Tag: Linus Ullmark

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Disaster strikes the Boston Bruins just hours before Game 1.

Keystone

It’s hard to imagine how Monday morning could possibly get any worse for the Boston Bruins.

Bruins head coach Jim Montgomery has just shared what can only be described as a boatload of bad news on Monday morning, just hours before his team is set to face off against the Florida Panthers for Game 1 of their first round Stanley Cup playoffs series.

Perhaps the biggest news of the day comes in the form of a call up, with the Bruins calling up Brandon Bussi from the American Hockey League’s Providence Bruins on an emergency basis. The call up of Bussi appears to indicate that the Bruins aren’t sure both Linus Ullmark and Jeremy Swayman will be ready to play for Game 1, and there is good reason for those concerns.

Swayman missed practice on Sunday with what Montgomery described as an illness, although he did skate on Monday morning, as did Linus Ullmark. Montgomery though describe Ullmark as a “gametime decision” which may indicate that he is also feeling somewhat under the weather.

Bussi has never appeared in an NHL game before so it would be a huge step up for him to enter the Stanley Cup playoffs. That being said, he had an outstanding performance with the Providence Bruins of the AHL this season, recording a 2.40 goals against average and a .924 save percentage over 32 games.

It sounds like there is some kind of bug floating around the Bruins locker room and it sounds like several key members of the Bruins roster may be dealing with that illness at this time. Montgomery confirmed that David Krejci is in, Derek Forbort is in, and that Nick Foligno is likely to play, but the lineup remains up in the air given the questionable status of some players.

Bruins captain Patrice Bergeron will also be a gametime decision, and you have to suspect that if he misses Game 1 the Bruins will be heavily criticized for having him play against the Montreal Canadiens in a meaningless game at the end of the regular season.

The last thing you want at this stage of the season is an illness going around the locker room, and unfortunately disaster seems to have struck the Bruins at the worst possible time.

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Andrew Raycroft has bold prediction for Linus Ullmark

BarDown

Boston Bruins goaltender Linus Ullmark his having himself a career year amidst the rest of his team running away with the best record in the National Hockey League. In fact, Ullmark has helped the Bruins establish the new record for most wins by a team in a single regular season campaign with 63. 

As of right now, Ullmark boasts a sparkling record of 40-6-1 with a 1.89 goals against average, .938 save percentage along with two shutouts. Oh, and there was also the matter of his having become the first goalie in the near century-long history of the Bruins to score a goal.

Ullmark almost assuredly will be a finalist for the Vezina Trophy as the League’s top goaltender. And his campaign has certainly caught the attention of a former Bruins goaltender who picked up some hardware of his own. Andrew Raycroft, who won the Calder Trophy in 2004 as the NHL’s best rookie, believes that the season Ullmark is enjoying will never be repeated. 

“Linus Ullmark winning 40 games in 48 starts will never be matched again,” Raycroft wrote on Twitter following Boston’s 5-2 win last night over the Washington Capitals. “Nuts.” 

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Bruins forced to take precautionary measures ahead of postseason

Spectrum Local News

The Boston Bruins have already set the modern NHL record for most wins in a regular season campaign with 63, and goaltender Linus Ullmark has played a huge role in his team’s incredible success. A surefire nominee for the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goaltender, he’s enjoyed a career best 40 wins combined with a sparkling 1.89 goals against average, .938 save percentage and two shutouts. 

However, there was a bit of concern during last night’s game, a 5-2 victory over the visiting Washington Capitals at TD Garden. Ullmark was removed from the game midway through the third period and replaced with Jeremy Swayman; Ullmark appeared to have tweaked something while making a save. 

The good news is that according to head coach Jim Montgomery, Ullmark is “fine” and that removing him from the game was simply a precautionary move. 

“Just precautionary,” Montgomery said. “He’s going to be fine. Just some muscle-tightening. That’s all.”

Even so, the team has made a roster move, calling up goaltender Brandon Bussi from the American Hockey League affiliate Providence Bruins. Meanwhile, Ullmark will not be traveling with the team for their final game against the rival Montreal Canadiens tomorrow night. 

“Linus is good today. But we’re going to be precautionary with him,” Montgomery said.

Bussi has amassed a record of 21-5-4 with a 2.38 goals against average and .925 save percentage in 31 games played with Providence this season.