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The 2019-20 NHL campaign has not gone the way *anyone* planned. That holds especially true for Columbus Blue Jackets winger Josh Anderson.
Couple injury problems with a necessary pause due to COVID-19 and Anderson was only able to play in 26 regular season games. They didn’t go well, either.
Just a year removed from an impressive 27-goal breakout season, Anderson found the back of the net only once and put up just four points.
Those totals are disappointing under any circumstances. Even more so when you consider some of the opportunities available with Artemi Panarin, Matt Duchene and Ryan Dzingel, among others, departing the organization.
Anderson’s season realistically couldn’t have gone worse. That hasn’t stopped teams from expressing interest in him, though. The Calgary Flames are reportedly one seemingly many parties to do so.
This from Aaron Portzline of The Athletic:
Anderson is a highly-sought after trade commodity and likely will be moved in the next 12 months (Calgary is very interested).
As poorly as Anderson’s season went, I can see why the Flames – or any other team – would have interest.
He has netted 36 goals at 5v5 since the beginning of the 2017-18 season. That equals names like Filip Forsberg, Taylor Hall, Tyler Toffoli and T.J. Oshie. Pretty solid players.
As solid as Anderson’s volume numbers are, he looks even better in terms of efficiency. Anderson has averaged .90 goals per 60 during that ~three-year window, tying him for 68th with the likes of Jack Eichel. He scores goals at a 1st line rate.
He also plays very physical hockey and has the versatility to kill penalties, which is probably why he is so enticing to teams like Calgary.
There are some holes in Anderson’s game, though. He is not a big-time play driver. He’s not somebody who is going to dissect defenses with precision passing. He also plays a very taxing style that may not age well.
For me, it all comes down to the price. If an injury-plagued four-point campaign helps knock the ask down, by all means pursue it.
If the cost of doing business is buying Anderson based off his near 30 goal season in 2018-19, and handing him a lucrative contract extension to cover his late 20s (and potentially early 30s), then the Flames would be best steering clear.
I have a feeling the former is more likely to be the case.
numbers via naturalstattrick.com
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