OTTAWA, ON - FEBRUARY 15: Ottawa Senators Goalie Craig Anderson (41) after a whistle during second period National Hockey League action between the Toronto Maple Leafs and Ottawa Senators on February 15, 2020, at Canadian Tire Centre in Ottawa, ON, Canada.

Capitals sign Craig Anderson to PTO

5 years ago
Icon Sportswire / Getty

The Washington Capitals signed veteran goaltender Craig Anderson to a professional tryout contract, the team announced Sunday.

Anderson, who was an unrestricted free agent, heads to the U.S. capital after spending a decade with the Ottawa Senators.

He appeared in 34 games with Ottawa last year, posting a .902 save percentage and a minus-7.95 goals saved above average, along with 14 quality starts.

The 39-year-old's signing comes less than two weeks after the Capitals lost veteran goaltender Henrik Lundqvist for the season due to a heart condition.

Ilya Samsonov will likely be Washington's No. 1 goalie in 2020-21, so the battle for the backup job will be between Anderson and Vitek Vanecek.

Anderson is the Senators' all-time leader in games played by a netminder by a wide margin (435 to Patrick Lalime's 283). He's also tied with Robin Lehner for the franchise's all-time best save percentage (.914) while playing 349 more contests with Ottawa.

Senators general manager Pierre Dorion confirmed in late September the club wouldn't re-sign Anderson.

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