Anderson pays tribute to Bryan Murray in latest mask design

It seems like each season Craig Anderson finds new ways to make the design of his mask and pads stand out and this year is no different. Not only did he to pay tribute to one of the team's most influential leaders but was also able to "outsource" the design of his goalie gear to one of his biggest supporters.

Upon revealing the new paint job for his mask on his
Instagram account
and
website
on Wednesday, fans were quick to notice the tribute to former Senators general manager Bryan Murray.
"I really like the look of the O logo so I asked my designer Sylvie if we could do something with that and include Bryan Murray in it like I had done a few years ago with Alfie," Anderson said. "I gave her a list of about 5 things I was looking for and she came back with the final design and absolutely nailed it."
Some of the other elements he was looking to have included this season by designer
Sylvie Marsolais
were reverting the #41 on the chin back to 'Andy', including the Corvette skull to help showcase his American heritage and of course the nod to his former GM.

Murray, who passed away from colon cancer on August 12th, 2017, pulled the trigger on Anderson's acquisition from the Colorado Avalanche in February of 2011 and the veteran goaltender found an innovative way to share his appreciation for the man that brought him to the Senators.
"My career took a turn for the better once I met Bryan," shared Anderson. "When I came to Ottawa, Bryan was the first person waiting to shake my hand and welcome me to the team. He really made me feel human. After every game, win or lose, when you'd run into him in the hallway he'd always ask how you were doing and if you were ok."
"So much of that gets lost in this game where if you don't perform then there are consequences and that's when the negativity builds," he said. "Bryan always showed that he cared about you as a person and he knew that if you were doing well off the ice, that you would perform well on the ice."
Like Murray, the Anderson's also dealt with their own public battle with the disease during the fall of 2016 after Craig's wife Nicholle was diagnosed with nasopharyngeal carcinoma, a rare form of cancer in the nose and throat, before announcing that she was cancer-free on May 25th, 2017.
For the second season in a row, her now famous words "Live for the now" appear on the back plate of Anderson's latest mask flanked by their son's Jake and Levi's names. But that wouldn't be their only contributions to his gear this offseason. When it came time to make some design decisions for his pads and gloves, Anderson tasked his family with coming up with ideas.
"My equipment rep sent me a bunch of sample images for my pads and I started to go through them," said Anderson. "I always involve my wife in the process because she has more of an artsy side to her than I do and this year she said: 'Let me design them'."
"So I had the company send me a blank template and I printed off 3 or 4 copies and my wife decided to make it a project for her and the kids," he continued. "She starts drawing the pads, Levi was just colouring over everything but Jake took some interest in it. He really put some time into his design and came up with these cool pads."
Anderson sent his son's design off to the manufacturer to have it digitized and was thrilled with the end result.
"We didn't tell him that we were doing it," Anderson said about using Jake's design. "He was super excited when they arrived."

Now 37, Anderson stressed the importance of his family on his career and how including small personal touches for them on his gear is just a small token to show his appreciation.
"I don't think I'd be where I am today without them," he said. "I've seen myself and my game grow since 2010 when we got married. We've gone through ups and downs together but at the end of the day, no matter what happens at the rink, I can go home and I know I have a solid foundation."
You can see more pictures of Craig Anderson's new mask and
here
.