In the sixth round of the 2012 NHL Draft, the Buffalo Sabres selected goaltender Linus Ullmark from MODO of the Swedish Junior League. After playing 117 games for Buffalo and accumulating a winning record on one of the league’s bottom-dwellers.
On July 28, 2021, the Boston Bruins saw potential in Ullmark and signed him to a four-year, $20 million deal. At the time, fans and media considered the signing to be a reach, and a bit of an overpay. Bruins’ General Manager had drafted former University of Maine star Jeremy Swayman in the fourth round, and the Alaska native showed promise with a 7-3 record and 1.50 goals against average in his first 10 games with Boston. The Bruins also had young netminder Daniel Vladar and veteran Tuukka Rask, who had announced a temporary retirement.
Fast forward to 2022-23, Rask is permanently retired, Vladar is a Calgary Flame, and Swayman is now the backup to Boston’s MVP of the first quarter of the season, Linus Ullmark. The 6-foot-4, 216-pound goalie has been sparkling in net for Boston this season. A goalie competition at the beginning of the year was quickly won by Ullmark. Swayman missed a few games due to injury, and the big Swede carried the load.
The Bruins are 18-3-0 and became the first team in league history to win their first 12 home games. Ullmark is 13-1-0 with a shutout, a 2.00 goals-against average, and a .935 save percentage, which are best among goalies who have played at least 10 games. Ullmark has given up just 30 goals in 902 minutes of ice time. In Friday’s 3-2 overtime win over Carolina, Ullmark was injured when Connor Clifton fell on him during a scrum near the net. The early report is that Ullmark is day-to-day and the Bruins can ill afford to lose the netminder for any length of time.
It has been a historic start to the season for the Boston Bruins, with many players off to great starts. Right-wing David Pastrnak has totaled 32 points in 21 games. Defenseman Hampus Lindholm has 18 points and flourished while fellow blue-liner Charlie McAvoy recovered from off-season shoulder surgery. Centers Patrice Bergeron and David Krejci have combined for 36 points. Even the new Head Coach Jim Montgomery deserves MVP consideration for implementing a more dynamic offensive system and not being afraid to change the lines and move pieces around.
But in the first 21 games of the 82-game schedule, Ullmark has been the most consistent and the best rock in the net for Boston. The 29-year-old has become one of the top goaltenders in the league and makes the Bruins a legitimate contender for their seventh Stanley Cup in team history.
