has the right attitude to help the Majors to an extended playoff run. When asked if he understood exactly what he accomplished in the first round sweep of the Bulls, Anderson smiled and said “yes,we won four games.”
“I just try to approach stuff the same way,” Anderson said. “I try not to over-think things. Stuff’s been going really well right now so I just try to roll with it and stay focused. I don’t necessarily try to change things a whole lot (in the playoffs).”
“It’s definitely a fun time of year – the stakes are higher. But as far as my approach goes, I just try to keep it the same.”
The Majors are hosting the MasterCard Memorial Cup in May and are looking forward to an extended playoff run – and their first OHL championship – as a prelude to the national championship tournament.
But even with their dominant defensive performance over the Bulls in the opening round, Boyd said that the Majors will have to find a way to build on the 11 goals that they scored through four games.
“We preach a defence-first game,” Boyd said. “It’s not that we’re anti-offence but 11 goals scored in a series isn’t enough for us either. We like the commitment to defence that our guys showed – they did a good job – but weve got to find a way to get some more greasy goals.”