Former Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark debuted for the Ottawa Senators in preseason action Thursday night. The 2022-23 Vezina Trophy winner showed his new club and its fans why he's elite between the pipes.
Ullmark stopped 28 of the 29 shots he faced for a .966 save percentage in his start against the division rival Buffalo Sabres. The Senators netminder stopped all eight of Buffalo's power-play shots and one shorthanded bid in just over 30 minutes.
"He's had a full game's work in about 27 minutes, so he's looked pretty sharp," Senators coach Travis Green said midway through the second period on the TSN Broadcast, per Ottawa Citizen's Bruce Garrioch. "If it wasn't for him, we'd be down about four or five to one by now."
The Senators lost the preseason contest 3-2 in overtime, but Dustin Tokarski took the loss.
Ottawa fans flocked to social media to react to Ullmark's debut. Here are just a few of the best:
Ullmark may have had an outstanding night in net, but he called the beginning of his game "sloppy," according to Sportsnet's Alex Adams.
The Bruins traded Ullmark to the Senators in exchange for forward Mark Kastelic, goaltender Joonas Korpisalo and the No. 25 overall pick (Dean Letourneau) in this year's NHL draft on June 24.
Ullmark tied Boston's franchise record of 40 wins along with a .938 save percentage and a 1.89 goals-against average in the Bruins' historic 65-win 2022-23 season. He posted a .924 save percentage, a 2.28 goals-against average and an overall record of 88-26-10 in three seasons for the Black and Gold.
