After eight weeks away from the Ottawa Senators while his wife underwent radiation and chemotherapy treatments for throat cancer, Craig Anderson returned to the team Monday with a different outlook on the game he's fortunate enough to play for a living.

The simple message, the goalie told Ken Warren of the Ottawa Sun, is that there's more to life than hockey:

It makes you realize how lucky and fortunate we are to play a game we love. Win or lose, it's a hockey game, there's more to life. You learn that when you have kids, but when you go through something this traumatic and difficult, hockey is a job. I'm passionate about it, but at the end of the day, hockey will go on, whether I'm in it or not. You don't know how much time you have with someone. Life is precious.

Having said that, Anderson is looking to resume his duties as the team's starting goalie, and has been working with goaltending coach Pierre Groulx toward that end.

The time away, however, has basically put him back in training camp mode.

"Timing is everything," Anderson said. "I skated for a few days before coming in here, but nothing replaces actual shots. It's going to be a work in progress. I have to find a way to battle through it and get my game as quickly as possible."

Mike Condon will continue to start in the meantime, with Andrew Hammond serving as backup until Anderson is back in game shape. At that point, general manager Pierre Dorion will have a decision to make regarding who stays and who goes.

Anderson has appeared in 19 games for the Senators this season, posting a 12-6-1 record with a .924 save percentage.

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